11/30/2024
A bit vulnerable, but here we are- A few weeks ago my daughter didn’t have school so she came to the shop with me. She’s been coming since we first opened 4 years ago and has seen the business in all phases and locations and seasons. After a few hours in the shop she kept asking, “Mom…where are all the people?? Like before.” Kids can be so blunt and so intuitive…and so right. It stung hearing that, but she had a point. Here is a 5 year old picking up on the fact that things have drastically changed, and not just for us but for so many small businesses I’ve talked to- especially retailers. People are not shopping at small businesses as much as they were, most shopping is done online and everyone is saving their money and holding out for steep discounts (I get it), which is something extremely difficult to even offer when you’re working with other small business owners with low margins.
Election year has worn me down in a way I didn’t know was possible, but more importantly, 4 years into our business and we feel like we are starting from scratch. I was recently sent an award from Shopify for reaching a big sales number milestone this past Summer and it couldn’t have felt more out of touch with our current reality. Last year we were runner-up for best boutique and this year we were just trying to survive. A crazy contrast to experience. I know people don’t want to hear about the behind the scenes and stressful things about running a business and I’ve mostly been quiet about it all, but it has effected us SO much and that is the very stressful reality I -and so many others- have been living with. So here is a friendly reminder…
Today is Small Business Saturday and I encourage you to shop small for the sake of our communities staying special and unique. We don’t want every town looking the same with the same few chains on every corner. Tag your favorite small business below and let’s encourages friends and family to shop small this year!
Wishing all my fellow small business owners a very busy Small Business Saturday!
All my love,
Marika ❤️