Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Steven Tummino. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Steven, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Risking taking is a huge part of most people’s story but too often society overlooks those risks and only focuses on where you are today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big risk or a small one – but walk us through the backstory.

Our Biggest risk would be starting our business. I was a full-time college student at the time and David was a full time retail manager, we didn’t necessarily have an immense amount of free time but we had a love and passion for nature and ways to bring it into our home. We found ourselves spending all our free time perfecting our own space exploring the outdoors and bringing it into our design. Eventually we ran out of space(2019) and decided to turn our own passion for natural design into a shop for others to do the same. With both of our love for nature, design and the pursuit of a natural calming space we started doing shows whenever possible, selling plants, terrariums and other forms of natural elements to use in home decor. thus began the start of Root Rot. Show after show we kept moving towards our goal of a brick and mortar shop. We withstood the pandemic by switching to an online shop and then back to shows until the summer of 2021 when we opened our first brick and mortar shop. Throughout our almost 4 years of running Root Rot we have faced many trials and tribulations all of which help us to grow and improve Root rot. We hope to continue to help others bring their love for nature into their home as we have.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Root Rot Is natural lifestyle boutique . We sell an assortment of different items from plants and crystals to natural curiosities and apothecary. All surrounded by our design of natural elements and antique furnishings. We pride ourselves on ethical sourcing of all our products, from our plant growers to the small businesses we carry in store. Each item is carefully vetted before it hits our selves. We strive to provide our customers with a space that transports the outdoors in and helps them to find ways of bringing nature into their own spaces. The thing that makes us most proud is when a customer says our space gives them peace or how relaxing they find our shop. Our biggest goal of Root Rot is to bring people joy and peace through the elements of nature.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

We first opened our pop-up shops in 2019 into 2020 and had to deal with multiple closures, reinventing ways to reach our customers through social media and multiple avenues that weren’t in person. We also opened our first brick and mortar with very little knowledge on being business owners and learned as we grew. We spent countless hours perfecting our shops ever-evolving stock and the ways to keep it fresh and interesting for our customers. When first opening the shop, there were certainly times when we were unsure where to turn next, how to navigate being a business owner while also working other jobs and being a full time college student. For about a year we worked 5 days a week and ran the shop 7 days a week for our customer seamlessly trying to make ends meet. We thankfully had incredible people around us who’s knowledge and guidance helped us to figure out how to correctly open a shop and run it effectively. It is definitely scary being a small business owner, but standing strong in our core values has helped us get through hurdles.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

From our experience the best source of new clients is through word of mouth. Providing customers with a wonderful and memorable experience to tie along with the products you offer, Will have people sharing their experience and recommending a visit to you business.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://rootrotnatureshop.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/root_rot/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rootrotbotanicals