After my son was born, I became a stay-at-home mom. With childcare prices here in the US, it was the only option for our family. It was cheaper for me to stay home than it was to pay for daycare and work. I struggled to find my identity after that. I had always worked at a regular 9-5 job since I left college. I felt lost. I have always been creative and needed to channel that energy. I was looking for an outlet.

Fast forward a couple of months. My mom was donating many items to Goodwill, and she had this old, broken 1970s Kenmore sewing machine. I told her I wanted it and said I would fix it up. I got it to work most of the way, but I still couldn’t backstitch. I started watching YouTube tutorials on sewing in between bottles and naps. I started creating my patterns and designs and used my son as my first model. The clothing and accessories began to get better and better with each project. I started making gifts and presents for friends. Then, one day, at my son’s pediatrician’s office, the doctor commented on my son’s custom baby leggings I made. She suggested I start selling them. So, I mulled it over, made myself an Etsy account, and got a business license. I came up with Happy Sew Co. because sewing makes me happier. I told my husband my plan, and he was supportive. But truthfully, he figured it was just a hobby and not much would come of it. He was super supportive but didn’t see it as a full-time business. So, I kept pushing myself. I kept creating. I would get one sale a month. Then four, then 10, then 50. I made enough to buy a new sewing machine and generate a decent following the first year of my business. I had customers all over the US buying my handmade children’s items.

I decided to branch out to women’s wear and accessories. I started making and designing women’s clothing. Mostly dresses. I started traveling around doing pop-up events with my handmade items. Over time, I realized that people wanted more than what I handmade, and my price points were a little high. I pay myself a fair wage, and I wasn’t going to alter my handmade prices to appease people. That is when I decided to get my reseller permit and sell boutique clothing and gifts. But not just any items. Over the years, I have curated some unique items in my storefront. I purposefully seek out local or smaller businesses to sell in my store. Small businesses need a place to promote their items. Big box stores are flooding the market with cheap machine-made items. I wanted a space showing off locally made/sourced or handmade items.

A problem I am personally trying to solve for my business is size inclusivity. Most fashion or boutique companies only sell 2-2-2, which is small, medium, and large. Maybe XL, if you’re lucky. I have been going to tradeshows and researching new vendors specifically for their sizes and quality. I am intentional and transparent about the items I buy for my store and want to offer my customers the best. My store mainly carries small companies that are located here in the US. 90% of the items we carry are a mixture of Women-owned, BIPOC-owned, LGBTQ+-owned, and PNW-owned businesses. Everything has a story! Ask our knowledgeable staff if you are curious about an item’s origin. We would be happy to tell you. We are also size inclusive!!! We carry items that range from XS-4XL/5XL. As always, we carry more in our storefront than we do online. Were contracted with artists not to sell their art or merchandise online. Out of respect, we only have their items in our brick-and-mortar store. So, come check out the storefront during our business hours.

Another thing I offer in my storefronts is Classes or Vendor events. I have a dedicated space for small business owners to teach customers how to make crafts; the area is also used as a vendor space where small businesses can set up and sell their handmade items. I created a marketplace space in my store to support local artists and creatives.

The whole process of my business has morphed into a slow-burn love story. (if you’re a booktok person, you get the reference) My store and my company are genuinely after my own heart and soul. Everything I carry or make, I give it my all. I just decided to be authentic and be me and hoped people would accept or like what I have done, and if they didn’t, I was ok with that.

Social media takes time and consistency. You are constantly at the mercy of the algorithm or what is trending. Taking the time to understand both of those is essential. Whatever you do, DO NOT PAY FOR FOLLOWERS! That is a one-way ticket to either being locked out or losing authentic followers and customers. People want to see the real you or know your business is not a scam. Another way I have gained followers is by going live or sharing my personal stories in the feed. People need to see that a human is running your business.

If you need help figuring out where to start, there are a lot of business coaches out there just waiting to help you learn the ropes of social media. Empower PNW and M5 ACADEMY — FIVE MARYS RANCH have worked for some of my fellow business owners and friends. I just started working with the company Entreprenistas and am excited to see where my business grows from here.

An excellent story is about me making changes or “Making the Pivot.” Opening a brick-and-mortar storefront was indeed an eye-opening experience. Not only opening a storefront but a storefront in a seasonal touristy town. Mt. Rainier National Park gets over 1 million tourists each year. (In 2023, it was around 2 million) The town of Wilkeson, where my store is located, is not at the main entrance, but we still get a massive percentage of that tourist road traffic coming through our town to go into the Carbon River entrance of the park.

When I first converted an old tavern/bar into a retail space, I knew there would be challenges in a small town with 500 people. Learning the ebbs and flows of tourist and local seasons was an eye-opening experience. Knowing how much product to have on hand, what works with my specific demographic, and what tourists want.

The first year was a hard lesson. I needed more products to meet tourist demands, and I had too many products that did well in other areas, like my pop-ups and online market. In the second year, I knew I had to pivot to carry more of what was selling and not what I hoped would sell or what was doing better in other business areas. Being able to recover quickly and understand the market I was in showed how resilient we are as a company. It is beneficial to hire an accountant or business coach to help you understand the flow of your business. It is also helpful to have a relationship with fellow small business owners in your store area or, if you are online, a networking group like LinkedIn. Being connected with a community helped me gain much knowledge and understanding of what I was going through. I am forever grateful for the business relationships I have gained.