Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Samantha Breedlove . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Samantha , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love for you to start by sharing your thoughts about the pros and cons of family businesses.
My mom and I have been dreaming of opening a shop together ever since I was a young kid. When we traveled on family vacations, our favorite things to do was exploring quaint towns and their cute shops. When I look at the business we have built together today, I know it was meant to be and I could not do it without my family. My mom and I have really learned how to lean into each other’s strengths and that trusting one another to do what we do best is helping us grow in ways that we could never imagine. Some of the biggest challenges we find ourselves facing is that it is hard to ever truly turn off running a business together, we talk about it constantly. It’s easy working with family, to let emotions take over more grounded business thoughts but we are getting better.
My daughter, Grace, is 7 years old and recently has started coming to the shop with me some days when school is out. She seems to love it and if her passion for the shop continues to grow, I would love for her to join. I would really love to take her to markets and gift shows to show her the buying aspect of the business. For my 3 kids, I want them to follow their dreams, no matter what they may be. However, I do love that as an entrepreneur, I can show them that they can truly do whatever they love and find a way to make or create a business out of it. I also love that I have learned the skills to help them accomplish that and can walk them though how to do it. I think it would even be cool if the business we have started, grows or branches off into other new businesses that my kids can help start and grow. That could be in events, property rentals or more shops. That’s what I want to share with them, that anything is possible.
When we first opened the Mercantile in 2017, everything was so new. My mom and I made every decision together and felt like we needed to discuss, review and process every little decision together. This caused a lot of tension, stress and when I look back I wish I would have changed our approach sooner. As we grew and learned more, we started trusting our strengths and making decisions on our own but still communicating well and making the big decisions together. My mom spearheads operations management, buying and inventory. I have focused more on team management, merchandising and creative branding and marketing. This has also helped us be better leaders to our team and we make better decisions to help us grow.
I am also very thankful as a family business for my dad and my husband who have both put in a ton of time, energy and money to support us. We always joke that my dad is our hardest working unpaid employee. He works his regular full time job AND helps every day at the shop with the not so glamorous jobs of taking the trash, changing light bulbs and moving boxes to and from storage. Our family has loved growing this business together. We have given a lot of blood, sweat and tears into it. We love the community we have built here and I feel like they have been along this journey with us as my kids were born and been a part of watching them grow. I hope and dream that the shop will be around and bring joy and happiness to our family and community for years to come.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Rusted Arrow Mercantile is a home decor, lifestyle, seasonal gift shop that believes in creating beauty and spreading kindness in all we do. We know that life can often get busy and overwhelming. When you step through our doors or visit us online or even find us on social media, we hope we can provide a place to press pause and feel inspired.
As a family business, our team is an extension of our family, we hope when you walk in you feel at home. We have built a team who loves to make your experience at the Mercantile memorable. We can help put together custom gifts, we offer complimentary gift wrapping and even specialize in corporate gifting. When it comes to home decor, we love seeing pictures of your space and sharing ideas or helping assemble arrangements for the season.
Before Rusted Arrow, I worked as a marine mammal trainer with dolphins and other marine mammals. I met my husband along the gulf coast and we both had a love for life here in the panhandle of florida. After a lot of moving around, job changes and three beautiful babies, I feel blessed beyond belief to be truly living out all my dreams.
I have always loved to dream big and have been surrounded by family and friends who have supported those dreams. When I left the animal training field I wanted to do something that got me closer to my family (who was in Chicago at the time). I started refinishing vintage furniture with chalk paint and selling at various vintage markets. Selling the refinished furniture became wonderfully successful and that is when we started to create our business plan and find our niche. Our vision started to take shape. My mom and I knew we wanted to open a shop of our own with vintage furniture and unique home decor and gifts. With the help from family, friends and google, we took it a step at a time to open Rusted Arrow Mercantile – a home decor, lifestyle, seasonal and gift boutique. We searched for the perfect location, all the way from Panama City to Orange Beach, but when we drove down Palafox Street in Pensacola 7 years ago, we knew it was meant to be! From this point, things truly fell into place and we opened Rusted Arrow Mercantile on Palafox Street in Downtown Pensacola in May of 2017.
My mom has had a long history in the gift industry and we went to our first Gift Market to buy wholesale and fill the shop with our first round of merchandise. Going to market has been a huge part of what makes our shop unique. We spend over a week there two to three times a year searching for unique, meaningful and quality items to bring to our business. We also share a lot of the behind the scenes process of our market trips on social media, and our followers have really loved being a part of that experience.
Since opening, we have worked hard to strengthen our roots in the community here. We donate to countless non-profits, local schools and love putting together gift baskets for events and charities in our area. We truly believe that small businesses are the heartbeat of the community. We offer classes and workshops to connect with local artists and our customers. Anything from watercolor, candle pouring, floral arranging and so much more. We love learning new skills, creating beauty and connecting with new friends. In the past seven years of business we have grown our online presence, our social media reach along with expanding our brick and mortar shop and continue to offer more unique classes and workshops along with holiday decorating services.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
A lesson I have had to unlearn, and continue to have to remind myself daily is to stop comparing to what other businesses are doing. I think there is a fine line between looking to other businesses for guidance, mentorship and ideas and comparing what is making them successful and comparing your businesses success to that of others. Comparison can really crush ambition, creativity and can limit the scope of your business if you let it consume you. I used to wake up in the morning and look at my phone, I would scroll through what my favorite businesses were doing, the creative sales they were promoting, the unique products they were carrying, the events they were able to put together and I would dwell in not feeling like I was doing enough. Feeling like what I was creating was ever enough. When I broke that habit of watching what everyone else was doing and spent more time in my business, on the floor, creating displays, talking with customers, and listening to what they wanted. That’s when the best, most successful ideas happened. It seems simple, but it is hard to do in a world so focused on sharing everything on social media. Being true to yourself and your brand and your mission. That is what helps me stay on track especially when I feel stuck creatively. When I want to come up with an original event, or sale or product I have learned to lean back on our brand and mission. I ask myself: does this help us create beauty and spread kindness? Will this be something that helps people press pause and feel inspired? The most successful moments in our business was not when we were trying to do something someone else did, but when an original idea that we all loved and felt passionate about, comes together with hard work and as a team and we all reward from the success of it. Not only our business and our team, but our customers and community do too. It’s important to always remember that every business has its own journey, challenges, and definition of success. Unlearning the habit of comparing my business to others was undoubtedly a transformative journey, but one that ultimately allowed me to cultivate a greater sense of fulfillment and success on my own terms.
Any advice for managing a team?
I honestly am shocked that I am answering this question out of all the options in the drop down. I have always felt that managing a team was the hardest part of being a business owner. It gives me the most anxiety. I am a non-confrontational person and avoid challenging conversations like the plague. However, I have learned to grow a lot in this area. I listen to a lot of great podcasts, read books and put myself in a lot of uncomfortable situations to push through and learn from those conversations.
Our team morale is very important to us, none of this is possible without a great team and our team is an extension of our mission and values as a business. So we have been so lucky to hire the most incredible team. In our interview process we have found that we look more for answers that really align with creating beauty and spreading kindness. We want a team that connects well with customers and make them feel at home. Retail experience is always great and definitely a bonus, but all those skills can be taught and trained. So hiring a team that creates a place to press pause and feel inspired is very important. When our team aligns with those goals, keeping a high moral is a lot easier.
We try to continually invest in our team through some creative benefits such as free parking and daily sales bonus structure. We continually recognize and appreciate the efforts and achievements of individual team members. Celebrate milestones, both big and small, and publicly acknowledge their contributions. Feeling valued and appreciated boosts morale and encourages continued excellence. We also focus on good communication within the team and with management. We foster open and transparent communication within the team. We no longer do formal reviews, we enjoy offering more meaningful check ins where we review what they like about their job, they give feedback and share ideas and we do the same. We finish our check ins, with asking what areas they want to continue to grow . That way we can keep a pulse on what everyone on the team is interested in and place them in roles and give them tasks that fit those areas so they can continue to grow, feel challenged and feel valued. We also do monthly meetings and team outings. We enjoy creating time to spend together outside of the shop and learn a lot about each other that way.
Leading by example has been another cornerstone in our management. We are able to demonstrate integrity, professionalism, and a positive attitude in your interactions with others. Actions speak louder than words and set the tone for the team culture.
By implementing these strategies, you can effectively manage your team while also maintaining high morale, fostering a positive work environment, and driving success.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.rustedarrowmercantile.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rusted.arrow.mercantile/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61554848366958
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-breedlove-7a3095177/