We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Alyssa Stewart and Casey Jessen. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Alyssa Stewart below.

Alyssa and Casey, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

I (Alyssa) started to realize I wanted to own a bookstore when I was in college, but after being discouraged from someone I looked up to, I decided that it wasn’t the right time and that I would have to wait until later in life when I had more money to pour into the business. In 2020, I still didn’t have the money, but when I was furloughed from my corporate job, I began reevaluated what I considered as stability.

Right before I was furloughed, I met Casey in the local writing group that I run called Stonesmith Writing Group. We became fast friends, and we realized that we aligned in what we wanted for our future careers. She had all of the coffee shop knowledge that I was lacking, and I had been investigating and studying how to be a bookstore owner for years. Together, we decided to make it happen. Originally, we both landed on Germanic Fairytale vibes for our branding and after brainstorming many ideas, we chose Fable Hollow as our name.

Alyssa and Casey, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Please see previous answer / see our website fablehollow.com

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Casey is our social media mage. She has been dedicated from the beginning and has crafted not only a platform for our business, but also a community and a place for information and entertainment. The main thing she recommends is making sure that you’re not just selling things, but telling your story and inviting people along for the ride.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I think that owning your own business is all about being flexible and knowing how to pivot. I am very much a planner, which has been vital to estimating timelines and making plans for the future, but at every step of the journey, there have been moments of needing to pause, rethink, and pivot. Casey and I have learned a lot over our first year in business, and I feel keeping a positive attitude of moving forward and not dwelling on mistakes is essential.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://fablehollow.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fablehollowbookshoppe/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FableHollow/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@fablehollowbookshoppe

Image Credits
Photo: Woodshutter Photography https://www.woodshutterphotography.com/