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

Cassandra, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What were some of the most unexpected problems you’ve faced in your business and how did you resolve those issues?

I opened my salon and boutique in December of 2019. 3 months later Covid hit and we got shut down. To say I panicked was an understatement. I wasn’t sure how we were going to make our contract for deed payment on our building among other shop bills. With us not being in business long enough and not having any employees, we didn’t qualify for any financial relief. I was scared and so mad at the same time. My only thought at that moment was to start a website and put all of our merchandise online to try and get some sales. I spent a couple weeks at the shop taking pictures of all our merchandise, setting up a new barcode system, and building an eCommerce website. I had to redo our whole catalog in our p.o.s. system to allow for online orders. The support from our community and clientele was astounding. We were getting enough orders for those 3 months we were shut down to keep the bills paid. Finally on June 1, 2020 we were able to open up again at limited capacity.

Cassandra, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Cassandra! I am a wife and dog mom of 3 fur kids. I have two wonderful step-sons and a step-grandson. I became a cosmetologist almost 23 years ago. The industry has definitely taken its toll on my body and after several surgeries, I knew I wasn’t able to do hair forever. My body wasn’t allowing it. One day, on my way home from work, I noticed a building for sale less than a mile from my home. I had been thinking about opening my own salon and boutique so I could have something to fall back on when I could no longer do hair. With the help of my amazing mom, my dear friend Jenny (fellow salon and boutique owner), and my super supportive and talented contractor husband, we made it happen. This allowed me to cut back on my clientele, while focusing on my future with the boutique. Our boutique is unique by being size inclusive and price conscious. We wanted to cater to all sizes while maintaining a reasonable price range for our area. I didn’t get into this to be rich. I did it for a sense of purpose. To see a smile on our guests face while feeling good about themselves in our clothing, is pretty priceless. On top of clothing, we also carry shoes, accessories, unique gifts, home decor, and more. I’m proud of how far we came and I look forward to continuing to learn and grow in this industry

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

Our biggest compliment we get is our prices! Of course we have some vendors that have a MAP policy, but for the rest of our items, we do keep a very reasonable price point. We are a small town and I didn’t want my community to feel like they were shopping somewhere that was out of reach. I’d rather have more shoppers spending a realistic amount of money vs. less shoppers spending a ridiculous amount of money. The word of mouth spreads faster. Two things make my heart happy. 1. When someone new comes through the door and they tell us their friend or family member told them they had to check us out. 2. When we see our repeat customers come back time after time.

Do you have multiple revenue streams – if so, can you talk to us about those streams and how your developed them?

When we started this business, we did a two year contract for deed on the building. After two years, we were able to purchase the building and have some relief knowing that all of the hard work and money that we put into the build out was ours forever. My husband is a contractor and there is no way we could’ve have done this without him. I would never have taken this on if I had to hire everything out. There was another separate suite in our building that we used for storage and my husband worked his magic again. We built out that side and leased it out in 2021. Not only does it help with extra revenue but it also helps another small business in our community.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.frenchtwistmn.com
• Instagram: french_twist_salon_boutique
• Facebook: frenchtwistmn
• Other: TikTok: @frenchtwistmn