We were lucky to catch up with Christine Curtis recently and have shared our conversation below.
Christine, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.
I immediately started to research putting a business together online, but I really liked the idea of tying it to a physical location, An Online business was appealing, but I completely underestimated how hard it would be to get customers online. It is still the single most difficult things I’ve ever done from a Marketing perspective. As soon as we launched online, COVID hit. So, I thought that once COVID was on the decline, perhaps a store in my hometown of Southbury, Connecticut would feel safest- although my ultimate goal is have a second store near the beach somewhere. I toyed with buying a gift store in our local town which was for sale, but the numbers just didn’t work for me. Plus they had antiquaited systems, no email list – therefore no way to communicate with their customers, no e-commerce sales funnel/flow etc. While the store had a great reputations, I knew I would need a modern store to compete into the future and to run it the way I had envisioned. So, I started from scratch.
I had become disenchanted with having to shop at the big box stores where the product mix looks the same as every other store. They just don’t excite me. I find myself longing for the days where there were are more small Main Street retailers that line the streets or shopping in those small gift stores that you find while on vacation. As a child my Mom used to take us to the Bee Shop in Woodbury, CT or to Green’s General Store in Southbury, CT anytime we needed something. I have very fond memories of going downstairs at the Bee Shop to find birthday party gifts for friends. There were games and marbles and lots of neat things to check out in the downstairs. I want people to shop local like that again, I want them to touch and feel the products they are going to purchase. I feel like Amazon and Walmart have taken the fun out of shopping for something unique and different.
I want locals and visitors to have an exceptional shopping experience. I wanted to cater to their needs. I want to serve them the way they want to be serviced and that means offering the services of a big box retailer. I want to have a store that showcases interesting gifts that make people excited to give and to receive them, we would wrap them pretty and make them feel excited. I want customers to leave the store saying “that was fun.” I want the products we sell to be relevant (not something they have to polish, no tchotkes.) I want the products we carry to be used everyday. I want the the whole experience to give our customers time back in their day to do the things they really love doing and that means we need to be a full-service operations. For those who prefer to shop online, the whole store needs to be online – something very few small stores do (the need!). We have live chat on our website, we deliver locally too. Whatever we can do to make the shopping experience great, we try to do. We have a big retailer approach to small business.
Christine, 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?
I spent my whole career in CPG (Consumer Packaged Goods) Marketing. Then, after more than two decades working at a fortune 500 company as a VP in Marketing as a Product Lead for the In-Store Marketing division of In-Store media and merchandising products – the advertising and promotional vehicles that are found in chain grocery, drug and mass merchandiser stores. I am most proud of being a Team Leader who could solve large, complex challenges. I was able to get teams engaged to help me execute difficult product objectives and optimize those executions. I worked with an amazing team of people and formed amazing relationships with them during my tenure and I’m happy to report that I’m still friends with most of them today.
I was incentivized “to take a package”, along with scores of other Senior Level Executives. I was working in Retail at an International level (U.S.A. and Canada.) It took the greater part of a year to unwind from the hamster wheel I was on to decide what to do with the next chapter in my life. I took a break – like a sabbatical from work – a temporary period where I could think freely without pressure, to relax and catch up with old friends and do things in life I’d been missing out on while commuting to work all those years.
My husband Matt (Curtis) and I love to travel – alot. We tend to select destinations that are beautiful, somewhat adventurous and near pretty water. While visiting favorite Caribbean island of Anguilla, I decided it would be fun to someday open my own retail store that would have fun little things, some artisan made, or that make a gift. Maybe those items would inspire or excite us, envoke some nostalgia for the area… I almost always walk out of a shop and say “you know what they should do in here?” Or, “I’m surprised they don’t carry that…” I even took notes on my iphone and made endless lists with product suggestions, merchandising tips and more to capture my thoughts. My son and daughter, my mom, and my husband would even join in to volunteer their good ideas for a business idea or concept.
Still, after that trip to Anguilla, I feared the insecurity of a paycheck. So, in case I needed to go back to corporate or in case I decided to teach I went to Quinnipiac University and got my MSOL degree in Organizational/Strategic Leadership. Despite this fork in my journey, the answer for what I wanted to do was right in front of me – although I didn’t see it at first. I have spent my entire life thinking like an entrepreneur- always coming up with new business ideas and products, but I never had the courage to leave the security of my Corporate job with great, steady pay; I just couldn’t do it. The truth is leaving corporate was a gift- the catalyst for trying to do something different. Still, I feared the lack of pay and insecu rity that comes with owning your own business, that’s what was holding me back. I wasn’t sure we could live on one paycheck. Oh, and having two kids college age… The safe thing to do would have been to find another office job. However, the taste of freedom was simply delicious. I finally decided that If I’m going to work hard long days it may as well benefit me and my family, after all, I spent my career helping brands advertise and promote their products in-store, I should be able to figure this out, right? So, the decision was made and that started me on my journey as an Entrepreneur.
Piper and Dune Brand Story:
Piper and Dune is the culmination of the life-long dream of Matthew and Christine Curtis to open a business dedicated to all the things we love about New England. After spending eight glorious days relaxing on the beach with some of our oldest friends, we were completely overcome with nostalgic childhood memories. The adventures we have experienced as children and young adults in this region still held a special place in our hearts. We wanted to share or in some cases remind others of all the wonderful things New England has to offer- their style, their traditions and their favorite recreational pastimes. It was this trip down memory lane when we decided that it was time for the two of us to take a chance and create a store that carries products that are common to people in this region. Matt, named the business Piper and Dune, to reflect our love of the seashore (short for sandpiper and sanddune) and with that, we started our journey…
We both grew up in Connecticut and spent what felt like endless summers building sandcastles, camping and fishing on the beaches and lake sides along the New England coastline. As we got older we would spend the long warm summer nights with our friends gathering around a bonfire on the beach or swimming in the salty water as the evening sun set behind us. We wanted to create a store that inspires others to bring back the memories of those special places too. And to help set the setting for new lasting memories by offering New England style goods to our customers so they can live the lifestyle every day.
We cannot help but smile when we recall the ferry rides we took to Block Island or camping in Narragansett. There were many trips piling into our family’s station wagons, squeezing in between umbrellas, coolers, bags with blankets and towels, and driving to all points north and east to finally feel our feet in the warm sand. We’d break out our coolers filled with our favorite beverages and snacks, and play the hottest music of the day on our 8-Track or Cassette players. We’d meet with our friends to go clamming, boating, sailing, tubing, skiing, bike riding… Having the time of our lives doing the simplest things, but in the best company. In the evening we’d watch fireworks on the beach or go to a drive-in movie. In the colder months we were always sledding, building igloo forts, skiing and playing pond hockey. It was simpler times; nobody needed to track us down, because there were no cell phones, nobody was micromanaging our schedules — it was FREEDOM in its purest form!
At Piper and Dune we want you to continue to share those special occasions with friends and family and we can help make your days extra memorable. Our quality products are designed to make you feel comfortable, yet still smart and stylish, and those items might even help to remind you or a friend of your favorite New England destination whenever you pick them up.
But for these memories to be available in the future we need to take care of the environment and to keep our beaches clean. For that reason, we strive to carry an assortment of products that help further causes near to our hearts. Every time you purchase one of these items, you too are helping to make a difference. You see, together we can protect those places and the people we love, and can help make these experiences possible for coming generations.
At Piper and Dune you will find a wide variety of products from gifts for your home, jewelry, accessories, gifts for men, women and baby. Our products are carefully curated products for your home or outdoors. We hope that when you shop at Piper and Dune, wear our apparel, or use our products, you will take a moment to escape your busy daily life, smile and pass along the good vibes!
Start creating new memories and browse our web shop today. Piper and Dune offers durable, quality products that will keep reminding you of your favorite New England locale for years to come.
PiperandDune.com or Visit Us: Piper and Dune, 134 Main Street S, #50-E Bennett Square, Southbury, Connecticut 06488
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
Piper and Dune is well-integrated into the community through our “Shop for a Cause” programs, which allows non-profits to fundraise with us online or instore, it makes fundraising easy.
For many people, shopping can be a lot of fun, not to mention cathartic! Finding an accent candle for the entryway table or picking up the perfect gift for that upcoming birthday party is a great feeling, but sometimes we wonder: what if our shopping habits could help others, too?
This is exactly what we here at Piper and Dune have set out to do with our Shop For A Cause program—make every purchase meaningful.
What is Shop For A Cause with Piper and Dune?
With the Shop For A Cause program, Piper and Dune proudly partners with non-profit organizations with online and in-person “Pay It Forward” fundraising events.
Each event lasts one full day and Piper and Dune will donate 10% of all gross revenue accrued within that time—less taxes and shipping —to the organization that has partnered with us.
So far, the Shop For A Cause program has found great success and the organizations that have partnered with Piper and Dune have been able to earn a great deal of resources through our fundraisers.
More than that, Piper and Dune’s customers are always shopping for a cause. We regularly donate to the non-profit causes we work with because we believe in them. We have presented non-profit organizations with gift baskets, gift cards, and other needed supplies and we keep growing the numbers.
In our own community, we have sponsored organizations and outreach institutions of all types. With our sponsorships, we’ve helped celebrate and promote local arts escapes programs, Arts & Eats, Sustainable Energy, school teams, we’re helped to raiseawareness and supported breast cancer survivors with The Pink Chair Project, and assisted young athletes achieve their goals with Pomperaug Youth Football and Cheer and so much more.
Can my non-profit organization fundraise with Piper and Dune?
Yes! All non-profit organizations are welcome to be a part of our Shop For A Cause program, from parent teacher organizations, sports teams, church groups, schools, community outreach, and more. As long as your organization is truly non-profit and works to make the world (or even a small community!) a better place, we would love to work with you!
Though our brick and mortar store is located in Southbury, Connecticut, your organization does not have to be local to fundraise with us. Every single one of our products are sold on our website, making it easy for us to do our Shop With A Cause “Pay It Forward” events with non-profits and customers across the country.
We want our non-profit partners to succeed, so we will heavily promote your fundraising event on our website and social media pages. For best results, we recommend you do the same!
Do you have a non-profit organization in need of funds?
Piper and Dune would love to work with you. If your organization would like to be a part of our Shop For A Cause program, reach out to us today!
Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?
I joined as many local Facebook groups as I could under my personal profile, not my business profile (sometimes the business is excluded.) Many of the local community groups, e.g. Southbury Community, Southbury Buzz, Southbury Ladies etc. (Southbury is the hometown that our business resides in…) Each of those groups have thousands of followers. Most of these groups allow business posts once per week. So, Friday every week, without fail, I post what items are new at the store, what fundraisers we have going on… anything we need to communicate. I ALWAYS give lots of videos and always direct everyone to our website. I’m not going to lie, it is incredibly time consuming. It takes me a couple hours sometimes. I preplan on Thursday what I’m going to post. I create a brief write up in google docs, create a Facebook Post Album with the release date, then I start the process early Friday morning of posting all the pictures and information I want to share. Hopefully you’ll get some engagement or even a share or two. It’s consistent, simple and better yet, FREE!
Contact Info:
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/piperanddune/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/piper-and-dune-llc
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/PiperandDune
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/piper-and-dune-southbury
Image Credits
Piper and Dune