We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Grace Keen a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Grace, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What do you think it takes to be successful?

There’s many different factors that go into being successful, and even then, everyone’s vision of success is very different!

To me, success is determined by being able to have boundaries between work & home, being financially comfortable enough to help others, and have the time, and energy to do what glorifies God.

There are a few things in my daily routine that I believe help make me successful. I wake up early to go to the gym, and have quiet time with God. When I’m at the shop I make a ‘to do’ list and set myself goals for the day, as well as short and long term goals. Then, when I get home, I put my phone on do not disturb. This allows me to focus on my family and turn work ‘off’ so I don’t get burnt out. I think that’s also a big part of being successful – acknowledging when/how to avoid burnout and stay dedicated.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

My name is Grace Keen & I have many titles! Wife, mom, business owner.. just to name a few. I started in the retail industry when I was 19 years old (I am now 25).

I never intended to be in the retail industry as a business owner. I didn’t grow up dreaming about owning a business or working in fashion. My love and passion grew as I worked under a good friend of mine, Kinsey, at Francesca’s. Majoring in fashion merchandising and entrepreneurship in college, I started to map out where I wanted to be & what I wanted to do. When my time at Francesca’s came to an end, it was because I had the drive to open my own boutique. On October 3, 2019 Peachy Keen Boutique launched online.

I ran my business and worked full time at Withers Broadcasting for the next 2 years. In August of 2021 we opened our first storefront in Dexter, Missouri. When I finally decided to go full time with my business I found a new passion for events. I opened Peachy Keen Events in November of 2021. We specialize in balloon garlands, grazing tables & charcuterie, and we even have a photobooth for rent! Fast forward to October 2022 – I am presented with the opportunity to take ownership of Blackbird Monogram + Gift.

Blackbird was already special to me as I had a connection with the original owner, Nikki. I shopped at Blackbird while I was in college and enjoyed conversing with her about the small business & retail life.

I was almost positive my husband would say I was crazy and that taking ownership was just simply not going to happen. But when I brought the idea up to him, he was surprisingly up for the challenge! After a few meetings, crunching numbers, and a lot of discussions, we were proud to take over ownership mid October of 2022 and rebrand to Blackbird by Peachy Keen.

Blackbird by Peachy Keen specializes in embroidery & personalization, and in-demand gifts that are unique & perfect for any occasion! Anne Marie Schlegel, the friendly face you’ll see when you visit Blackbird, also stems from Francesca’s. After she managed the Cape Girardeau location for about 3 years, she had faith that moving to the small business life would bring her more fulfillment and joy.

Anne Marie is dedicated to great customer service, and providing top personalization services. We are excited to bring in new and exciting brands into the store & continue to grow!

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

When I first opened Peachy Keen Boutique, we were online only. I knew social media would be a HUGE part of building the business. We have gone through it all – stories, posts, Facebook lives, Pinterest, tik tok.. there is so much involved in having a social media presence these days. I think our biggest action that helped grow our platform was that we were consistent and posted real content. Not everything is picture perfect & we don’t portray it that way.

My advice would be to figure out what you want your brand to be and stick to that style. You want everything to be branded and have a certain vibe. We have switched ours so many times that I feel like I have FINALLY found what I want my brand to be and portray.

Blackbird’s social media following came with our ownership change of the business. We have been striving to make more content, post how our products & services can help you, and create a new brand that people will be excited to shop. We also redid the website which has already had a lot of traction!

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

We are currently working on a text and email program that will keep our customers in touch with our brand and new products we bring in and any new services we offer! We also have a loyalty program. Everytime you shop you earn points that can be later redeemed for $$ off your next purchase. We host sip-and-shop events where we bring out our gourmet food line for samples as well as offer specials on merchandise.

Contact Info:

• Website: Blackbirdgift.com
• Instagram: @blackbirdbypeachykeen
• Facebook: @blackbirdbypeachykeen

Image Credits
Photography by Logan Hill