We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jaime Ballard. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jaime below.
Jaime, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea
I graduated from Western Illinois University in 2003 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Graphic Communications and worked for 8 years as a graphic designer. In the summer of 2014, I was a stay-at-home mom and worked part-time at our local library a couple days a week. There was a Small Business Retail Competition going on in Monmouth and I attended the financial meeting, as I was curious how to make more money with my graphic design work while still being home with our daughter. Anyone could attend the meeting, even if you were not entering the competition.
A couple of days later, I met up with a close friend of mine, Erin, (we’re actually second cousins) and shared with her that I had attended the meeting. She called me up the next day and told me that she thought we should enter the competition. I was totally caught off guard, but not completely surprised that she presented this to me. Her husband always thought that the two of us could start up something amazing together. With our Interior Design/Marketing and Sales/Graphic Design backgrounds, he just knew something incredible could come to fruition. We both knew that we were at a point in our lives where we could at least pursue this opportunity and see what happened.
So, we decided to enter the competition. The deadline to enter was just a few days away and we had six days to put our entire business plan and financials together. We had to pitch our “business” to the town and did everything we could think of to prepare ourselves. We spent so many hours sitting at her kitchen table envisioning what we thought our business would look like. We were chosen as one of the three winners and so it all began. It was such a whirlwind of excitement and exhaustion.
The city had put together a business package for the 3 winners to help get their businesses up and running. This included 6 months free rent, discounted phone/Internet, and assistance with logo design (which I designed myself). We went around and visited the empty retail spaces that were options and found the perfect space for ours. It had a history of being a retail space, dating back to the 1800’s and we just knew that was where we were supposed to be. The space had sat empty for almost 10 years, so there was a lot of work to be done. The city of Monmouth was receiving a Historical Tiff Grant for our space, so everything had to be as “historical” as possible…even down to the light fixtures. All of the drywall was removed and the beautiful brick was exposed. The original tin ceilings were pieced back together again and the original hardwood floors were exposed. The floors are American Chestnut and were only manufactured for 8 years in the 1800’s.
How in the world were we ever going to name our business? We knew we wanted something creative and different…not just a boring “boutique” name. One night, Erin received a message from her dad with the word Maude Speckleberry. She had no idea what he was talking about. Erin’s mother had passed away the year before and had the most amazing personality. She was always silly, laughing and joking around with everyone she knew. For years and years her mom had sent one of the neighbors a birthday card and she would sign it, “Maude Speckleberry”. She was just being humorous and was sure it brought that older gentleman joy each year to open his mailbox. We don’t know why it came to her dad that night, but we like to think of it as her mom having a little say in a very special piece of Maude’s! You might be wondering why our name is Maude Specklebelly’s and not Speckleberry’s…well Erin’s husband (the avid hunter) really thought a goose would make a cool logo—we tend to agree! The funny thing is we get called Maude Speckleberry’s quite often, coincidence?
While construction was happening, we got registered with the state, received our business license and attended our very first market in Chicago. Talk about overwhelming…we literally had no idea what we were doing, but we gave it our all. I worked retail all through high school and college, so I was semi-familiar with that world, but definitely not the buying side of things. We had no idea what our customers would like/want to see, so we did our best to curate a collection that would speak to (hopefully) everyone. We also met with a couple of gift/jewelry reps to get us started also. We knew we wanted to have a little something for everyone, as our town did not have many shopping options. We had all of our apparel racks made by a couple of local carpenters and went antiquing to find the perfect display pieces. We had a vision of what we wanted our store to look and feel like and we made it happen.
Per usual, construction took a lot longer than we had anticipated, but we were able to get moved in the first week in December. We were moving in as the carpenters were still there working, but we knew we had to get our doors open for the holiday season. The painters were still there on opening morning and we literally pushed their scaffolding to our backroom and unlocked the doors. Talk about everything falling into place. We opened Maude Specklebelly’s on Friday, December 5, 2014.
That December was such a beautiful Christmas season for us. We were literally exhausted, but so incredibly grateful to see our community show up for us. With a name like Maude Specklebelly’s, of course they had to come see what it was all about. I had never physically (and mentally) been so incredibly tired and sore in my entire life. Standing on hardwood floors for 10 hours a day was no joke. I love people and relationships and absolutely loved getting to know my customers from the very beginning.
Skip ahead to 2020 and all of our lives shifted. Like most states, businesses were shut down and Maude’s was closed for 3 months. This was scary, as Maude’s was not a hobby, Maude’s was (and still is) my paycheck. I really had to get creative and think outside the box. How could I still bring in an income when no one could come into our store? I created the “Belly Box” (a spin on our name) and did the shopping for others. I would fill these boxes with all sorts of joy and package them perfectly for others to give as gifts. I would curate the boxes based on the occasion and ship them out, deliver them locally or customers could pick them up with our curbside parking. These went over super well and I am still curating them today. They brought me so much joy during a time of uncertainty. We were always told that if a small business could make it the first 3 years, there was a pretty good chance of success. But, no one shared with us how to survive running a business during a pandemic. We had to figure that one out on our own, as did the rest of the world.
Sometimes, life takes us in different directions. In the summer of 2021, I became the sole-owner of Maude Specklebelly’s. We did not announce this, as absolutely nothing changed…everyone just got to see my face even more. I hope they never get tired of seeing it. Maude’s has truly been my love and passion from the very beginning. Erin and I often joke that we both applied for different positions at our local college prior to opening Maude’s and we were both turned down. Although that rejection felt like a slap in the face, we were both so grateful that it happened or Maude’s never would have transpired. Again, one of the many life-lessons on this journey.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
Like I mentioned before, I was a graphic designer prior to opening Maude’s. I also worked in retail and was a hostess at a local martini bar and restaurant. I love people and relationships. While my husband was stationed in Fallujah, I worked all 3 jobs at once and loved every single minute of it. Working is one of my many passions (I’ve worked since I was 12) and I needed to keep myself busy during that season of my life. I had no idea what I wanted to be when I “grew up”, but I originally thought I wanted to major in Informations Systems or some form of business. As I sat and cried through yet another math class, I instantly knew that career was not going to be for me. Since I was a little girl, I have always had a creative side to me and realized my sophomore year in college that I needed to pursue something that allowed me to utilize my talents. Although there are days that I still ask myself what I want to do when I “grow up”, I am forever grateful that my intuition told me that I did not belong behind a desk in an office.
I love working IN my business. I know it’s my job, but it is also one of my many whys in life. My heart and soul is in this space and I treasure every moment that I just get to be me. When I am comfortable, I can have a big personality and you can hear my laugh clear across town. My mouth is most likely wide open and I have a huge smile on my face. Prior to opening Maude’s, I would go to different boutiques and was made to feel like I didn’t matter. Some associates wouldn’t even greet me and some made me feel like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. I told myself that I would never EVER intentionally make any of my customers feel that way. Come as you are and know that you will never be judged. I truly hope my customers feel like they are at home the second they walk into Maude’s…because they are.
Being a very visual and creative person, I really take into account what certain goods look like prior to placing my orders. I love when things look cohesive and like they were created specifically to have a place at Maude’s. 100% of my creativity goes into executing Maude’s, but I still enjoy dabbling in graphic design on occasion. I’ve had the pleasure of designing some of my own creations to sell in my space and it always brings me so much joy when my customers purchase them.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
When we first opened, we went to one of our local banks and asked them what some of our options were. Because we had no idea what life looked life opening a boutique in Monmouth, IL, we just wanted to make sure we didn’t personally put ourselves into financial debt. Our bank offered us a line of credit to open Maude’s and we only used what we needed to. We also had to use our own personal assets as a guarantee in case Maude’s did not make it. We knew from the very beginning that we never wanted to run our business in the red. If there wasn’t any extra money to spend, we would wait until more items sold in order to be able to purchase new inventory. The first few years were tough, as we barely brought home a paycheck. I kind of felt like the song “Livin’ on Love” during that time period. My heart was exactly where it needed to be, but I was literally living on love and very little income.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
I think just being true to myself has really made Maude’s what it is. When I first opened, I didn’t even really know who I was. I was a new mom in my early thirties and just trying to survive with a little girl at home. I would often wear some of the clothes that were NOT me, thinking I needed to wear them (to sell them) and to simply fit in. It didn’t take me long to figure that was not me. After a couple of years, I learned that when I went to market, I needed to pick out pieces that I loved and not what I thought my customers would like. If I loved it, I knew they would and that has seemed to work (for the most part). I have had a front row seat at watching myself blossom into my true authentic self. Most days, you will find me rocking my Maude’s hat, a t-shirt & my favorite jeans and I am perfectly ok with that.
I experienced a form of bullying when I was in middle school and even into part of my high school years. I know those unfortunate (and learning) experiences impacted how I learned to love even bigger. I wear my heart on my sleeve and have really good intuition about people. It’s often a running joke that it’s always free therapy at Maude’s. I have a super empathetic heart and naturally, I think people find it easy to talk to me. I have a come-as-you-are policy and that will never ever change. You are welcome just the way you are. We are all in different seasons of our lives, personally and financially. There’s something for everyone at Maude’s and every single person is welcome!
I try to be very mindful of my price-points also. I recognize that boutiques are a specialty niche, but I never want to out-price myself. We live in a very rural community and I want my customers to have a beautiful experience and return again and again. I strive to have quality goods at affordable prices and want everyone to be able to find a little something within their budget.
One of my greatest joys has been having my daughter grow up at Maude’s with me. She has also had a front row seat at watching her mom grow, learn and flourish along the way. She has watched me struggle, cry numerous tears and tackle challenges head-on. My customers often tell me what a joy it is to see her when they come in to shop. I want other moms to know that their kiddos are always welcome at Maude’s. Thank you for allowing me to share this chapter of my beautiful story with you. I hope you’ll come experience it soon!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.maudespecklebellys.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maudespecklebellys/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/maudespecklebellys/
