We recently connected with Joanna Serra and have shared our conversation below.
Joanna, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
Joanna and Barbara are sister owners of Birdy Boutique. They immigrated to the United States from Poland as children in 1988. Watching their mother perform hard physical work to put food on the table, they learned that hard work and determination can equal success. Education was of utmost importance and both sisters pursued college degrees and began conventional jobs immediately after graduation. When the career paths changed for both sisters, sewing projects for their own children quickly turned into a small business. Since these two are bird lovers, initially their shop only consisted of items with birds on them. Unfortunately, they quickly learned that not everyone loves birds as much as they do. They pushed forward with their ideas and now have a variety of childrens’ items in unique designs and patterns you won’t find elsewhere!
Joanna, 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?
Barbara Kent | Founder & CFO | Stationed in Germany Barbara is a retired and service-disabled Army officer and veteran of almost 15 years. She is wife to an active duty Army Engineer, mom to two very busy “almost” teenagers and a very clumsy German Shepherd puppy named Hans. Their family has recently been stationed in Alaska, Hawaii, and Virginia. They currently reside in Germany, her husband’s latest duty assignment. Barbara graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1999. She went on to honorably serve in the US Army Military Police Corps for 13 years, after which she was medically retired and disabled by the Department of Veterans Affairs. She loves her sewing machine, traveling, good food and wine. Barbara is an active member of several Army spouses’ clubs which raise scholarship funds for military kids and help the active duty military communities in many other ways!
Joanna Serra | Founder & COO | Michigan
Joanna is a proud married mama of three little ones. She lives on an old farm in Michigan where she loves birding, photography, exploring, teaching, her Instant Pot and scoring good deals. Her true passion is teaching and her efforts have earned her much recognition, specifically at State level. Joanna graduated from Wayne State University with a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education; she also began her Master of Art in Educational Leadership at the University of Michigan. She taught elementary aged children and during this tenure, she earned some of the highest and most distinguished awards in her field at the state level. Her initiative and determination, combined with love for her field, allowed her to be a leader in every working environment she took part in. Joanna loves organizing fundraising events and staying very involved in her local community for the benefit of children.
How’d you meet your business partner?
After we immigrated, our mother was incredibly busy putting food on the table and working around the clock as we got to know our new country with a single mother and three little girls. Barbara was always more like a mother than a sister and we have always been incredibly close. Therefore, when both of our careers ended at the same time, it seemed natural to go into business together after an idea sparked for us both.
What’s been the best source of new clients for you?
We love attending conferences such as the WBENC Conference and other conferences and events through our certifying organization including WBENC, NaVOBA, NVBDC and DisabilityIN.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://birdyboutique.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shopbirdyboutique/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ShopBirdyBoutique/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joanna-jozwik-serra-b43055160/