We were lucky to catch up with Julie and Mallory Hickethier recently and have shared our conversation below.
Julie and Mallory, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Innovation comes in all shapes, sizes and across all industries, so we’d love to hear about something you’ve done that you feel was particularly innovative.
Innovation, flexibility, pivoting, adeptness, the ability to execute….all great buzzwords and essential actions for survivability. I must say that the most innovative thing I have done is to move out of one career field and start from scratch in another…at the age of 60. I suppose it’s fair to say that there is a fine line between bravery and ignorance, and I was never sure what side I was on in the early days. I went from a long and very dynamic career as a healthcare executive to starting my own small business in a resort town. My daughter was just preparing to graduate from college and I was in the job market when we combined our skill sets, moved to a ski town and opened a gourmet food/kitchen store. We built it from the ground up, literally. Our small business is very popular in our mountain town, we offer catering of charcuterie boards and cooking classes. We opened for business in November, 2019 only to shut down four months later for Covid. We pivoted (yes, that word) and started an online store. We did deliveries, we supported other businesses and we made it work. Today my daughter owns 40% of the business and I might retire again, but I am having too much fun for that right now. We are able to exceed $1 million in sales annually in about 1600 square feet of retail space and we donate to a number of non-profits in our community. I am grateful for the opportunity to have had multiple careers and to have developed completely different skill sets from healthcare ( I am a nurse) to retail and business owner. We are constantly innovating, from creating recipes, cooking class experiences, sales events and new initiatives.
Julie and Mallory, 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?
About 12ish years ago while on a long flight I read a magazine article about baby boomers (yep, that’s me) retiring early and starting their own businesses. That article not only resonated with me but it sat in the back of my brain for years. I was comfortable in healthcare having served as a vice president of a hospital system for 20 years and then as a consultant, but the idea of starting something from the ground up was intriguing. It offered an opportunity to challenge myself and be my own boss, and in so doing either fail or succeed on my own merit. And, I would have the chance to do something completely different, to learn and develop a new skill set, to grow, to expand my horizons. The choice of location and subsequent business plan was not random, it came after working with the University of Montana and the Small Business Administration in Montana. It was after hours of research into communities, demographics, and making financial projections. Ultimately after many hours of reflection about what would bring me happiness, pleasure and gratification I opted to take the risk and signed a 5 year lease on property in which I would pay for the design and tenant improvements. It was a done deal and I was moving to a resort town where I didn’t know one person. I came to realize that my decision was a bit unique as most people think about retiring at age 60, not starting over. I have come to learn a lot about starting a new business, and more importantly the importance of small businesses to communities and the economics of small businesses that make up the backbone of the powerful economic engine the United States is today. I have a new appreciation for other merchants and business owners who toil endlessly to make their dream work. We set ourselves apart with quality products and extraordinary customer service. We have created an experience within our retail store, cooking classes, that are enormously popular and continuously sell out. What do I want others to know? There were two things I heard repeatedly when I interviewed other business owners in my community which I found to be sage advice for new businesses:
#1. “As a business owner, you do it all…HR, marketing, housekeeping, customer service….YOU are all those departments and you are on-call 24/7.” True, true and true. I no longer could refer my issues to a legal or HR department, etc. I no longer had a title or authority to get things done, I no longer had a secretary, I just had me. there was no one to delegate tasks to. Building a new business is really, really hard work.
#2. “You know you are going to be successful when there is money in the bank.” True! Your monthly statements are good tools but your bank account is what matters. Every dollar I spent was not the resources of an organization I worked for, it was MY money. I thought about money differently when it was my money. I watch that bank account daily and it’s that number that influences my decision making. if you have ever heard the phrase, “cash is king,” it’s true.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
Our journey to being small business owners started in the fall of 2019 when we opened a small retail store in Whitefish Montana. We had been open only four months when we had to close due to Covid. Like so many other businesses, Covid created an opportunity for resilience and growth if one was willing to do things differently. OMG! I had just used a chunk of my savings to finance a brand new business and was in a community where we barely knew anyone. So, we had to figure it out. Without the skills of my daughter (now co-owner) I am not sure we could have survived. She taught herself to start an e-commerce component to our business and started an online store. We delivered products to our local customers that ordered online, and in turn supported other businesses in our community. We didn’t take a salary. We went into the store every day and did something (anything) to promote business. When we opened again, we brought back our employees and started new programs within the store, like catering charcuterie boards as an example. We focused on customers, took special orders, created innovative and fun cooking classes, took to Instagram to communicate with our community and we listened to what our customers said. We never thought about giving up, we only thought about growth.
We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.
Our story is not mine alone. My daughter Mallory agreed to move to Whitefish and help me launch the business as she was finishing college. I do not think it would have been successful without her joining me. She had a background in graphic design and marketing and she was going to perform duties that would enhance a resume and after a few months move on to a bigger city. Never in either of our wildest dreams did we ever think we would be business partners powering a successful woman owned business. Fast forward to today…through sweat equity she earned ownership shares and became a co-owner. Running a family owned business has its own set of challenges and we are not immune from that. We are better at it than we were 3-4 years ago. We both had to learn things we didn’t really want to, but for the good of our relationship we did just that. Sometimes I worry that I have confined her or that she will regret not leaving for the big city. On the other hand she likes being an owner, she continues to grow and accept new responsibility. It’s important to both of us that we recognize that we bring different skills and talents to the business and that we respect each other’s opinion. We also have each others back for time off, self care and rejuvenation. She has been an amazing contributor and business partner.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.trovaremt.com
- Instagram: trovaremt
- Facebook: Trovare