We recently connected with Megan Miller and have shared our conversation below.

Megan, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?

We live in a great little neighborhood that has a small commercial area and there was a vacant space that sat and sat for a very long time. Every time I drove by it I thought, “What would be a great fit there?” One day, my husband and I drove by it as we were discussing some future plans and I said, “I really should open a store there.” He encouraged me to look into it and so I did! Honestly from there, everything just started falling into place. I first reached out to the listing agent and found out that that particular space was under contract but they had other spaces available across the street. This was the day before Thanksgiving and on Thanksgiving Day I had lined up time to go look at the spaces. I then sporadically reached out to someone I knew that owned a boutique in a town about an hour away and that immediately turned into a business/mentor relationship. The next few months were somewhat of a rollercoaster, mostly with solidifying a space to put our store. The first space that I really had my heart set on fell through. By the time that fell through, a new space opened up and ultimately that is where we landed. The mentorship and business support I had from Andrea, the other boutique owner was huge. I don’t think any of this would have come to fruition if I had not reached out to her initially. She was a wealth of knowledge and my sounding board, especially when we encountered hiccups. There were many! The biggest challenge for me was dealing with time delays. I had my eyes set on opening much earlier than we were actually able to but it did allow me enough time to go through the learning process of opening a store. Everything from what vendors to order from, what wallpaper to use, what flooring to pick out, what supplies were needed, etc. Once the small details were figured out then it was just a lot of physical effort to get the store ready to be opened. We decided to do a soft opening since we were still waiting for our building signage and we now have our official grand opening celebration scheduled!

Megan, 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?

I am a 37 year old, married, mom of five kids that range in age from one to eight. They keep me busy but busy is what I crave. Which is why I became a business owner! I actually came into entrepreneurship because I got laid off from my corporate career. I was 6 months pregnant with my second child when I was laid off so I took time to just have my child and stay home for a few months. However, that few months turned into years after finding myself craving something more creative than a 9-5 and being able to be in charge of what my days are like. The first two years I was home I took on babysitting jobs and created a reclaimed wood sign business. Then I decided to take on direct sales for another five years. That position was actually very successful! After awhile, I was craving something else and that is how our boutique came to be. I really love creating, whether that is in an artistic form or creation of a business, I guess. It is what drives me. I love a challenge and figuring things out. I also am a risk taker which, you have to be a little bit, to own your own business. Andrea, my business mentor, once told me, “Everything is figure-out-able,” and that just really stuck with me. That is what I want people to see when they think of me. Often times I get asked how I do it all but honestly, it’s just one thing, one step at a time. When you come across challenges just know that there is a solution and you CAN figure it out. I am most proud of being able to create this boutique for women and provide them a space to come find clothing that they can feel confident in. I am proud of showing other women that they too, can do things like this no matter what your background is in or how busy you are. If there is a will, there is a way! I don’t have a background in business ownership or fashion but I do have experience and background in management and entrepreneurship. I also have this passion to encourage others and with the boutique, those two things have really come together. I get to be a business owner and manager but also be a part of this neighborhood, this community, that I have come to love so much. I get to encourage women to wear the dress or pants or shirt that looks amazing on them!

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

The biggest pivot I had to make in life was going from a full time working mom to a full time stay at home mom rather unexpectedly. I was laid off from my corporate career when I was six months pregnant with my second child. I went to one job interview while I was pregnant and it was just, well, awkward. My husband and I decided that I would just stay home through what would have been my maternity leave. Going from a working mom and staying busy in between work and home to just being home with the kids and not having a set schedule was hard. It was a huge adjustment and made me realize quickly that I needed an outlet for myself outside of being a mom. While this was a very hard and shocking transition for me, in hindsight it was a huge blessing. It gave me the courage to try things outside of my comfort zone that I probably would not have tried in my comfy corporate job. Deciding not to look for jobs in my field anymore and to just make things work with me at home led me to start taking business risks. This is really where my desire to be an entrepreneur shined. I dabbled in a few direct sales business, one of which was very successful, and opened my first business. These small first steps is what fueled me to take an even bigger risk and open a brick and mortar boutique.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

The most effective strategy for growing our clientele has been relationship building and word of mouth. We are a small boutique and we are hidden around a corner from most vehicle and foot traffic. However, once we get customers stopping in we have found that most of them are craving that one on one experience that you can’t get at a big box store or shopping mall. The best part is that almost everyone that stops in just to see what we have to offer and tells us they will stop back and/or tell their friends, do! We have tons of customers that we see on a regular basis that we now know on a more personal level. It is so fun! Shopping at our store is so much different because our customers most times see the same employees and therefore get to know us. Growing your customer base this way is not always fast, but it’s effective and typically creates long lasting customers. We do have our social media presence as well, however we definitely enjoy the in person experience much more!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.sisustylemn.com
• Instagram: @sisustylemn
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sisustyleboutiquemn

Image Credits
White Barn Picket Fence Photography and Nicole Trigger