We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Nicole Dukes. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Nicole below.

Hi Nicole, thanks for joining us today. Almost all entrepreneurs have had to decide whether to start now or later? There are always pros and cons for waiting and so we’d love to hear what you think about your decision in retrospect. If you could go back in time, would you have started your business sooner, later or at the exact time you started?

If I could go back in time I wish I could have started my business sooner. Initially, Pretti-n-Plush Boutique was started in July 2020 during the pandemic whereas I was uncertain about the future. I worked full-time as a human resources professional for the local government yet the pandemic changed how we conducted our business operations. These changes challenged me to reconsider the idea of entrepreneurship. I always desired to have my own business in the fashion and beauty industry to display my creativity and help women embrace their flaws and confidently create and live a beautiful life they love. Although I have 15+ years as an HR Professional, I have experienced challenges in corporate America and being limited in my potential.

Taking the risk to start my business was therapeutic and inspiring because finally I faced my fear of failure. I was terrified of failing in my business and thought it would be detrimental to my self-esteem. I quickly learned that in order to succeed you must fail because how would you learn. There was so much to learn about business that if I had started earlier I would be enjoying the success of helping women, like myself, who battled with self-doubt. I feel that starting my business sooner rather than later, would have been easier with securing funding such as a business loan. I think starting my business sooner, there would have been more resources and tools available and a less competitive market. However, I have encountered challenges which caused me to reset and reshift my ideas within my business consistently, I am still steadfast on becoming the top fashion retailer online.

Nicole, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name Nicole “Nikki” Dukes and I am an entrepreneur, fashionista, spiritualist, and soon to be author. I have more than 15 years experience in human resources and started Pretti-n-Plush Boutique in July 2019 just 4 months into the pandemic. The pandemic changed how we live, conducted business, and our overview of life. This challenged me to reconsider my dream of entrepreneurship. Yet, what truly inspired me to launch my online boutique was my deep admiration for fashion and to motivate woman to feel liberated through clothing styles that captivates her natural beauty but also enhances her confidence. As a teenager, I had low self-esteem and consistently tried to fit a beauty standard and narrative that wasn’t true to who I was as a young woman. It was not until adulthood, I took a journey of self-discovery and realized that I define my own concept of beauty through not only my appearance but everything about my femininity. I established my online boutique to cater in providing the latest trendy fashions and accessories for women through bold, chic, or flirty apparel that compliments every woman’s unique style.

I am proud of the top-tier service and high quality merchandise I am able to provide our customers. We are a small business but we handle each order with care and appreciation as we value our customers feedback on our service and products. Customers will quickly notice that Pretti-n-Plush Boutique is not the average online retail store, we take pride in selecting quality clothing that lasts and guarantees your satisfaction.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Taking the risk to starting my own business. My business is 100% self-funded and to ensure success I’ve had to seek additional employment to get my start-up to operate with a consistent flow of business. Of course, in business there are always unexpected expenses and you incur the motions of losses and profitable gains everything is part of it’s ability to become successfully. This requires patience and determination. Since launching my boutique, I’ve had to put business operations on pause for multiple reasons. Yet, I always restart with a new idea that attracts a bigger audience which is a great opportunity for exposure and expansion. This lets me know to stay focused because my business success is near.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

A valuable lesson I learned is to stop comparing my business to others within my industry. There are numerous online boutiques that cater in selling women’s apparel but each one sells a different lifestyle or narrative that is unique to that individual. The story of creating a beautiful life you love with just being true to who you are is what my boutique portrays to our audience. This is our narrative and I embrace this everyday in hopes to inspire women everywhere.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.prettinplushboutique.com
• Instagram: pretti_n_plushboutique
• Facebook: prettinplushboutique
• Youtube: Pretti n Plush TV
• Other: TikTok -@prettinplushb

Image Credits
Niyana A. Chambers Eulani Chambers