The Happiest of Birthdays: Congrats to Mint & Magnolia’s!
Being a small business owner is extremely hard. There’s always some business license, or regulation thing that pops up that you didn’t know you needed because someone forgot to tell you. There’s always the issue of cash flow and payroll and making rent/mortgage. There’s point of sale systems and WIFI that crashes at the worst possible moment. There are customers who question the value of your product and that sinking feeling of why am I doing this? There’s making your own hours, but also working long hours and missing events with friends and family because no one else but you is going to get it done.
But- there’s also making your own way in the world. There’s coming out on the other side of it all and meeting success straight in the face. There’s making customers happy and seeing the joy on their faces when an outfit transforms them. Or when they’re transforming and decorating their new home. Or when a facial makes them feel pretty again. Or when they’re coming out of a horrible personal situation and you’ve helped them obtain a little ray of light.
It’s easy to write off so many of these businesses, clothing, facials, home decor, as frivolous. But there truly is an emotional moment that each of us reaches when someone helps us transform a part of our lives. A new outfit can do that. A decorative pillow can be the last thing you needed to make your new house your home. An hour to yourself for a facial treatment can help the stress of your week melt away.
And it’s due to the courage of small business owners that these things can happen. In particular, I’m excited about two that had birthdays this week.
I met the ladies of Mint Boutique in Dublin back when they were starting four years ago, right when I was going out on my own as well. I remember we had dinner at the old Bearfoot location on Cherry Street, and they wanted my advise for how to expand. They talked about how they had trunk shows in friends homes and then an idea came to me: let’s do a pop-up boutique. I got in touch with Mechel, who was director of Main Street Macon at that time. And she went from there. We were able to get other boutiques and vendors to participate in what we called Strut: a pop up event on First Friday.
That was one of times when I realized that *I* could help really make a difference, and that we had incredible partners in this town who will attempt crazy ideas to try something new and cool.
From there, Mint would go on to be housed in another store in Dublin. Then I would visit for their own pop-up event during my Girl Meets Dublin post. And then from there… their own storefront. It’s absolutely gorgeous and when you walk in you don’t even realize you’re in this cute little town in Georgia. This week, they celebrated four years. I am SO proud of them.
Also this week, it’s the one year birthday of Magnolia’s Medical Spa in Forsyth. They took this huge building on the Square in Forsyth and truly transformed it. There are rooms for almost any treatment you can think of, and if you ever want to know what they offer and what their specials are all you have to do is go to their Facebook page because there’s something new all the time. I’ve gotten to know Marlies, their owner, and the other ladies over there. They have built something truly remarkable, not just a business but a community. They actively promote other lady business owners in their town, and are always lifting each other up.
I love supporting lady-owned businesses. Many times, but certainly not all of the time, we’re the ones also managing activities for our kids- their school items, doctors appointments, medications, extracurricular activities. Sometimes we’re also doing it while going back to school ourselves. Women also make less money than our male counterparts, and many times it’s harder to sell ourselves as credible business people. It wasn’t that long ago that we had to have a husband or father even help us get credit, because women were not issued credit on their own.
It’s for those reasons, and so many others, that I wanted to wish these ladies a very happy birthday. So many small businesses cannot make it past the first year, and y’all have. Congrats!
Here’s a few of the other small, female owned businesses that I love to frequent:
Previews Interiors and Antiques
and so many more! Tell us your favs in the comments.
Love to all y’all,
Molly
