Hello World

So, I have an idea for the business.  How hard do you think it was to convince the Bank of Leonard?  Tough.  Very Tough.  But I knew the way to that man's heart was not with food but with a business plan.  I secretly created one while I was off work for a bit.  I spent days in what I called my office (a small study room at the library) to create the plan and research.  Then came the day when I presented the idea.  I think he was a little surprised and somewhat impressed that I had been working on it without him knowing.  In order to get the go-ahead to quit my job and totally change our lifestyle, the last thing I had to do was go back to Arizona and spend some time with a consignment shop owner I had met on a previous trip.  Kim was gracious enough to let me go and learn from her by going to several stores in her area to see what they did and then work in her store.  I have pages and pages of notes from those few days and still use them almost two years later.  She was (and still is) amazing.   

[I have a tendency to get side-tracked sometimes, we call that Kitty (aka: Sidebar):  This would be one of the biggest pieces of advice I would give anyone who was thinking about opening a new business.  Find a mentor and ask questions.]

One of the best days of this journey?  The day I put in my resignation (along with a packet on how to hire my replacement - complete with test and everything!)  As I waited for one of my biggest cheerleaders (Mick) to come to my house for our early morning walk/run, I started that day listening to a song by Lady Antebellum called "Hello World"...

"Well, hello world, how you been?  Good to see you, my old friendSometimes I feel as cold as steelAnd broken like I'm never gonna heal
I see a light, a little grace, a little faith unfurlWell, hello world"

I was actually in my driveway spinning around with my arms opened wide (at 0430, I don't hink anyone saw me, but I wouldn't have cared.)  That day was like freedom.  It was scary not knowing what the days ahead would bring.  But there was also excitement to learn about what the days ahead would bring.   Truthfully, this road was and is one of the hardest I have ever travelled.  And there have been plenty. 

We opened the doors to Absolutely Her on September 27th at 1:00 pm.  With over 1,200 items already, I felt I had a lot of inventory and was good to go.  Boy was I silly.  Today we have over 5,000 and are busting at the seams.  I LOVE IT! 

It's About Time!

I have a list of resolutions.  So far So Good.  I've actually kept them past 2 days.  So this is a record.  Actually, I started about a month ago.  The main one was to plan ahead and so I started in December to plan for the year at Absolutely Her.  I've got my sale and major events planned for the next few months along with the window displays.  The first display for the window was going to be a snowman and snowflakes with different winter coats.  That's what I wrote down.  But when I went to actually put it together, it didn't feel right.  So instead it has a theme...Miracles Happen Everyday and the color purple.  Technically I didn't stay with the plan that I had, but the actual goal was to change out the window.  Sometimes our lives don't follow the plan but we reach the goal.  Never knowing what was to happen but learning it was okay the way it turned out.  I've got several different things that I want to do this year.  And I'm hoping my first resolution of planning ahead is going to make the others fall into place.  Taking the burden off of one part of your life can lighten the load on the others as well. 

This blog is the start of the new year's goals as well.  And as I try to figure out where to go and what to write about, I think I should just start at the beginning.  Along the way you'll learn about the store, about consignment and more about me than you ever hoped to know. 

ABSOLUTELY HER has been my "dream" for a very long time.  Even before I knew what exactly it was going to be.  I knew I wanted my own business, but I sure didn't know what it was at the time.  For the longest time my obsession was shopping.  I loved to go to the malls to see what new things were out and what I just had to have.  There were bright and shiny objects tempting me at every turn and I bought them.  Lots of them.  More than I ever needed or ever wanted.  Some were beyond what I should have spent, but back then, I didn't care.  Just hand over the card.  Then a friend of mine introduced me to Goodwill and other thrift store shopping.  I found the same things at the mall for such a small price that I realized I couldn't stand to pay full price for things anymore.  By this time I was in a job that wasn't me but I stayed because I was afraid to leave.  It had been over 20 years.  How do you walk away from that stability?  And that paycheck?

People say that timing is everything and I know that to be true.  I was in the hospital with my mom when a story came on about consignment store shopping.  That's when the lightbulb came on and the idea started to form about what we could do in Papillion.  Convincing my husband was the next step...

Memorable Meetings

I realized this morning that people have been put in my path at Absolutely Her to guide me and open up doors I had seen in my "hallway" of life but just walked past. Last Friday I went to my first breakfast meeting with a group of diverse and fabulous women with the MOWBC (Metro Omaha Women's Center) with one of my Tara Plaza partners ic crime, Linda from Unico Insurance. While I was there, I watched her talk about our Time2Drive Teen Safety Expo happening on August 11th. The energy and passion she portrayed was not only fun to watch, but it was contagious. She has put so much of herself into this event not to sell insurance but to truly educate and keep our community safe. The other fun part of the meeting was being a part of their 4-year anniversary celebration. This group of women helps other women find their dreams and celebrate their success. They gave a startup grant to Beka Doolittle Owner of thepinkstore.com which sells Pink items of all kind. How great is that...women helping women succeed! This is definitely an organization to belong to and be proud of. Then, I met a gentleman who unfortunately lost his wife not too long ago. Helping him I realized how daunting of a task it must be to go through her things and decide what to do. And I also realized there is certainly something I can do to help by going to his house and helping him figure out what to consign now, what to hold on to for the next seasons and what to give to charity. By doing that, not only do we save time and energy, but I also receive a lesson about love and family. AND THEN...we have a "gold rush"! I went to a party hosted by some fantastic friends and took some pieces of "ex" jewelry and walked out with $170. There was a lot of screaming taking place when some of the others learned their $ amounts so we are having an event at the store on Thursday, August 8th...just in time for back to school! How fun is that...bring some friends, have a cocktail and food and make some money!

Is Your Closet Too Small?

That was the big question at one of classes during the NARTS Conference. And I admit that I would say yes! That is until I had a major clean out. Trying to decide what stays and what goes is tough. Especially when I had been changing my wardrobe style from a uniform for work to whatever I felt like. All around the conference a new phrase seemed to be popping up (at least it was new to me)..."If it's so-so, it's no-no". It seriously became my thought process. How many things did I have in the closet that we're just so-so? A LOT! Following the guidelines to clean out a closet sounds pretty intimidating and you would think it would take hours and hours, but really, how long did it take? With that question in my head, and being truly honest about how things looked, it wasn't that bad. And now I can see the floor instead of a big pile of shoes I never wore because they were too uncomfortable and I can see that I tend to gravitate toward black clothes (I feel skinnier in them - always thinking black is slimming), so I should add some more color here and there. It's organized and clean and no longer too small. And one more project off my list. And, for those who have asked, yes, I even have the jeans in my closet hanging like the ones in the store.

SURPRISES ARE A GOOD THING!

Don't you just love a great surprise whether it's showing up unexpected or getting something out of the blue?  Every time someone walks in the door to consign, its a fun kind of surprise for me.  Its Christmas every single day!  Today was like that when I was tagging a new Vera Bradley Versailles large hobo bag AND a brown Coach wristlet with coral and orange summer accents.  I've become a purse fanatic lately and I enjoy seeing the different styles women wear and purchase. 

A customer made a statement yesterday about the store having a lot of purses (we do) in so many styles.  Purses and jewelry are some of our top sellers.  And the reason why?  BECAUSE THEY FIT!  If you gain weight or lose weight, they still fit.  They make you feel good when you have just the right accessory for your favorite out on the town outfit or if its just an old pair of comfortable jeans you threw on because you didn't want to iron.  Dress it up or dress it down, it still fits!

Another Reason to love Tara Plaza!

I am so blessed to be surrounded by small business owners who care not only about their own business, but the community.  And I am so proud of Linda Simpleman of UNICO Insurance for putting together a great event which is going to take place on Saturday, August 11th from 10:00 am - 2:00 pm. 

She's organized a large group of people who care enough to make everyone safer.  We have:

Mr. Rob Reynolds:  Mr. Reynolds will be the guest speaker of the day at 12:30 pm.  He will be addressing the issues of texting and driving and how it impacted his life when his daughter, Cady Ann, was killed by a distracted driver in 2007.

Allied Insurance:  Using your own cell phone, you're put behind the wheel of a vehicle which simulates the dangers of texting and driving.  AND they have the Fatal Vision Goggles - try to walk the line with these on - they show impairment at three distinct blood alcohol levels.

National Safety Council of Nebraska:  They'll make sure your car seat is in correctly and answer any questions.

MADD:  (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) will talk to you about how to prevent underage drinking, how to talk to teens and risks of driving impaired.

Alegent EMS:  Will be showing the Fatal Distraction video which was filmed at Papillion-LaVista South High School this spring.

Sarpy County 911:  Young children can practice on the 911 Simulator and watch a cartoon featuring Cell Phone Sally, the new face of 911.

Nebraska State Patrol:  See what it is like to experience a low impact crash and feel how a seat belt works with their Seat Belt Convincer.

Papillion Fire Department:  Climb around a fire engine and see the equipment they use when battling a blaze.

Papillion Police Department:  The 1957 Chevy DARE vehicle will be on display to see what police cruisers used to look like.

Sarpy County Sheriff's Department:  See up close what a vehicle looks like after it rolled during a drunk driver accident that killed 4 people from Omaha.

LifeNet:  Dedicated to air medical transport, LifeNet will be landing a helicopter in the parking lot so you can look through and see their equipment and learn how it works with different agencies in the area.

Sponsored by UNICO, Allied Insurance and the Tara Plaza Association.  Bring your kids, friends, their friends - everyone - to check this out!  You won't be disappointed!

NARTS

So, I woke up early this  morning and did some facebook time, twitter posts and wrote a little something for the blog.  Must not have been completely awake as my blog post didn't take.  Here's take two...

Did you know there is actually a conference for fabulous business owners who have consignment and thrift stores?  It's called NARTS (National Association of Resale and Thrift Stores) and a couple of weeks ago, I went to St. Louis with my sister to attend my second conference (it was the 25th anniversary for NARTS).  In my past life I went to a lot of conferences and seminars where most everyone sits by themselves in classes and doesn't seem to want to share information.  Thankfully that is not the case for this incredible group of men and women (yes, I did say men - much to my husband's surprise).  In every class and every event there were people willing to share ideas, "secrets", and even failures. 

The good thing I learned is we are doing so many things right (thanks to going last year before I opened and with the help of Kim from Boutique Refaire in Peoria, AZ).  But alas, there are things we could be doing better and I have started tackling that list by getting the blog back up and trying out this "twitter" thing. 

I know I couldn't do this without the help of my team - those who help me in the store, the consignors who bring me incredible items and the customers who tell their friends where they found that outfit that is "Absolutely Her"!

Have a fantastic Friday!