Building Your Boutique Business with Gratitude | The Boutique Hub

Happy New Year, you guys. Hey, let's wrap up 2019 with an attitude of gratitude. So today's episode is all about being grateful, and lots of you participated to help make this episode possible. So I can't wait to share all of these messages. Inside of today's show. Let's talk about your business strategy and the juicy details of what actually works, from mainstream fashion to fashion on Main street, the entire ecosystem behind it. How do we scale your company and do it with the balance and the happiness that we all seek? Let's hear from those insiders, experts, and strategists that actually make it happen. I'm your host, Ashley Alderson from the Boutique Hub, and I can't wait to chat. All right, guys, we have a special episode planned this week that I hope you love you. You know, I wanted to end the year with a message that I think so many of us can relate to and share in. You know, I'm a big believer in gratitude. The more you share it, the more you have to be grateful for. And I heard a coach one time say, you cannot live in a state of anxiety and gratitude at the same time. And, man, did that hit home for me. Because it's true. You can't be anxious, you can't be fearful. At the same time that you can be grateful. Right? In a state of gratitude. So I think that's why it's so important. Every single day, we focus on all the good things that happen around us. Because what we see, what we focus on, what we notice, we see more and more of. Just like if you're driving down the road and you're thinking about buying a red car, isn't it amazing how many red cars you start to notice? And positive thoughts and negative thoughts really work the same way. The more you embrace one or the other, the more you're going to continually see. So while I'd love to make this episode about the things that I'm grateful for, I think that gratitude is really meant to be shared. So I wanted to involve as many of you as I could in this message. So you probably remember if you are a member of the Boutique Hub. A while back, I asked in our groups if you would join me in helping me create this podcast and share who or what you are most grateful for so that we could surprise some friends today, some partners, some service providers, anyone that you just want to say thank you to for a great 2019 because they've helped you along the way. Sounds like fun, right? So look for these messages. I'm going to be sprinkling them in and sharing them throughout today's episode, all from your boutique besties and your members of the community inside of the Hub. I also am going to be sharing a few things that I'm grateful for. Then also I'm going to break down four daily habits that you could use to really set yourself up for success in 2020 in terms of being mindful and grateful each and every day. So let me start here, looking back at 2019. Oh my goodness, you guys, this was such a year of growth and change for us at the Hub. I just want to kick off the show by saying, wow, thank you, every single one of you. Thank you so much for being here. Thank you for listening to this episode. I'm amazed each and every week how many of you send me DMS on Instagram and you send me screenshots of what you're doing while you listen. You send me your biggest takeaway from the episode. You send me questions, you share stories with me. I love being able to share this with you and have this conversation with you just to be in your space. Right? I know that your time is so precious, and the fact that you're inviting me to be a part of the few precious moments you have or the few opportunities you have to learn and grow your business every single day, that means a lot. And also, it's funny, but I won't say creepy when I go to markets or different places or Boutique Summit, how many times I meet you and your husbands, and then your husbands are also like, oh, I recognize your voice. Like, I hear your voice all the time in our house. Or the people that have said, I randomly fell asleep listening to your voice last night. I'm going to pretend none of that's creepy. Right? It's just going to be awesome. So I'm telling you, thank you for listening to the show. But more important than that, thank you for being the person that takes action on what you learn in the show. I'm going to repeat this today, so bear with me. But one hour of action trumps 100 hours of motivation each and every time. So thank you for what you're doing. And after you listen to the show, I think about the guests that we've had on the podcast over the last year. And really, we're going to be coming up on two years that we've had the show. We'll be entering the next season of the show after the first of the year, and it could be easy for so many people to think about some of the brands or some of the boutiques that have been on the episodes, like big boutiques, we'll say, and to look at them in a state of comparison, look at her and all she's accomplished or look at how successful she is, or look at whatever, you know, thing that she has hit in her life, whatever goal she's reached in her life, and she's reached it. But I haven't. Right. That's a state of comparison. You could be looking at guests on the show in that light. But what so many of you have done and I appreciate is a lot like the story of Roger Bannister. If you've heard of Roger Bannister, he was the very first man to ever run a four minute mile. And that was thought to be impossible for such a long period of time. Everyone was striving to hit this four minute mile and nobody could do it. Well, the same year that Roger Bannister became the first man to run the four minute mile, soon his closest competitor, I think like within the next month or two months, broke the record. And in the next year, I believe it was three more men broke the four minute mile. So the reason that happened wasn't because they were in comparison with one another or in competition with one another, but it was because Roger Bannister showed them that it was possible. Right. So seeing someone else in their winning season doesn't take anything away from you. It doesn't make you any less. It only shows you what's possible for you too, if you choose to see it that way. So for me and for you, listening to the podcast and hearing these awesome stories, that only means that it's possible for you if you choose it this year. Besides the podcast, I'm also so thankful for the way that you've shown up in person because along with getting your awesome Instagram messages, I love that. I really value the relationships that we've built in the community and the opportunity that myself and that our entire team has had to meet you and to see you and to recognize you and to see your family and your staff and to build relationships with you, bar none. Our favorite place to do that is the Boutique Summit. And I just have to extend a huge layer of gratitude to you for showing up at the Boutique Summit. This was the third year that we hosted the Boutique Summit. In 2019, just over 800 of you came to Atlanta, which blows my mind. It really blows my mind, and especially that we started just three years ago with 300 of you that you sold out, right? This year you sold out 800 people within it was like under 22 hours. It was crazy. And every year, it sold out. The very first year, it was 300 people. And at that time, to give you kind of an idea of what the Hub's gone through and how our team has grown in the last two years, the first year we did this, which was 2017, 300 of you and three of us. Myself, Beth, who was part time. Beth was also an accountant for an accounting firm at that time, and Jesse Jarvis. And Jesse. Jesse's always kind of been part time with the Hub because she's also an influencer, and they have a ranch and we own a magazine together. So it was the three of us, two part timers and myself. And somehow we tackled bringing 300 of you to Dallas with carbon monoxide poisoning. All at the same time was us with carbon monoxide poisoning, not you. And the next year, it went to 500 people in Dallas. And then we made this big move to Atlanta with 800. So thank you, you guys, for believing in this event, for. Oh, my gosh, just for going for it, for leaving your family. I know what a huge commitment it is for you to leave your family, to leave your store, to travel across the country. And not to mention that so many of you have met boutique besties inside of the Hub that you've never met in person. And you told your husbands, I'm going to the airport. I'm meeting a stranger that I met on the Internet through this place called the Boutique Hub. And we're sharing a hotel room for the next three days. And I hope she's not a serial killer. Like, congratulations, so many of your husbands probably wanted to strangle you or strangle me for such crazy madness, but isn't it amazing how it's worked out? I know so many of you have built lifelong friendships with the people that you have met at Summit, and I think that's what makes our community so special, is how those relationships have just really blossomed and evolved from that opportunity to meet one another in person. You know, along with the Summit, not only am I grateful for everyone who's attended, but so many of you in our community also have spoken at Summit. So we bring in over 35 speakers. I can't even remember the exact number. Last year was somewhere around 35 or 38. And we do bring in big outside keynote speakers, and we'll have even more in 2020. But we do rely on people within our community. I think so many of you want to hear your peers get up and tell their Stories. And it's not just the stories about the winning seasons of your business, right? There's so much knowledge and insight, not just from the highs, but especially from the lows. There's so much in learning when things don't go as planned. Just like this last year at the Summit, I think so many of you resonated with Diana and Kristen from the red dress when they got up and they had this whole talk about how cockroaches don't die. It was so good. And they gave everyone a cockroach at the end of it because they talked about all the times where they had not been in a winning season, how many times it was so hard and things were not working out. But a cockroach just doesn't die. You can't kill it. And so how they survived all those seasons. So I really want to genuinely thank all of you that have shared your story on the podcast at Summit, on a Facebook live, in any kind of training, because truly, what that is, what you're demonstrating is community over competition. You're not scared to share with your quote unquote competitors, as society would call them. You're not scared to share what's worked for you or what hasn't worked because you know there's more than enough to go around. So I commend you a thank you, and I cannot wait for another Boutique summit in 2020. One last thing I want to mention that we're so grateful for, our entire team is grateful for, is all of you that have joined us in retail bootcamp this year. This is where Sarah and I spend the majority of our time teaching and coaching. And it is such an engaged, awesome group of men and women. And I appreciate the fact that there's so many people in these groups that have, you know, invested in themselves that they don't put up any walls, right? There's no award for being the biggest or the best or there's no award for being the person that has all the answers inside of the Facebook groups, right? There's no competition. Everyone there has been so open with one another about the good and the bad, the only reward in life and in business, just simply to be realistic about where we are and what we can do better and then to actually take the action on it. So for those of you who have been a part of those programs, who have showed up time and time again over 12 weeks, it is a grueling program, but you have taken action, even if it's learning one new thing and implementing it, just one little nugget thank you for doing that and thank you so much for trusting Sarah and I to lead you and to guide you and to teach you and to bring in guest experts to help. That means the world that you have entrusted us with that. So thank you guys for that this year. All right. All right. Let's hear from several of you the things that you're grateful for. Thank you so much for sending these little nuggets in. The first one is this. Hey, Ashley. I would like to thank Sharla Baumgartner for really demonstrating community over competition. She and her team put together a boutique shop hop of 10 local boutiques in our region. They have worked really hard and and not only was this a big deal, but she included little old me. And I am so grateful, by the way. We met in person at Summit because we are both hubbies. So this continues to be the best business decision that I have made. I appreciate all the work that you and your team do for us for the boutique hub. I am grateful this was so long, but hopefully worth it. From Key McFall from beautiful boutique on Wheels. Key, you are so awesome. Thank you so much for that message and Sharla for the boutique shop hop that you put together. The next message comes from Karen Bagley from K Posh Boutique and she says, I am so very grateful to Crystal Wright from Rose Grace Boutique. We met at the airport on our way to the boutique Summit this summer and clicked instantly. We spent the whole trip together and have stayed in touch since. Thank you, Crystal, for being such a great friend and such a great support system. I love you, girl. The next piece of gratitude comes from Desiree Holden Rae from Two Boys in a Sailor Boutique. She says she is most thankful for the small shop and boutique community. Sailor got sick in March, at which time we received such an outpouring of love during her inpatient stay. Calls, messages, packages, fundraisers, and so much more. It led me to the boutique world and to the hub and and I am so grateful for that December. Ann from Style937 Boutique says, I'm so thankful for two ladies who opened up a vendor marketplace in my area when I decided to shift mainly to online so that I could be with my babies more and slow my brick and mortar store down. I felt really sad. But then I opened a space in the market and it allows me to get my merchandising fix, my client fix all without having to pay a sitter constantly and feel like someone else is always with my babies. And finally, Mary Meyer from Fox and the Owl Wholesale Mary is one of the kindest people. She says she is most thankful for her Boutique Hub retail and wholesale family to each and every one of them, because it's allowed her husband to quit his corporate job two years ago so that they could work together on their dream. You guys, I want to come back and share one more thing that I'm so grateful for at the Boutique Hub this year. And this is a big project that has taken, gosh, over two years to put together something we've worked on for that long, and that is splitting off Boutique Style and the Boutique Hub. So I know many of you have had the opportunity to meet Nikki on our team, and we brought Nikki onto the team. Gosh, what's her work anniversary? Probably two years ago now, after her and I met at a Brendon Burchard conference and through our friend Nick Pigeon. And Nikki's a writer. She's super talented and loves fashion. So this was really the perfect opportunity for her to start writing all of our style blogs, where she can feature every single one of you and your boutique and your fashion and hopefully help you with new customer acquisition through the Boutique Style platform. So Nikki, along with our cto Ben, our designer Kate, on our team, and all of our team, really has had a hand in this. But Nikki really took the lead on separating the boutiquehub.com with boutique style. Because I don't know if you guys remember this, but for a while, our site was super confusing by way that so many boutiques were coming coming to our site to find business information and to join the Boutique hub. But the boutiquehub.com was also the main domain where shoppers would come to shop and to discover boutiques. Right. And so we really wanted to create clarity around that. Like, where's the place that we want shoppers to go to discover all of your member profiles and to read blogs around trends and how to dress their body and to just be inspired with all of your fashion. But we wanted to keep that separate from business development. So finally this year, after, you know, taking a long time to put this all together, this was able to be accomplished. So Boutique Style is still in beta. It's still a baby site. We're still figuring out what works and what doesn't and how we want to grow that platform so that it's more beneficial sending traffic to every single one of you and your sites. Because we know that, you know, I just think about my own life. Right. This is kind of a throwback to why we created the Boutique Hub in the first place. And that is, I'm a busy mom. I was from North Dakota. There wasn't that many places to shop at the time. And I just wanted to have one central place where I could find all these stores that I loved. And not only that, but with social media the way that it is, it's easy to find a million boutiques right now, and it's easy to order from several boutiques. But forget, you know, where did I buy that again? Or what was that cute boutique's name again? Or, man, when I traveled to Charlotte, what boutique did I stop and see? So we wanted to create a place where people like me, people like you, that are busy, that have all these options, they can come in and they can subscribe to a boutique's feed and say, like, hey, I want to follow this boutique and others like it. I want to find more that fit my personal style, my taste. And then every time I log in, all of that boutique's new arrivals are showing up in my style feed. So my style feed is like a social media channel of boutique fashion that I can see. And as I want to save something to my favorites, or if I want to shop something and actually buy it, when I click on the product, it goes right to that boutique's website and I can purchase it right there with the boutique directly. So that's always been the idea. That's the mission. And I know we still have several other pieces of this project that we're continuing to build, but I hope that you guys love the platform and if there's ever a way, you know, or time that you have feedback on how we can make it better, I would love to hear it because it's still a work in progress. So definitely something I'm super grateful for in 2019. All right, let's go back to hearing some of your guys messages from the community. Jordan Blades from J. Lena Boutique said, I just hit my biggest month ever last week, and it was literally all because of this group and finding my boutique bestie Rachel Banko. I was on the verge of giving up and quitting just six months ago, and now I'm setting goals that I never thought were imaginable. That's pretty awesome, Jordan. And Rachel, it sounds like you are a pretty awesome boutique bestie. Brooke Cameron from Soul Revival Boutique. Brooke, I think I always butcher your last name. You're going to have to help me with that. She's one of the sweetest souls we've had the opportunity to meet in person. And she says that she is so thankful to Dana hall and to Robin Brown, who have been a huge influence in her life. From bouncing ideas to lifting me up professionally and personally, I am so, so grateful for these two ladies. All right, one more to be thankful for is from Megan Mosley from Broken Boutique. She says, I am so grateful for a season of pruning because I know that after pruning comes growth. So 2020 will be a year of growth for me in our business. You guys, I wanted to stop right here and think about this for a second and talk about this. Isn't it the truth? Sometimes it's not the big shiny objects that impact us the most or, you know, these record setting years or months or the awards that we win. That's not all we have to be grateful for. Sometimes it's the challenges that really call us to reevaluate what we're doing and why we're doing it. Sometimes those are the things that we have to be most grateful for. You might think I'm such a nerd when I tell you this, but one of my favorite artists is Kacey Musgraves, and she talks about in this one song. If you want to find the silver lining, you've got to face a cloudy day. And if you want to find the honey, you can't be scared of the bees. And if you want to find a four leaf clover, you got to be able to get a little dirt on your hands. And she goes through all these analogies about, you know, the fruit only comes after the labor. Right? You put the nutrients in the soil in the field before you plant your crop. And so I loved Megan's gratitude so much because sometimes we just have to be thankful for a year that might be a total dumpster fire that we just have to learn to prune, because after the pruning comes the growth. So, Megan, thank you so much for being real and honest and showing us that we can have gratitude even if it's not a big shiny object. Wonderful lesson to learn and to share. All right, two more things I want to share with you guys that were brand new in 2019 that I want to share gratitude for to all of you for helping make possible and to our team for helping make possible. The first I'm super grateful for is the Boutique Boss Planner. So this was a wild idea for quite a while, and two members of our team, Sarah Burks and Jesse Jarvis, just decided to run with it and make this puppy possible. And you would think, like, oh, designing a day planner, like, not that big a deal, but really, when you design something totally from scratch.