May 8, 2017

Meet Lisa Rieves of The Front Porch of Vinings

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lisa Rieves.

Lisa, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I started with a website then progressed to being a buyer for another local store. Next, I opened my own clothing store and a small home and garden shop with a business partner in Smyrna. I ended up selling both of these businesses to her and took a few years off. I live in Vinings and when I saw that the little white house with the picket fence was available, I started calling. The owner had been waiting on what he thought would be the “perfect fit” for the community.

Thankfully my ideas fit with his and I opened The Front Porch of Vinings in August of 2015. I wanted to create a shop where folks would love to swing by to see what was new and say hello. I search the US for one of a kind vintage items and then locally for all the jewelry and some of the gifts. Shopping with us is as much about the experience as it is what you buy. The success I have experienced in this short time has been unbelievable and I feel very blessed. I am always looking ahead planning fun events, markets, etc. to keep the customers excited.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Being a small business owner takes a special person, most people look at us and think we are a little bit crazy. I absolutely love what I do. I never think of it as a job, it brings me so much joy, but we are dreamers and we don’t sleep much! I have most certainly had struggles along the way, the biggest one being the split from my business partner. However, it was part of my journey and it made me courageous enough to open a shop on my own. Since I opened in 2015, the biggest struggle I have had is adapting quickly to the rapid growth in sales, it’s a great problem to have. I love being in the shop, but as an owner it’s a delicate balance between running the business and letting the business run you. You have to stay focused on the big picture and not get lost in the day to day “weeds”. If you are always looking down at what’s happening in the day to day, your business will suffer. You must always be the leader, the one they look up to and respect, but realizing you can’t do everything and then hiring the right folks to do the jobs you can’t is always key.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with The Front Porch of Vinings – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
When I decided to open this shop, I knew I wanted to bring in merchandise from antique markets from all across the US and then sprinkle in other locally curated items. Many of the items in the shop are one of a kind and I work very hard to constantly have new things coming in the door, with a strong emphasis on making sure they are unique. My business is built on my repeat customers. I believe they come back because of the level of customer service that we provide. We remember names and what our customers like but even more than that it is the overall experience that they have while they are in the shop. I think that folks crave that simpler time when you could one stop shop locally and the shop owner knew you by name. I am striving to re-create that. We offer home furnishings and accessories, as well as women’s clothing, shoes, jewelry and gifts. My steps read “Every so often, go where you can hear a screen door slam shut”.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I am always thinking ahead about what to do next! One of the biggest challenges of being a small business owner is figuring out how you can keep out doing yourself 🙂 and keep your customers engaged. I do two outdoor markets a year, one in the spring and one in the fall, May 13 is the next one. We will have lots of new vendors and even a local pie company selling their pies. I have already set the date for the fall market, October 21 and secured James Farmer to be in attendance signing his new book. Clothing and shoes have turned into a huge seller for me, so we will be doing some remolding to accommodate more of this in our tiny little house. Most of all, I plan to continue growing my sales by creating very happy customers who tell their friends and they tell their friends and so on.

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