Community Highlights: Meet Abigail Santiago of McKenley Rae Boutique

Today we’d like to introduce you to Abigail Santiago

Hi Abigail, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself
Hi! My name is Abigail Santiago and I am the founder of McKenley Rae Boutique an online fashion boutique that caters to bold and stylish women. I am also the creator and host of the A BOSS With No Friends Podcast where we discuss all things related to female friendships and how to maintain and grow your circle of friends as you build a successful business. McKenley Rae is a dream 9 years in the making. I actually started out as an online swimwear brand operating out of my home. I was doing pop up shops and selling out of my car and literally hawking my swimwear to anyone and and everyone who would listen. Within a year and a half I had grown substantially and made the decision to open my first brick and mortar location with a business partner. I did realize though, that in order sustain, I would need to carry something other than swimwear and that is when the McKenley Rae Brand was born.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Entrepreneurship for me although amazing, has definitely not been without its challenges. Two years after opening my first brick and mortar, I ventured out on my own and opened a new store. That location did really well however within a couple years I began to notice that my in-store sales has dwindled substantially and that my online sales were growing. I panicked a bit because I had completely neglected my online presence and now social media was almost unrecognizable five years later. In addition, my father became ill and I made the decision to close my store so that I was free to see him as often as I would need to in Jamaica. Having no idea how to transition from a physical presence to being 100% online was incredibly daunting so I sought out a business mentor to help me figure things out and gave myself a year to complete the move. Then at the beginning of 2020 the pandemic hit and, like most business owners who were not considered essential, we closed our doors. Thankfully with the help of my mentor I was able to continue my business online and actually grow McKenley Rae.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
McKenley Rae is an online boutique that offers collections for women who seek to express themselves through effortless, creative, and individual style, We were inspired from a love of fashion and a desire to provide women with attainable luxury. We are known for curating fashion forward pieces for the woman who wants to set herself apart from the crowd and demand attention when she walks into a room. I am most proud of the fact that at 44 years old, I have built a business that helps women recognize that style has nothing at all to do with their age. The McKenley Rae woman exudes confidence, she is happy, she is radiant and she shines no matter how old she is.

Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
I know that this has been the buzz word since the Covid-19 pandemic started, but I truly had to learn how to pivot. I had to learn how to stay calm when you are thrown completely off your course. As far as McKenley Rae goes I had to learn how to use social media more efficiently to drive traffic to my business. Part of that included being comfortable with stepping from behind the camera, as being quarantined severely impacted the availability of models. I also had to change some of the kinds of pieces I was offering to suit my customer’s new found reality. For example, I began carrying stylish loungewear that women could feel beautiful in, even though they were safe at home. In addition to pivoting, I learned to be still, to practice self-care, to follow my instincts and to finally take the time to do the things I’ve always wanted to do. My podcast A BOSS With No Friends was born during the pandemic and so many women have reached out to tell me how much it resonates with them and just how much it has helped them navigate the highs and lows of their female friendships.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: https://mckenley-rae.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mckenleyrae
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shopmckenleyrae
• Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/mckenleyrae
• Other: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-boss-with-no-friends/id1538482916

Image Credits
RTW Studios