Today we’d like to introduce you to Christi Hector.
Hi Christi, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I started as a mobile shoe and accessory boutique in 2007. Gained a great following from vending events, home shopping parties and pop-up shops. I shared a retail space with a hair salon for two years. Within this two years, I transitioned from a shoe boutique to a clothing boutique. In 2011, Pink Sky moved to our current retail space in the Glenwood Park area.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has been a pretty smooth road with a lot of learning experiences. Time has been a big factor. It took almost 5 years to get into the Glenwood Park retail space. A boutique owner’s big dream is to move into a retail space immediately when they come up with their business concept. I realized from the beginning that I didn’t have the money to do that. I had to figure out a way to make it happen until I could get to that point. My cousin asked me if I thought about doing a mobile shoe store and showed me an article about a young lady in Chicago that had a mobile shoe store. This article and concept got my wheels turning. And that is how Pink Sky was started as a mobile shoe and accessories boutique. Initially, it was a little frustrating because you want to be in this fabulous retail space, but you’re just not there yet. But, when we were finally able to get into our space, we already had a great following and consistent sales.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Pink Sky Boutique?
Pink Sky Boutique is a women’s clothing and accessory boutique located in Atlanta Georgia. You can also shop online. We specialize in timeless and effortless fashion for the everyday woman. You will find great pieces that you can wear from day to evening. We mix classic pieces with a little edge. We offer sizes Small to 3 X-Large. Accessories are our thing too. You can always find tons of earrings, necklaces and bags in-store and online. Our in-store shopping experience is customer oriented. We want to make sure you love your purchases. You will get a lot of fashion, style assistance and some laughs too. Nothing is better than when customers come in and tell you about their favorite items that they’ve had for years and still wear (and love)!
We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
Covid was definitely an eye-opener for business owners. Shift and pivot were the words of that season. And we had to learn to do both. We shut down the retail store for six months. Grateful that we already had a website that we actually used and maintained. The buying habits of customers change. We had to switch up our product choices because people were now working from home or not leaving the house. We went to a more relaxed product assortment. Prior to covid, Pink Sky’s main traffic came from in-store sales with a small online presence. With the shutdown, we had to convert our walk-in customers to online shoppers. This was definitely a shift. We had been using email marketing for years so we had the means to reach our customers. Social media and other marketing means were used heavily. We had to learn to adapt to the new norm.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.pinkskyboutique.com
- Instagram: @pinkskyboutique
- Facebook: @pinkskyboutique
- Twitter: @pinkskyboutique
Image Credits
Jay Hardman
