Michelle didn't plan on pivoting. She planned on selling furniture.
Then 2008 happened.
One day the store was busy and booming. The next day? People got their pink slips and stopped buying sofas. When you're trying to hold onto your home, the last thing you want to do is decorate it.
So Michelle did what survivors do. She pivoted. Fast.
Gifts. Because no matter what's happening in the economy, people still need to celebrate each other. You cut corners for yourself. You don't cut corners on the people you love.
That decision? It's carrying Sweet Grass Boutique into year 20.
In this episode, Michelle breaks down:
And the gift wrapping thing. Don't get her started.
Michelle believes a gift someone actually picked out, wrapped, and handed to you beats anything that shows up in a brown box on your doorstep. Every single time. That's not just a philosophy. That's the whole business model.
Oh, and her home at Christmas? Full of boxes headed to the store. Zero decorations. You'd be disappointed.
Twenty years in retail is rare. Twenty years in retail that started right before the worst financial crisis in a generation? That's something else entirely.
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