Find someone who balances you . You need someone who keeps you in line . Also , make sure you do it right the first time , even if it takes you longer . Do your research .
the heart of
LONG ISLAND
anything , but we are family and we have each other . Ashley : You also just can ’ t walk away . Any other job you can just not show back up , but here , you have to face each other whether you want to or not . Sherree : I think it does inspire a lot of other people . It inspires some other moms and daughters to do more together . Ashley : Everybody also thinks it ’ s so easy . They think “ you work with your mother or daughter , it must be fun ,” and it is , but maybe only 80 % of the time , but it gets easier . Sherree : There ’ s no escaping ! Sometimes we even look at each other and say “ one of us is gonna have to change ,” because we think so alike in fashion that sometimes we dress the same . We always do all of our buying together ; we ’ re rarely apart . Our vendors that we buy from become like family too . We really enjoy spending time with them and doing business with them . We are really very fortunate in getting to do something that we love to do .
Any funny stories you have from working together as mother and daughter ? Ashley : It ’ s honestly one of those things where everything is a rite of passage . Sherree : There was this one jewelry party that we went to that was down to only two guests . We figured , why not ? We ’ ll go anyway . Both ladies were on a dating site and they started talking about it . One says ,
“ you wouldn ’ t believe the message I just got from this fellow ! He says he just got out of a traffic ticket because the cop pulled him over for texting , and he showed the cop my picture and he said ‘ she ’ s so pretty , I just can ’ t give you the ticket .’” So then the other girl says , “ hey I just got the same message !” It was the same guy ! So we spent the night taking pictures and sending messages to this guy for playing them like that ! It was one of the best nights we ’ ve had . We didn ’ t sell a whole lot , but we wound up engaging in these women ’ s lives .
Any tips for anyone looking to start up their own fashion boutique ? Sherree : The biggest thing is , it ’ s easier than you think . Ashley : Don ’ t just pick your best friend ; it will ruin your relationship . Find someone who balances you . You need someone who keeps you in line . Also , make sure you do it right the first time , even if it takes you longer . Do your research . Sherree : Be patient . You ’ re not going to open up a store front and boom , everyone comes to you . People have become so used to that instant gratification that they don ’ t want to wait for anything . Take the time to make connections and don ’ t be afraid of failure . There will be good days and there will be bad days ; you have to persevere . Also , a big thing that we still struggle with is : did we get enough of it ? You don ’ t want
to have any left-over , but you also don ’ t want to sell out in a week and have to tell your customers that you can never get that again . I think we ’ re getting better at it . Every day is a learning experience and you ’ re never too old to learn something new . Lastly , at the end of the day , you can ’ t go home mad ! I think it ’ s important ; life is short . We love what we do . Ashley : Also , never assume anything or judge a book by its cover . You never know who you ’ re going to run into one day or who you might help . Sherree : The people we have met and wouldn ’ t have met otherwise , is amazing . We are so fortunate . We aren ’ t breaking records , but we ’ ll do it until it ’ s not fun anymore .
Take the time to make connections and don ’ t be afraid of failure .
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