By Emily McMason
Lara Anderson, Jeanne Carras, Kathy Lathrop, Cheryl Selby.
Names ring a bell? Need a little hint? Think Red Door for interiors, Bonaventure for shoes, and Vivala for women’s clothing. These four downtown Olympia business owners are incredible women balancing complex lives and unique boutiques. The common thread that runs through them all? A passion for their customers, then a love of their products. For these businesswomen, people come first.
All long time Olympia residents, each one is deeply woven into the fabric of our community. Mentoring one another, volunteering for civic groups, donating time and space for new women entrepreneurs to connect to customers, they recognize the importance of reaching out beyond the front door of their stores. Says Bonaventure’s Carras “Giving back to the community is key. Get involved. Give back. It’s incredibly important.”
And when you are inside their retail spaces? Each store is a reflection of its owner, giving the customer the distinctive feel of entering the owner’s world, not just a retail shop. “The store is a real expression of me,” says Vivala’s Selby. (Read more about Selby’s business in this complete article here.)
Red Door’s Anderson adds, “Being able to create a beautiful space is a fun and an exciting challenge that my mom (Kathy Lathrop) and I both embrace. Furthermore, we love to share our talents and general know-how with our customers. It is such a great feeling to empower our customers to create their own spaces that are uniquely theirs and that they can be proud of.”
Each new face that enters one of these stores is welcomed as a cherished friend. “I didn’t anticipate enjoying my customers as much as I do. I learn so much from my customers. I’ve met so many amazing women who inspire me. That has been a wonderful surprise,” says Selby.
“We set the store up to respond to our customers. They know us personally. I have amazing customers. We take care of them and they take care of us,” adds Carras.
The personal relationships created with customers allows these owners to respond to Olympia voices. When Selby had an opportunity to move the store to downtown, “I asked my customers. I put it out there and the response was overwhelming. Everyone said ‘Go!’ It has been amazing.”
Carras highlights the importance of truly knowing each customer. “All but one of our shoe lines has come from customer suggestions,” she says. “If I have a customer who is looking for a particular shoe and I don’t have it, I will find it for them.”
At Red Door, since the vintage home furnishings and decorations inventory is always changing, the mother and daughter duo of Anderson and Lathrop keep a special Wish List. “If a customer comes in looking for a specific kind of piece, we add it to the Wish List,” says Anderson. Then, as they attend estate sales and refurbish furniture they can tailor items to a match a need.
Savvy businesswomen, they trust their instincts and do their research. Carras began Bonaventure after researching and realizing that while there were 13 clothing stores downtown at the time, there were no shoe stores.
Selby knows that while paying attention to national trends is important, she fills Vivala with clothing that speaks to the women who live here. “Olympia, the northwest in general, and especially Olympia, is its own market. We are known that way all over the country. Women [here] want clothing that is super durable and appropriate for different conditions and different activities and still look feminine and stylish.”
And when Lathrop and Anderson began their RD Shady lamp shade system, they knew their customers would want high quality fabrics sewn in regional textile shops.
Why downtown? Says Red Door’s Lathrop “when we were looking for a space we fell in love with downtown. By the time we expanded we had the bug and wanted to stay. Then we found this location and it was all the better. I love downtown. We want to stick around for a long time.” As Carras comments “the history and texture of downtown is unbelievable and it isn’t replicable anywhere else.”
Anderson sums up the perspective of all of these women “I would love to see our beautifully unique and historical downtown prosper. I would like to encourage people to explore all of the fabulous shops, restaurants and theaters that are locally owned. We are so lucky to have such a beautiful downtown core.”
So amid the hustle and bustle of this holiday season, take time for yourself. Come explore our quaint and vibrant downtown. Find some fabulous gifts for a sister, friend, partner, or parent. Maybe even for yourself. To these businesswomen, you matter.
116 – 5th Ave SE
Olympia, WA 98501
360.943.4899
430 Washington St SE
Olympia, WA 98501
360.357.7799
111 Market St, Suite 103
Olympia, WA 98501
360.754.VIVA
