Melissa Thomas - LA East
How Long Have You Been In The Retail And Fashion business? And, in what positions and businesses over the years?
I never had much of a fashion background – I kind of fell into it. My husband & I started an online retail business about 8 years ago and I learned the business the hard way – making a lot of expensive mistakes.
Owning a physical store has made me get much more focused on my client and the local trends. On the internet, all you have to do is focus on a genre and someone, somewhere will like what you have. In a relatively small community, you really have to learn your customer and the specific fashion trends of the area.
How Did You Get Into Your Current Career?
My work background was 20 years in the food & beverage industry. While not an exact fit into fashion, it certainly teaches you a lot about customer service. I was managing the restaurant and catering facilities for a golf/tennis resort, so I also really developed many of the organizational skills I need to run the backend of the store.
What Are Some Of Your Toughest Challenges These Days?
The obvious glaring challenge is overcoming the current economic situation right now. Because things are so tight you really have to focus on value and price point when making purchases. At L.A. East, we really try to focus on value-driven labels and classic pieces. In addition, we work many of the contacts we developed in the online store to bring in almost everything in the store below retail (I don’t like to pay full retail when I shop, and I carry that philosophy into L.A. East).
The other challenge I find in this area is getting people to shop locally. Fort Mill/Tega Cay has never had local shopping and I think many of the residents are used to traveling to Charlotte or Pineville to shop. We’re getting some great shopping here, but people seem slow to adapt.
What kind of advice would you provide to women who want to pursue a career in retail or women’s fashion?
I would say find your niche and pursue it. There are many fields in the industry (designer, buyer, reps, sourcing…) and network every chance you get. Much of the industry is relationship driven and, of course, if you’re very good at what you do you’ll be able to find great jobs, even in tough times.
How Do You Measure Your Success?
Well, owning a small boutique is NOT a way to get rich, (very far from it), but it has allowed me to work at something I really enjoy and put hard work into MY business, which is something I take a lot of pride in. I have a hard time with the “measuring success” part, but I definitely get a huge amount of satisfaction building something from scratch that I can be proud of. My husband, Bob, and I have a son, Sam, who is 16 this year. Spending time with them pursuing the things that are important to us, such as our church family, is really how I measure success.
What Do You Enjoy Doing To Rejuvenate After A Long Day Or A Long Week?
I don’t relax enough, but the two things I especially like doing are relaxing with friends - it usually involves a BBQ on the back deck - and getting out on the lake and water-skiing.