Today we’d like to introduce you to Katie, Renee and Jillian Tetreault.
Katie, Renee, and Jillian, please share your story with us.
Grey Tree is a sister trio owned store in Cumberland, RI, established in November 2016! Our dad spent months creating a beautiful, creative space for our shop! He built our cash out counter, our wooden built-ins and displays! He painted the galaxy on the ceiling and created a beautiful stained concrete floor. Creating this space, making it over a year old and continually being able to stock our store wouldn’t be possible without the love and help from our whole family!
We are three sisters raised with the belief that we are only a small part of a larger circle. We hope our shop is a reflection of what we believe to be the unique and awe-inspiring nature of the world. The universe is vast, and while the roots of our small venture are planted within the little state of Rhode Island, our hope is that its reach will stretch far beyond. Bringing items from across the United States, Canada, Europe, and Asia, the shop holds bits and pieces from around the world. We hope that as you wander through our shop, you will find unique treasures that you have not yet seen and enjoyed a moment in our small part of the greater universe. <3
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
My sisters and I opened up our shop in a whirlwind! We weren’t even really sure what we wanted to call it at first. Now that we have been in business for over a year, we can honestly say it’s SO worth it, but the road is never smooth! We have encountered a lot of obstacles along the way, but having one another as a support system has made it easier. Owning a boutique or any business for that matter presents its challenges. Our main challenge has been getting our local community to know we exist! We are on a very busy road, but we often get missed because we are set back in a plaza, not on the main road. Every day, we are brainstorming and working hard to create effective marketing tactics! It’s difficult nowadays because everything is so expensive, but we are learning that there are ways to connect with your local community without the high price tag! We often get involved by attending/hosting pop-up shops, fairs and school events. It is certainly hard work but it’s a lot of fun and you meet so many wonderful people who often become new friends! We have brought awesome, handmade lines into our store from attending these events. As three sisters who have ventured into business together, our advice to other young women who are just starting their journey would be to never, ever get discouraged! We have had days where we don’t get many customers and we feel a little sad, but ultimately at the end of the day, everything gets better with time. You know the saying, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” All the tears, long hours and hustling you do at the beginning will pay off in the end! Stay positive, don’t forget where you started and most importantly… stay happy! Don’t lose yourself over the small stuff! My boyfriend’s dad always says, “you won’t appreciate a good day until you’ve experienced a bad one.” <3 You got these girls! xo
Please tell us about Grey Tree Boutique.
My sisters and I specialize in providing our customers that shop at Grey Tree Boutique with unique, handmade items from around the world! A lot of our brands are made in the USA, Europe and Canada! We aim to give our customers and friends a fun shopping experience without the high price tag. Although we categorize ourselves as a boutique, we take pride and happiness in being able to give our customers cute products with an even better price tag! You can walk into Grey Tree and pick up a funny magnet that’ll make your friend smile for $8! Then you can grab her a handmade soap from Hawaii for $9! Ultimately, we LOVE the feeling of our shop! It feels like home and it makes us so happy to hear our customers say the same. They walk in and can smell the handmade candles we burn and look in wonder at our plentiful displays and it lights a little more fire in our hearts. We hope our customers and friends continue to shop with us for many years to come so we can continue to thrill them with beautiful, out of this world oddities!
Often it feels as if the media, by and large, is only focused on the obstacles faced by women, but we feel it’s important to also look for the opportunities. In your view, are there opportunities that you see that women are particularly well positioned for?
My sisters and I feel there are many opportunities that women are well positioned for! Every woman has unique talents to bring to the table. My sisters and I, for instance, each have talents the other doesn’t. Jillian, our youngest is great with money! She knows how to keep our books in order, dealings with our rent, etc. Renee, the eldest is witty and quick! She is phenomenal in relationships with clients and customers. She is a hairdresser who works at a hair salon attached to our store and she’s fantastic at cross-promoting. Katie, that’s me, well I think my strong qualities would be that I am constantly trying to engage with other businesses and think of interesting ways to market our store. Women are definitely well positioned for entrepreneurship! They have the ambition to be there very own boss babe! 🙂 We see it every day and it makes us thrilled to see other women doing what they love each and every day. We have vendors who make their own jewelry, soap, cards, clothing + more! The possibilities are endless of what you can do. <3
Contact Info:
- Address: 1725 Mendon Road Suite 104, Cumberland, RI 02864
- Website: www.greytreellc.com
- Phone: 401-333-3700
- Email: info@greytreellc.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shopgreytree/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shopgreytree/?ref=settings
Image Credit:
Grey Tree Boutique!
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