"We are nobody without each other"
No truer words have been spoken than that of Lisa from Charyli, one of the 4 women I was honored to interview and get to know on a bigger level over these last few weeks. What started with those fab pants has started me on an incredible journey.
This first blog is one of the many to come talking about incredible people and how they are living out their passions through the companies they own. Here are the stories of how these 4 women got their start and how they have come together to fight through this pandemic and succeed.
Lisa West, owner of Charyli
400 S Park Ave #120
Winter Park, FL 32789
What I love about Charyli is that my girls and I can all shop there! It was the first place my younger daughter bought clothes in when she transitioned out of her junior size. I shared that story with the owner, Lisa, and was surprised to learn it was that same love of shopping with her girls that inspired her to open Charyli.
“ We are nobody without each other”
Her inspiration? Her daughter Hannah, who told her to open her own store. In fact Charyli is named after a combination of each of her children's first initial. Lisa took all her experience in retail management and did just that in November 2011.
Her vision? To be a brand driven store that brings the west coast to the east coast. While she caters to the college age, she wants to be known for having something for all ages.
How have things changed for her this year? The biggest positive she says is that a lot of the surrounding stores met all summer to help each other. Sharing ideas and new ways to reach people, they contacted the city commissioners and started new programs. Working with the city, stores are featured in many upcoming holiday events and the weekly farmers market at “Retail Row”.
In the proximity surrounding Charyli, 13 stores have closed since the beginning of COVID. This reality has caused Lisa to work harder than she ever has but with the best positive attitude. She has met and gotten to know so many business owners. Her words:
“ We are nobody without each other”
Berri Lynn-
Berri Lynn Boutique
326 N Park Ave
Winter Park FL 32789
Do you ever met someone but feel like you have always known them? That is how I felt meeting Berri. We have become fast friends, from her fabulous Texas drawl to her warm sincerity when you walk in her store. She genuinely cares about the clothes she sells and the people who wear them.
What inspired her to open Berri Lynn? She has always loved fashion, since she was a little girl. She lived in a tiny remote Texas town, far from stores, so shopping for clothes was not convenient. Her grandmother sewed clothes, making a new outfit for her Mother everyday. It was so fun to listen to her fond memories, the women in her life created a love for clothes that lasts today.
Even after she pursued her degrees, her heart was always in fashion and following that vision, she bought and ran Cerise Boutique on Park Ave .
Amazon cannot provide what really makes this world work. It's people that we all need.
Opening Berri Lynn in June of 2019 connected her back to her love for clothes.
What has she learned over the years? Not afraid to admit her failures, her first boutique taught her a lot about the mechanics of business and what not to do. Opening Berri Lynn gave her the chance to once again pursue her dream but with a new confidence in the operational side of business. She has a few hard fast rules “cover your bills first, do not overbuy”. “Save so you are always prepared”.
How have things changed over this year? Even though her store has not been opened long, her prepared mindset has paid off. Berri has been able to find opportunity to help the stores around her. She went through the process of applying for available grants so she could share the process and help others gain the much needed help.
“We all help and look out for each other”. She and I both agree that small business is very much alive and will continue to thrive. Amazon cannot provide what really makes this world work. It's people that we all need.
Tracy Klingler, owner of Frank
119 E Morse Blvd
Winter Park, FL 32789
As a fellow Winter Park neighbor, I met Tracy years before our friendship developed. We had no idea that day she walked down my street and we spoke, how our lives would connect again, years later.
I love Tracy because she is an inspirational, strong woman of strength, grit and tenacity. She is also the most humble. She followed a calling on her heart to change her long time career and because of that, we are all lucky to shop in Frank!
What was your inspiration to open Frank? As a commercial litigation attorney for 25 years, Tracy kept waiting for the inspiration and love to connect her with her job.
She doesn't entertain that something can't be done, just that she has to figure out how to do it.
When her family relocated to Winter Park in 2011, she continued to work remotely but it allowed for space to open in her life.
That space shifted her focus to thinking about her time. How she was spending it and who she was spending it with.
Her opportunity for change came when a friend told her about a retail space and business that was for sale.
She decided to find a balance with her career and start a new one. Named after her daughter, Frank opened in 2015.
What has she learned over the years? After managing 2 careers and a family, (Im not sure when she slept) Tracy made the big leap to choose Frank in 2017 and step away from her law practice. It is clear Tracy is not afraid to be all in, doing what has to be done and working hard. That seems to be a part of her personality, just do it. She doesn't entertain that something cant be done, just that she has to figure out how to do it.
How have things been over this year? Honestly, scary at first.(How we all felt!) But in Tracy style, she put that aside to focus on what needed to be done. It was important to her to keep people employed and they worked together on figuring out new ways to connect like building a new website.
She has seen COVID draw the business community together and organize it more than it had in the past. People have realized the opportunities that come from working together.
It’s all about balance.
Stacey Papp
Bay Hill Jewelers
Winter Park
329 N Park Ave #101a
Winter Park, FL 32789
Sand Lake
7782 W Sand Lake Rd
Orlando FL 32819
I have been a Bay Hill Customer for years now. Why? #1 reason are the amazing people. I love how kind and helpful everyone is! From helping me create a new set of earrings because of a lost diamond (3 times!) to creating custom pieces for family, they have even saved my engagement ring, catching a loose prong that could have ended in disaster. Seriously, how often do you inspect your own jewelry? Just see how long it takes when you stop by for them to offer to clean your jewelry! (Usually a minute or two!)
The reason for it all, lies with one woman. The incredibly talented owner/designer, Stacy Papp. Her love for her clients and love for design equal each other.
Her inspiration? It was truly a love at first sight relationship at 17, when Stacey started working in NY in the fashion industry. From fashion, designers and jewelry, she was star struck and so inspired she spent every day immersed in the culture, learning all she could.
“never let pride get in the way of making a business decision”
When the company she was working for sold, she found herself at a crossroads. It was her friends and family that gave her the courage to take a leap of faith and open Bay Hill Jewelry in 2003. She had the talent and passion but with limited resources, she opened with only her designs and a lot of bare space in that first year! As her success continued, she opened her second location in Winter Park in 2011.
What has she learned the most over these years? The hardest time was this year, closing her third location downtown when COVID shut everything down and there were no customers to sell to.
Feeling like a failure, she was reminded by two of her mentors “never let pride get in the way of making a business decision”. Looking back now, she sees it was the right decision and her other 2 stores will survive because of it.
Her advice? Have a mentor! “They see what you can’t see!”
Her #1 reason for why she is in this business: Moments. The moments I have with my guests. The significant events in their lives, from weddings, birthdays to special occasions, she is so honored to be a part of them.
Her Goals? Increasing quality time. She feels passionate about whether it is a client, her children, husband or her 11 Foster children, she wants to increase the time she spends with those she loves.
Bridges of Light- At the same time she opened her first store in 2003, she was inspired to make a difference and give back to the community. Stacey found a great need with the under-served youth in Central Florida and founded Bridges of Light. The Bridges of Light Foundation has been supporting under-served Central Florida youth since 2004 through a variety of impactful programs centered around tutoring, mentoring, and nurturing. Their belief in the child’s ability to thrive when given the right tools is at the center of all that they do. They have developed a streamlined platform for success through creation of school-based initiatives, development of community partnerships and formation of key family services initiatives.
In a year that changed so much and touched everyone’s lives it also showed us what matters the most. Even with the incredible technology available, we have been shown that people are still what matter most and we are all capable of doing incredible things.