About 5 years ago I tried to find someone who would want a tiny but kept coming to the same conclusion…. People wanted to see one first. They wanted to see a model so they could decide for themselves. At that time I didn’t have the capital to invest in the material or the time to put one together so I shelved the idea but kept looking at it.
Finally I had the opportunity to build a model! It would be a 24’ classic tiny with a little porch, pretty much the “gold standard” of tiny homes. As I was building I was posting social and I created a website to share the build and from there I’ve been getting clients.
What was the initial response from friends & family?
My family and friends are so great. They are very intrigued and ask a lot of questions about how the homes work. This usually turns into a debate on if they could live in one or not. It’s fun to listen to the reasons why someone can versus why they can’t go tiny. And then they talk it out and interestingly enough often come up with a plan that would work for them. For instance, my wife doesn’t want to live in a tiny house but she would have one as a vacation home. And that’s great!
Do you have any memorable stories of people you have impacted?
I have a continuing story of a couple who had me build a shell, which is frame, windows, siding, roofing and they are finishing the interior. They are blogging their journey and it’s great to see their progress. I think watching the life experience my work is having on their lives is actually having a greater impact on me. It lets me know I am doing something good and that I want to do more.
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"Little Shop of Vintage Treasures"
How did you get started in this business? I really love being here, I love living here! I've been here 5 years in September and this extra two and a half stall garage was here. This kind of stuff has been my passion since I was a little girl. So this isn't like "Oh yeah..Everybody's jumping on the bandwagon." You know the song, I was country before country was cool? I remember going to auctions with my dad growing up, it's just been a lifelong thing. My background was intended to be marketing. Then life happened; marriage happened, kids happened. So there was no the marketing degree so to speak. But this is the thing I've wanted to do ever since I graduated from Annandale High School. I've been in the Clearwater area since 1990 and then I moved here 5 years ago.
I see it says "Shop Small"... What does that mean? I'm a small shop, not like the big box stores. "Shop local" is my campaign. All of the supplies that I need for repurposing is purchased in St Cloud, I like to support my local economy. This is only actually the second house I looked at, and I was like, "Sold!" because I love the yard and that was important to me. I want to make this the whole package for people when they come here. I want them to see a really fun yard and say, "We have to go back to that place in St. Augusta! You got to see that pergola she's got! She's got all this cool stuff there." That's what I'm trying to create for customers out here. Why do you like the St. Augusta location for this vintage shop? When I did move out here, I was thinking, "Ok, there's nothing like this in this area!" You've got the shops in St Cloud and surrounding areas but there wasn't anything in or around St. Augusta. It's not so saturated over here like in other areas. You've heard about all the occasional sales on the first of the month but I am not exactly like that. I don't get in it for all that white trend stuff. When the trend says I have to paint everything white, I'm all green!
Let's include some more reviews from the Facebook page: "Awesome shop. I found exactly what I was looking for. The owner is very responsive to posts on her page and also very easy to talk to in the shop. I will definitely be going back again to see what treasures I can find." -Trinitie K. "My dad and I had so much fun shopping here today! We came for some picket fences we saw on Craigslist and not only did we go home with those, but also 2 other bags of fun for my wedding in October. The owners are so sweet and it was so cool to talk to them. I'll be going back for sure " -Amanda P. Thank you, Susan! I wish you the best in your business (and your upcoming Christmas sale!) |
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