OCONTO – Just a handful of months immediately after opening a women’s garments boutique in Oconto, Magan Holz was presently eyeing a second locale in Oconto Falls.
Quickly, while, she will have a few Olive + Birch outlets.
The Lakewood web page – which originally is open up only Saturdays and Sundays – is found between Sweet Memories Candy Shoppe and Subway in the previous Trillium Boutique building at 15351 Condition 32. A soft opening is prepared for Memorial Day weekend, with a grand opening in June.
The 2nd locale in Oconto Falls, at a locale still to be announced, is scheduled to open this summertime.
“I’m certainly proud to be section of Oconto, and I appear ahead to viewing what Oconto Falls and Lakewood have to give and what I can offer them,” Holz said. “The new boutiques will have the similar type of outfits as Oconto, but all three spots will have a distinctive assortment.”
Holz is the go-to fashion specialist among the her group of good friends. An off-hand remark from a single — “Why not open a boutique?” — planted the seed that grew to become Olive + Birch.
She initial begun with a site, olivebirchboutique.com, which went reside previous November, in hopes it would guide to a retail outlet.
That arrived considerably quicker than she anticipated. Samantha Boucher of Oconto County Economic Progress Corp. aided her obtain a $10,000 grant from the Main Road BounceBack System, opening the Oconto retailer on Jan. 15,
Holz took about the space that housed Be-You-Tiful Boutique, which had been open up about 3½ years when it was shut just after the pandemic started. It only reopened for distinctive situations and weekends for the duration of the holiday break season.
Consumer response has been favorable at the Oconto boutique, positioned throughout from Affiliated Bank at 1102 Main St.
“It’s been fantastic,” Holz stated. “I get a great deal of men and women who occur in and say they really like the fashion. They are delighted they have someplace nearby to store.”
In April, Holz was near to deal that would allow for her to open a second store in Oconto Falls. But that fell by.
In a subsequent dialogue, Boucher asked Holz if she would consider Lakewood instead.
“I mentioned this with my girlfriend, Jen (Clements), and we made the decision to go for it,” Holz explained.
To enable finance the growth, Holz secured a $10,000 microloan by OCEDC, which was applied to order inventory and to make a down payment on the Lakewood setting up.
“The microloan will help me get a superior commence there, due to the fact I could order the Lakewood assets without pulling money out of the current boutique,” she stated.
But then Holz had a further key conclusion to make — regardless of whether to maintain her separate full-time position.
Because going to Oconto very last August to be nearer to Clements and her son’s father, Holz experienced ongoing to vacation each week to southern Wisconsin, where by she was employed in profits, marketing and advertising and technique administration at a manufacturing business
The Janesville native is in the place of work Monday and Tuesday just about every week, when functioning remotely Wednesday by way of Friday.
“With the purchase and getting the two spots (in Oconto and Lakewood), I determined it was time to take the plunge and transform in my recognize to my comprehensive-time occupation so that I could seriously target on the boutiques,” she defined.
Then items took another turn.
Just one day immediately after conference with her boss, Holz acquired that the first web page for the Oconto Falls retail outlet was once more available.
“Jen and I made the decision, ‘let’s go massive,’ and we are using that location on as perfectly,” she explained. “Oconto Falls is established to open up in July, and I just can’t wait around!”
Olive + Birch Boutique carries informal and dressy women’s outfits in dimensions small to 2X, with a compact selection of kinds up to 4X. Options consist of tops, trousers, and attire, moreover jewelry, hats, and other accessories. The store is open up from noon to 4 p.m. Wednesday by means of Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.
The retail outlet also carries Inspire, the athletic outfits line established by Clements, operator of Inspire Health, a 24-hour gymnasium in Oconto.
OCEDC has produced 21 very low-interest micro small business loans about the due to the fact late 2016, which include four past yr and 4 so far this calendar year. They are available to tiny enterprise entrepreneurs who want to develop their firms, purchase products, or will need further doing the job capital for other expenditures.
To qualify, businesses will have to have once-a-year sales beneath $1 million and much less than 25 employees. Other aspects may possibly also be regarded as. Microloans are out there at an fascination price as reduced as 3% for up to 5 years. Financial loans range from $1,000 to $10,000.
To day, 40 corporations in Oconto County have gained Bounceback grants, with an additional 14 in the pipeline but not however authorized, Boucher said. The application deadline for Bounceback grants, which can be utilized to enable new and current businesses open up a new site or grow operations, was not long ago extended to Dec. 31.
To implement for a micro small business personal loan or Principal Road Bounceback grant, visit ocontocounty.org or speak to the OCEDC office environment at 1113 Major St., Oconto call 920-834-6969 or electronic mail [email protected].
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Make contact with Kent Tempus at (920) 431-8226 or [email protected].