Today we’d like to introduce you to Kaitlynne Grice.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Kaitlynne. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I spent a lot of time writing this when I first launched my business, so I have copied and pasted it here for you! Let me know if you need other info other than what can be found below!
WHO WE ARE?
I’m Kaitlynne Barngrover Grice, and I live for July 4th, good champagne, a killer view, political biographies, thoughtful details, and taking care of people. I am a native Georgian, a wedding & event planner, and most currently: I am learning how to own this amazing thing, Grice Grove. I live in Atlanta, Georgia, with my (South African born) husband Justin, our baby boy George, and our two crazy dogs (#DexAndP): Shih-zhu-poodle Dexter, and our golden doodle Penny (aka Wreck-It Ralph).
We believe in laughing, having fun, and celebrating life. Our family and friends inspire us daily, and as you will see reflected in our brand and products, we love our hometowns and the life we’ve made together as South African-Americans. Grice Grove as a brand is inspired by the worldly imagery and bold color. Our style is a mix of eclectic, yet classic Southern meets cool, laid-back South African.
HOW DID GRICE GROVE HAPPEN?
It all started with one crazy little idea and a problem I wanted to solve. During our wedding planning, it was really important for me to thank all of our family and friends for their love and support with tangible little gifts. As a busy bride to be working a real job, I didn’t have loads of time to shop around at the malls, so I searched the internet high and low for unique, thoughtful, and non kitschy presents. I eventually found products that would work, but it was a stressful, complicated shopping process that took way too much time. Just like that, the idea was born: I wanted to create a one stop online gifting shop that puts the customer experience first.
WHAT WE DO?
Grice Grove Boutique specializes in the art of gift giving. We are an eclectic online boutique offering beautiful products from makers we believe in, sourced specifically and intentionally from small businesses and local makers, artisans, and creators in the United States, Bali, and South Africa.
Our mission is to offer thoughtful, creative, and responsibly sourced products in every price range for every occasion, and to make the online shopping experience fun, easy and stress-free. We are fiercely committed to providing our customers with a simple, speedy virtual shopping experience while maintaining a small business, people based customer service approach: should you ever need help during your Grice Grove shopping experience, you can pick up the phone and speak directly to someone on our team.
WHY WE DO THIS?
The easiest answer ever. We do this for YOU, our customer. Whether you are shopping for a birthday gift or for your wedding day, it means the WORLD to us that you are here looking for a special little something! Thank you so much for dropping by!
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I read this question and laughed! It hasn’t been smooth, BUT it has been so much fun. I have tried to treat every obstacle as a learning experience, and I have to say: bumps in the road are a lot better when you know you’re working for yourself and YOUR customers, and towards building your own brand and vision.
A specific “bump” in the road that kept me up all night for weeks when I was 8 months pregnant: a major supplier issue. We work exclusively with other small businesses or makers, and just because they are wholesalers, they are not immune to the issues that face small businesses. We placed a HUGE pajama order (one of our best selling products) for wedding parties, only to have it canceled by the supplier a few weeks before these weddings. Our supplier experienced some accounting fraud and also workroom staff turnover and just couldn’t get the pajamas manufactured for us on time as promised.
That left us to disappoint a few of our wedding customers, and it literally just made me sick not being able to deliver on a promise we made these customers to have their orders in for them. I did everything I possibly could, and then some, but we still fell short. I learned SO much from going through this. As a perfectionist, type-A controlling people pleaser, going through this situation helped me to learn how to “under promise and over deliver.”
Some other notable struggles: learning how to balance cash flow with limited start-up resources, SHIPPING, and learning how to put myself out there on social media.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Grice Grove Boutique – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
I think I covered most of this in my previous answer. The notable additions:
We are known for our unique product lines you can’t get everywhere: specifically our pajamas, our candles, and our custom gift boxes.
I am most proud of how much we care about our customers and the customer service experience. We will literally do anything and everything for our clients, and if you need or want something, we don’t stop until we’ve exhausted every possible option to get it for you. I feel like this personal approach and emphasis on our customer experience sets us apart from the crowd.
A lot of people say they do this, but often times, it ends up being just something they say and don’t deliver on. We write a handwritten note with every order, and if something isn’t right with someone’s order, we don’t make you go through 18 different systems and emails before you reach someone who will make everything right for you.
I am also so proud of our ability to persevere in the small business world, even when things get hard!
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I LOVE this question! My main plan: keep GROWING! My biggest dream is to grow enough to have a warehouse and create careers for other people while doing what we love! In terms of products: I have a big secret I’ve been keeping for a while: we are going into manufacturing our OWN line of Grice Grove pajamas starting this fall! I am as green as the grass when it comes to manufacturing so I am looking forward to learning and growing throughout the process!
Pricing:
- Candles: $20+
- Pajamas: $55+
- Custom Gift Boxes: Starting at $30+
Contact Info:
- Website: www.gricegrove.com
- Phone: (706) 587-0781
- Email: kaitlynne@gricegrove.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grice_grove/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gricegrove/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/grice_grove
Image Credit:
Sarah Ingram
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