Welcome EVERYONE!!!
My name is Jessica Taylor and I am the owner of That Cute Little Shop. If you're a newbie then buckle up and get ready to jump on the crazy train! To the faithful followers- you already know the madness- but here is our story.
I am from Louisville, Ky and started working in fashion management in 2004. I quickly learned that big box retail was not my thing. In 2008 I moved to a small town and opened a tiny boutique on Main Street. In 2008 boutiques weren't as popular or as common as they are now and a lot of people told me I was crazy and would never have any real success.
Well in true Jessica fashion, I was hell bent on proving everyone wrong.
That's a personality trait that's caused me a ton of grief and not always served me well... just sayin
From the beginning we grew tremendously! I worked my rear off to find the perfect collection of gifts, jewelry, baby items, home decor and accessories. We didn't even start out selling clothes FYI :)
In 2011 I added another room to the space I was renting and decided I was ready to start selling clothes and hire employees. It was a one man show for a few years.
In the summer of 2011 we received our first shipment of clothing and things moved in rapid speed after that. You have to remember this was pre google algotherisms and facebook popularity.
We took over the entire building in Lebanon, Kentucky, we started a website and started shipping clothes all over the place!
I decided it would be great if I opened a second location in Elizabethtown, Ky. I couldn't even tell you the year but we moved into another tiny spot and stayed there for 2 years when we moved and tripled our space.
My work life was in a high speed chase from 2012-2018 and I am not sure where the time went or what happened. I was busy raising babies and working. {Don't worry I have always managed to make time to have FUN!}
In 2018 I opened my third location in Louisville. It started as a Derby pop up shop and we never left.
Then came 2020...... OOOOOHHHHH LORD
I am sure a lot of you guys feel like 2020 was a monumental year but it was my biggest year out of the 40 I have lived!
I opened an outlet in Bardstown, Ky in March 2020
I closed all 4 locations In April when the pandemic hit.
I am pretty sure I had about 20 mental breakdowns during shut down.
We found out we were getting the boot from our Elizabethtown landlord in June
I turned 40 in June
Found our dream location in Downtown Elizabethtown and moved In July
Had an amazing offer to open in Downtown Bardstown location in July
**My babies both left home on August 20th One left for the army and the other moved to college a year early** This was harder on me than I ever imagined. My kids have been my world since I was 21 and 22 years old. I was lost.
Things were starting to finally get back to normal then I had a huge health scare.
At this point in my life I made the decision that after 12/13 years of working non stop, I needed a break. My body decided to make that decision for me. I have devoted all my time, love and energy to my business and it shows. I am so proud of what I have built over the years and I worked my ass off for it but the thing is that I could not have done it without my family and friends and the ladies that have worked beside me over the years. They helped get me through a busy holiday season when I was so sick and there have been a 100 other emergencies or crisis that they helped me through.
Christmas 2020 I decided to close my Lebanon location. My building is huge and while it is where we started out it was time to let it go. I could go into a lengthy discussion on this but I will spare you ;)
2021 was the year we decided to make a massive overhaul of That Cute Little Shop. Over the years we have made a ton of changes and so many things have changed from website sales, trends, staff, locations and everything else under the sun but one thing remains the same---change! You have to constantly adapt to changes and in 2021 we decided to take the plunge and overhaul EVERYTHING!
We hope you enjoy our new website and changes we are making to make everything easier for you!
I wouldn't be so excited for our future if it wasn't for you! Our customers are amazing and they are our motivation to keep providing the best customer service, prices, items and fun experiences together.
It has truly been a pleasure to have you the past how ever many years and allow me to be a part of your everyday life and special occasions. You mean the world to me!
Here's to 2021 stay tuned we have a lot of fun planned for you!!