Laurel Bassett, owner of Town & Country (in purple top), with employees and Mountain Brook city and chamber officials at a ribbon cutting recently to mark the Crestline stores 80th anniversary.
Jean Clayton, owner of Christine’s in Mountain Brook Village, celebrated the store’s 50th anniversary last week.
Marguerite Bolvig, owner of Marguerite’s Conceits in Mountain Brook Village, just celebrated its 30th anniversary.By Anne Ruisi
As the U.S. Small Business Administration marks National Small Business Week, three Mountain Brook shop owners celebrating landmark business anniversaries reflected on the importance of small businesses to the community.
“Small business is the backbone of the country,” said Jean Clayton, owner of Christine’s in Mountain Brook Village which opened 50 years ago. “When you shop in a small business in the village, you are supporting the local economy.”
People don’t realize the impact of small business, as sales taxes from shops and employee wages contribute to the area’s financial health, she said.
“The villages are key to the neighborhoods. It’s a great place to be a small business,” said Laurel Bassett, owner of Town & Country Clothes in Crestline Village, where she said there are a lot of small businesses that the community widely supports. Town & Country is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year.
Shopping local also brings into play a personal touch that isn’t often found with national retailers.
“We care about our customers. I don’t care if someone is buying a $3.50 card or $1,000 worth of French linens,” Clayton said. “Over the years we get to know our customers and have a real connection to them.”
“When you walk into my store, I will be there. My employees will be there. It’s a different feeling from a department store,” said Marguerite Bolvig, owner of Marguerite’s Conceits in Mountain Brook Village, which just celebrated its 30th anniversary.
That customers appreciate that relationship was especially evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, the business owners said. They all credited support from loyal customers as keeping their businesses afloat during lockdowns and shopper reluctance to go out in public.
“I posted things on Instagram and customers would call in orders. It was really amazing how customers in the community really helped us out. For us, that was huge,” Bolvig said.
Bassett recalled the pandemic was “definitely scary for a while” as businesses throughout the state curtailed hours and some closed. She also credited the shop’s loyal customer base for keeping her business in business.
“We’d post on Facebook and sell one or two items a day” during the worst of the lockdowns, she said.
That experience morphed into the shop’s website, townandcountryclothes.com, which added an e-commerce facet to the business, she said.
The Small Business Administration recognizes the critical contributions of America’s entrepreneurs and small business owners. National Small Business Week, celebrated this year April 30-May 6, is co-hosted by Score, mentors to America’s small businesses and a resource partner of the SBA.
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