Are you Ms. Mulligan?

I am asked almost every day if I am Ms. Mulligan.  Because of the name of my store, it's a very logical question.  My name however, is not Mulligan.  When I first started thinking about opening a consignment shop, coming up with the name was one of the first things I did.  I guess giving a name to my dream made it more real, more attainable.  But how was I supposed to come up with a name for my business?  Well, I knew I wanted something clever, but subtle at the same time - a play on words that didn't hit you across the face, but wasn't too much of a stretch.  Something that people would understand. 

I started scribbling down terms that meant second hand or second chance...I thought about "Second Time Around" and "Second Chance Charming" but didn't really like them.  I liked names like "Deja Vu" and "Encore" but those were already taken by other shops in my area.  Out of the blue, Mulligan came to mind.  I knew what it meant for a golfer to "take a mulligan" when he/she makes a bad shot.  He actually gets a do-over.   And I thought about we women and our closets full of "nothing to wear".  We tend to buy clothes because they are on sale or on impulse.  Or we love something we can't quite get into, but we buy it anyway, hoping to lose a couple of pounds.  So, when we get these clothes home, they hang in our closets unworn or unwanted. If we got a second shot, couldn't we call it a Mulligan too?  Women could sell their gently worn (or never worn) clothes, shoes and accessories in my store and start over.  And the dream was born - Ms. Mulligan's Consignment Boutique means a "second shot at a fabulous new wardrobe" for women all over the city. 

Parenting the Dream

I always tell people that opening a new business is much like deciding to have a baby.  You do all the research, read every manual you can get your hands on, take classes, go to workshops, seek advice from people who have done it before and plan, plan, plan.  You do everything you need to do to be prepared, and then Grand Opening Day comes and the fun begins. 
Much like bringing home a new baby, there have been long days, sleepless nights, and financial and social sacrifices.  I am at the store 10 - 12 hours a day/6 days a week, tending to the needs of my "baby business".  And every day, I learn something new that wasn't revealed to me in a manual or class.  I LOVE my new store and wouldn't trade this experience for anything.  And on the days when I stress about it, I think about my teenagers, and the journey we've been on...the sleepless nights when they were babies and the financial, social and emotional roller coaster ride we've endured.  And I am comforted knowing what great kids they are.  I now hope to nurture my baby business into such success.  I know throughout the years to come, there will be amazingly great days, and days full of worry and frustration in raising my "babies" and my "baby business".  And I'll enjoy the journey every step of the way...I am after all, Livin' the Dream!

85 degrees and no a/c

The dream has been a nightmare for the last few days at Ms. Mulligans.  The A/C went out last Tuesday and I'm still waiting for it to be repaired.  Here's hoping for cooler weather tomorrow, because Saturday was almost unbearable!