PHOTO PROVIDED
The facade for Blonde Boutique’s new location at 125 E. Main St. is pictured.
LOCK HAVEN — Ashley Garbrick knew there were risks.
But leaving college amid the pandemic to pursue her dreams was a risk she felt she just had to take.
And that risk has paid off. The owner of Blonde Boutique, originally on Grove Street in downtown Lock Haven, is already making the move to a larger location at 125 E. Main St. with plans to hold a grand opening on Saturday, Jan. 28.
Doors open at 10 a.m. with specials, deals and gifts available for shoppers.
For Ashley, life is anew: She just celebrated her one-year anniversary as a business owner after opening the doors of her boutique in November 2021.
“It’s really exciting because there wasn’t much going on downtown when I was a kid, and there weren’t many shops that appealed to me,” Ashley said. “I feel optimistic because at this point Lock Haven is almost like an entirely new city, and I can’t wait to see how it grows and changes for the better.”
Before venturing into entrepreneurship, Ashley had been creating content on social media platforms, the first of which was her own YouTube channel, where she posted videos about her everyday life and other topics that interested her. The channel’s audience was captivated by her lifestyle vlogs and beauty tutorials, which she posted regularly. Ashley’s YouTube channel quickly gained a sizable following, and because of the number of followers she had attracted, she began to pull in a profit from YouTube while still finishing high school.
Her YouTube following eventually carried over to her other social media accounts, as well, which would later benefit her as a small business owner.
Garbrick, who grew up in the Mill Hall area, said she felt she had a knack for retail sales even as a teenager.
In the years before she graduated from high school, she became well-known on Facebook Marketplace for selling high-end clothing and accessories. At the age of 16, she began working part-time at the former Co2 The Unique Boutique, where she gained valuable experience in retail sales.
Majoring in business and marketing management at Lock Haven University seemed appropriate for Garbrick, given her familiarity with social media marketing.
During the “shutdown” phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, Garbrick realized she wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about promoting other companies on social media platforms; she felt that if she was going to promote a business, it should be her own.
Yet, despite the fact that it was a risky time to start a business, Ashley devised a plan and began searching for a location.
Ashley recently sat down with The Express for an interview:
Did the COVID-19 restrictions influence your decision about taking a risk and opening your own brick-and-mortar store?
“I would say that the shutdowns inspired me to pursue an entrepreneurial venture in some strange way because I was stuck at home with nothing to do and I was spending more time scrolling through social media than normal. Then my employer announced that they were closing their business, so I had even more time on my hands to do some soul searching.
“During that time, I found that the more I saw other people on social media successfully starting their own businesses, the more I felt compelled to give it a shot. Seeing others succeed in their businesses was inspiring, and it made me feel capable of being successful at doing the same, especially since I had a background in sales and had already built a following on social media, which I could use to promote the business.
“As far as being a full-time student at Lock Haven University during the shutdown, I was majoring in business and marketing management. When I started tossing around the idea of opening my own boutique, I came to the conclusion that school wasn’t right for me at that time; I didn’t want to use social media to promote somebody else’s business and dreams … I wanted to promote a business of my own.”
Were you nervous about opening a business in a time of so much uncertainty and instability in our economy?
“Not really, because when I decided what I wanted to do, downtown Lock Haven had already begun to boom because there was a push to support small business owners, and people in this community started to shop locally rather than support big box stores. I saw all the downtown businesses, new and old, really start to thrive as people spent more time there attending events or shopping. Watching Lock Haven transform into what was starting to look like an entirely new business district motivated me to take the risk and open my own shop.”
What makes Blonde Boutique unique?
“I think my niche is finding very unique clothing and accessories. I guess you could say I’m picky about the merchandise I sell because I want to offer styles that aren’t available elsewhere. My goal is to offer the most current, on-trend styles, even before they become popular in some cases.”
Despite the high levels of unemployment caused by COVID-19, would you say that you had a positive impact on our community by adding to Lock Haven’s downtown shopping district?
“Yes, but it wasn’t just me and my boutique; COVID-19 mitigations impacted all of the businesses in downtown Lock Haven, and small businesses seemed to suffer the most. I think that the people in our community wanted to prevent downtown retailers from having to close their doors, so they started shopping locally more often to support them. Now there are even more shops to choose from, so what started as a bad situation for business owners has actually turned out to be beneficial to downtown Lock Haven.”
Has the pandemic affected your ability to purchase inventory and sustain your business?
“At first, it was rough. I’d place an order through one of my vendors, and the order, which was supposed to arrive within 5 business days, wouldn’t actually be delivered for another 3 weeks. In order to keep enough inventory in my boutique, I needed to create a plan to keep the shelves stocked. My strategy was to place orders on a routine basis, so basically I had to start contacting the vendors that I purchase from at least twice a week, knowing that the order wouldn’t arrive for about 3 weeks. I also needed to plan way in advance if I wanted to carry seasonal items. Before I opened the boutique in November 2021, I knew I wanted to have some items available that would make great Christmas gifts, so almost immediately after signing the lease in October of that year, I placed an order for those items. Since there was no way to know exactly when that order would arrive, I actually placed it before I even had my boutique set up and ready for customers.”
How has your business evolved over the course of the last year?
“One thing that’s changed at the boutique is that I’ve expanded my inventory to include more gift items than I originally planned to offer. I also added a broader selection of clothing and accessories so that there’s something for everyone. I wanted to include a variety of styles that appeal to a wider range of clothing preferences.”
Would you say there is a sense of comradery among yourself and other businesses that have opened in downtown Lock Haven?
“Yes absolutely. We’re all very focused on community over competition. I believe that we all can be successful, and there’s plenty of business to go around. We all offer different variations of clothing and gifts, which is beneficial to downtown because now there are more options that appeal to everyone regardless of what they’re shopping for.”
Can you tell our readers what the future holds for Blonde Boutique?
“I’m excited to expand my boutique to accommodate a broader range of inventory, so I have plans to relocate the store to a larger space on East Main Street. In the new space, I’ll be able to offer a larger selection to choose from and hope to eventually add more members to our sales team.”
Ashley’s store is open Monday through Friday until 5 p.m., and until 3 p.m. on Saturdays. Her store also has a web site at www.blondeboutique.net