Hidden Gems: Meet Rebecca of Chick’n Dots

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rebecca.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I started in the retail world when I was 12 years old when my parents started Brew Krew, a gourmet kitchen shop, located here in downtown East Tawas. Enjoying retail at a young age led me to Central Michigan University to get a Business Degree in Retail Management and Marketing. I came back to help build the family business after college. In December of 2010 my husband and I had our first baby girl. So at the January 2011 trade show all the children’s merchandise really caught my attention and the idea started. By mid 2011 Chick’n Dots was opened and continues to grow and flourish today.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Is any small business a smooth road? Not likely! A year after opening the door our building was caught in a fire with the neighbor building and we lost everything. We quickly set up a temporary location while we rebuilt. The real benefit there was starting from scratch we were able to build lofts above the store which brought housing into our downtown community and that has helped off set our investment.

Of course, several years later the pandemic hit and I am sure every business felt the effect on some level. While the doors were closed we had to get creative to keep going. My two daughters and a slew of their cousins did live modeling on facebook. This enabled customers to still see a bit of what we had to offer and place orders. I am sure I had never worked so hard to keep things going, but at the same time it was fun getting creative and working with the kids to overcome obstacles and succeed.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Chick’n Dots is a specialty children’s boutique offering clothing size Preemie up to 18/20, a large shoe selection, toys and LOTS of books. We also have a great candy section with all the old fashion candy favorites. Chick’n Dots is one of the largest children’s store in Michigan; besides our psychical size our unique selection of quality merchandise sets us apart from our competition. We try to select the highest quality in the industry, our entire selection is meant to be passed along so many children can enjoy them. Our Toy section is largely Educational based learning toys. Some of our best selling lines are Mayoral Clothing, Bogs & Keen Shoes, and Jellycat stuffed animals.

Chick’n Dots prides itself on quality products with even better customer service.

We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
NO risk, NO reward 🙂 I am through and through a risk taker, luckily my husband is a thinker and has to justify everything, so we make a great team!

I am always looking for a new project to keep myself challenged, but on the day to day front here at Chick’n Dots, I know my sales reps are always commenting on how much they love working with me and my style of buying. Seems most buyers/owners take a long time to decide what might sell, what selection they might want and how much they are willing to spend on each item. Being a risk taker by nature allows me to make quick decisions. I feel like I know my customers tastes and style enough because we pride ourselves on building relationships not just one-times sale. Not that I don’t look at the industry and educate myself on current trends, but I prefer to make split decisions and roll with it:-) I know if I like it and know a few of my best customers will like it, I can sell to anyone!! I find it better to not tie myself to budgets or current market trends.

Contact Info:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Chickndots