From Paper Flowers to a Life in Full Bloom

This American Girl's Dream hasn't been for the Faint of Heart: The Unfiltered Reality of Small Business.

The flower girl.

The reality of the "American Dream" is something I think about often, especially lately while helping a friend launch her own business. Seeing her at the starting line takes me back to where my own journey began.

My "American Girl Dream" began not in a boardroom but on a corner at the top of the street where my childhood home was located when I was five years old. I spent my afternoons crafting oversized paper flowers and selling them from a little stand. Even then, that entrepreneurial spirit was buzzing inside me. I didn't have a plan yet, but I had the drive. My little stand (which was an old liquid cart my dad converted for me to wheel my products from my basement door to the corner) even had a name - the Cobbs Shop since I lived on Cobbs Street. Ingenious at 5.

Inspired in Paris and obsessed with European Skin Care products. Circa 1987

Life continued, and my dream of owning a business or retail shop was postponed for many years. At 20, I was juggling three jobs: a full-time position in marketing and two part-time jobs. I've been working since I was 12, whether babysitting or assisting at my Uncle's tailor shop; working is what I know. As an overthinker, overachiever, lifelong people pleaser, and someone who never feels like she's done enough, it's only natural for me to approach goals differently from most people.

At 36, it was time to leave the corporate world and transform that dream into reality by writing it down and executing it—a challenge unlike any other. Along the way, there were many skeptics. I was told I wasn’t smart enough, that without a business degree, I could never run a successful business. However, they underestimated my determination to never give up. After years in marketing and corporate roles, I finally released all the barriers and obstacles that were holding me back. Deep down, I knew they were wrong. Nearly 30 years later, I am still here, and my line of bath, body, and home products is a testament to that five-year-old girl who refused to quit.

Being the boss is a relentless marathon. On any given day, I am a chemist, a content creator, and a janitor. I might start the morning filming social media posts, only to spend hours making inventory. Then comes the "glamour" of operations: ordering supplies, developing the website, and setting up systems. There is no task "beneath" a founder—I’ve spent afternoons helping a customer find the perfect gift, only to spend the evening scrubbing shop bathrooms and taking out the trash. Then there’s the invisible weight: taxes, mercantile fees, fire inspections, payroll, utility bills - you name it I pay it.

BUT, and this is a big BUT, there is so much love and passion in what I do. It is my heart on a shelf. Because of that, I’ve had to learn a hard lesson or two or three: if someone criticizes the work, it isn't personal—it’s just business. You have to keep that fire for the craft while developing the thick skin required to survive.

What truly makes this business stand out isn't just the products; it’s the relationships built along the way. Over three decades, I’ve watched the world change through my front window. I’ve met young moms who now have adult children. I have customers my own age who were once bringing their kids in, and now they are the ones taking care of their aging parents.

We’ve grown, we’ve changed locations, and we’ve walked through the fire together—divorces, deaths, and breakups. My customers know these stores are a soft place to land, a sanctuary designed to bring calm into their lives. Whether the road was rocky or smooth, these spaces have always reflected who I am: a place to come, smell, create, and be surrounded by love. To just BE.

Something I started doing again after a 30 year hiatus.

Where I go from here? I don’t have that fully figured out yet. But I know it will be somewhere warm all year long. I just hope that when I finally get there, I’m not so old that I won’t be able to enjoy it.

Our Mission Statement

"To honor the five-year-old dreamer in all of us by providing a soft place to land through handcrafted bath, body, and home products. We are dedicated to building lifelong relationships, proving the naysayers wrong with every hand-poured item, and ensuring our space remains a sanctuary where you can come, smell, and create in an atmosphere of unconditional love and calm."

Happy Spring.

Love Caroline, Oliver, Willow and our amazing staff.