What is your formula for staying in business as long as you have?

It comes down to two or three points. One is that I approach things very analytically and scientifically. I am one of those people who keeps learning about the trade, about the products, about trends. Keep being educated. That's a huge part of why we're still here to celebrate our fifth anniversary. Secondly, I keep searching out new and different merchandise that pushes the envelope of what our products are. I don't think we ever get comfortable, whether it's our product selection or our education or our marketing and promotion. We keep learning and keep implementing what we learn — keep things fresh, that's the key for us. And retail is such a strange little world of its own. If someone new [to the business] asked me my secret to staying in business, I'd be tempted to say: “Maybe you should reconsider. Are you sure you're really odd enough to hold your own in retail?”

First and foremost is differentiating ourselves as a truly independent specialty store. We don't even pretend to compete with the big boxes, because we can't. So we have to do things differently: product mix, customer service, relationships. You can't worry that Wal-Mart just opened up around the corner. You have to keep the mindset that it's okay, they're not my competition. Sometimes that's not easy. You have to make the atmosphere in your store so inviting that people want to stay. Sometimes our customers come in and don't plan on buying anything, they just want to be here. If we don't have what they need, we call around. We know customers by name and they know us by name. They leave with pretty packages: we put a lot into presentation, so [the items is] ready to give as a gift. We're more daring with the accessories we bring in than some of the bigger boxes. We don't want to look like Pottery Barn, and we don't. You have to invest in your community, too. Back community groups that your customers are in to. You have to have really deep roots.

Six years is not a tremendous length of time to be in retail, but considering how so many small businesses close within their first few years, I guess I must be doing something right. When I started Curious Sofa, going out of business was never an option. I didn't go into this venture thinking I would do something else if I could not make it. You always have doubts venturing into the unknown, but I had to support myself, which meant I watched the money, bought carefully and worked hard. I did a lot of homework; talked to experts, listened to customers, researched product, put on events, and changed the store often, making it fresh and exciting. You have to stay on top of everything. I still do all those things daily. They're important for success. But the best advice I can give is to make it unique. Tap into your God-given talent and go with it. Over-thinking your store or copying what someone else is doing will never be genuine. Customers know the difference.