Episode 27 - Kati Foster - Founder & Owner of NW Accent

In this episode of The Realtor Who Wines, I sit down with Kati Foster, founder of Northwest Accent, a Tigard, Oregon screen print shop and boutique. From starting in her garage during the pandemic to opening a vibrant storefront, Katie shares her journey of creativity, trial and error, and dedication to craftsmanship, hand-printing every T-shirt, sweatshirt, and design that comes through her shop.

We delve into how she curates her boutique, prioritizing women-owned, local makers while keeping products inclusive and inspired by the Pacific Northwest. Katie discusses building meaningful relationships with vendors, the importance of social media tagging to support local businesses, and how a simple Instagram post can spark connections, collaborations, and new business opportunities.

From ribbon-cutting surprises where half the crowd wore her designs, to advice for those considering a brick-and-mortar business, this episode highlights the power of community, connection, and celebrating small business wins. Katie’s passion for bringing people together, customers, makers, and even her friends, shines in every story, from pop-ups to a dream Disney outing someday.

Thank you for listening! Connect and collaborate with Realtor Rashelle on any of her social media platform pages > https://linktr.ee/RealtorRashelle

Transcript

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Welcome to the Realtor Who Wines podcast. I'm Rachelle Newmeyer, your hostess with the mostest a student of life, a connector, a passionate wine enthusiast, and your local favorite guide. Join me as we explore the vibrant Pacific Northwest. Savor the finest wines and champion the spirit of entrepreneurship. Each episode, I'll sit down with inspiring guests, supporting business ownership and uncovering the stories that make this community unique. So grab a glass of wine, settle in, and let's embark on a journey of discovery and connection together. Cheers. Hi, everyone. Welcome back to the realtor who lines. I'm Rachelle Neumeyer, your local realtor who loves to whine. Today I'm in northwest accents and Tigard, Oregon, and I'm so excited to share this location with you and the owner and founder. But I also just want to say we are drinking today. Laurel Ridge Reserve Sauvignon Blanc. If you haven't been to Laurel Ridge, it's out in Carlton. Have you been there before? I have, and I love their rosé. Yes, Santa Rosa is my favorite. Yeah, rosé of all time. It's also female owned and operated, to which we both have a soft spot for. We do. That is my jam. Yeah, those are my people. Well, cheers. Katie. Thank you so much for having me and having you and being on today. I am excited to be here. So good. And, Lauren, that's delicious. Go check it out. Choice. So, do you mind introducing yourself to everybody and letting them know who you are? Yeah, I would love to. My name is Katie Foster. I am the founder of Northwest Accent. I'm a screen print shop with a now super cute boutique at the front. Yeah, I just had a ribbon cutting yesterday. I was very excited. Yeah, so I'm a little tired. So if I stumble over my words today, it's because I did a lot of talking yesterday. Definitely. Yeah. But, I started screen printing in my garage and my bathroom because I needed a dark room in my house. So I started in 2020 when the world was shut down and people were either learning something new or drinking. And I decided to learn something new. And, I was just kind of like it was just a hobby. I had a full time career, which I loved, and it was great, but I was out of the house a lot. I was missing my kiddo. She was. Let's see, she would have been around eight and I was like, oh, now we're all working from home and doing school from home, and I am missing so much of her life. This is crazy. I got to do something else. I can't be gone 12 hours. Yeah, I can relate to that. So that was like kind of the motivation to well, what can I do with this? And then everybody was home watching their phones because they're so bored that I had like this captive audience of like, hey guys, I'm just going to try to watch some YouTube videos and figure this out in my garage and like, post pictures because I'm just learning and having fun. And people started asking like, can I buy that from you? And I'm like, you want to buy this? Yeah, sure. This is my hobby. This is my hobby that I'm like roughly figuring out. And I went through hundreds of, like, shirts that, you know, like the print was crooked or oh, shit or whatever. Like, everybody that I know, I'm like, hey, if you have stuff you're going to. Good. Well, can I, can I print on that and start just a practice? And then, you know, five and a half years later now, like, we're here in my dream space and I am loving it. And I have, I really wanted to have, like, an actual storefront. So this is a perfect hybrid because you can see the process still, which I had at my old shop. And people enjoyed. And I like showing people like how things are made. Yeah. So just puts it into perspective too. Like it's not being printed by like machines and stuff. You're like actually back there screen printing yourself every single T-shirt, every single sweatshirt, all the things. So I think that also helps people like visualize like, oh, well, I am going to pay more for this because one person is making it buy. Yes, it's more of an art form than just like something that is coming off of a production line. Definitely. Yeah. What have you learned since 2020 about screen printing? Like, are there certain fabrics now that you're like, oh, that's a terrible one to like be screen printing on or like because you've definitely, if you can even see behind us, like even these prints right here, the wall prints, like you've definitely honed in on your skill and like have really fine tuned it. So like, you had to have learned a lot along the way. I've learned a lot along the way. I would say there are not things that I'm like usually straight out refusing to show on other outside the outside of like maybe spandex. I might straight out refuse to do that for now, but I am learning that some things take more effort and practice, and like you can put some additives in ink to prevent things from happening. If somebody wants something easy, like give me a white cotton t shirt. Oh for sure. If you want to make it more complicated than that, give me something else. But like we can print on most fabrics. I haven't done towels yet, but I do have a friend that owns a pool that's on swim. Lee Conley. Is that what it's called? You can rent it, you know. And so she was talking about it and I was like, you know what, let me order a couple towels and play around with it to see if I can do that. Yeah. So textured that I, I don't know how it's going to come out, but we're going to give it a shot. Yeah. Or how it would wear like over a long time. Yeah. Because a towel is just like such a different texture and fabric. Yeah so am I. It's probably not going to like feel nice where the rent is. It's going to feel like it's screen printed, but we're going to play around with it and see if we can do it. Why? No. Yeah. What about what are some things that you've learned about starting in your house to like having a storefront. Like there's definitely learnings steps along that way. So many I think I have just learned that I really don't know as much as I think I know, and I probably never will. And there's a lot of like, you know, every day is just figuring it out. Sure. Not getting overwhelmed, which is sometimes easier said than done. Yeah. For sure. And partnering like, did you reach out to people or like ask for guidance on certain things like, I Instagram stocked like a ton of people. Yeah. And just trying to figure it out like, oh, do I use like Shopify or do I use square? Like I'll just even like the littlest details is like, you don't know until you know. Yes. And I like I mean, it was Covid again really when I was getting started. So yeah, there was like time. But I think a lot of us don't feel like we have as much anymore. But I just made friends with like people on Instagram that were screen printing, and I joined all these blogs and I watched hundreds and hundreds of YouTube videos and like, consumed everything that I could. Yeah. And started asking, like, super basic questions to other screen printers and overall got like a really good I mean, everybody was great and really helpful. I think there was maybe a couple people in blogs that were like, you're a woman, you don't belong here. But overall, like everybody was pretty awesome. Yeah. And then it was just like a lot of trial and error. Like this person said this, let me go try it. And then if it doesn't work the way that I want it, let me come back and be like, okay, I did these steps in this order. This is the result I got. And like, yeah, people would be like, oh, try x, Y, and Z. Try like heating your garment first try, you know, pushing another pass over your ink so that it like smooths things out. Those kinds of things. Oh yeah. That's awesome. And then I ended up making a friend in Alaska that had a print shop. So in 2021, maybe 2022, he called me up and was like, hey, I'm I'm like swamped. I can't keep up. I need somebody to come work for a week. Like, if I fly you here and pay for your Airbnb, will you come print for me for a week and a half? And I was like, oh, dang. Yeah. I've never been to Alaska. So I did. And then I learned a bunch there. Oh for sure. Like doing it for 20 years. So that was pretty awesome. Does he have a shop? And I give it a shout out. Yes. Although now to put me on the spot. I just moved in with another shop owner, so I don't know what the name of the new shop is, but I will find out. Yeah, we can tag it and tag it later. Yeah. He is the best. We still talk. I talked to him last week. He actually has a customer in Portland that needed a rest job done, and he called me the other day and was like, hey, what are you doing today? Do you have time to print, like, 35 shirts for me? And I'm like, no. But yeah, I mean a for yes. Yeah. So yeah, I'll figure it out. So his name is Nick. I'll find out the name of the shop. The new shop. Yeah. Shout out to Nick. Shout out to Nick. He's the best. We'll tag you. A lot of the products in your shop. So you have more than screen printed products. You've got earrings and candles and, like, great coasters and all these things. Talk a little bit about how you partner with other businesses and, like have them here too. Yeah. So my goal was I want to be like what I was describing it is, is like a slightly girly millennial version of Made in Oregon. Not that maiden. Oregon's not great, but I wanted it to be like a little different vibe, just a little different vibe, maybe even, like a tad on the younger side of what I feel like Made in Oregon is targeted for, and I am, you know, I've had plenty of lessons about how hard it is to be like a woman owned business and how you have to kind of, like, fight to get an equal level of attention or respect. And so I really want to highlight women owned businesses. So 90% of the stuff that's in the store that's not screen printed is from a local woman owned business. Yeah. Well, I have a couple things that are not, but most of it is. And my goal is to keep the store always between 98, 95% local. Yeah. Which is awesome. And you have even though there are female owned businesses, there's a ton of stuff in here for guys like you're not just catering to like, females. No I'm not, because like, my t shirts are bestsellers for my guys because they're super comfy. They fit nice and I have guys that come in or their wives and they're like every time this comes out of the wash it's the first thing he puts on. So I'm like why can't like yeah you can't alienate half the population. I got to do something. Yeah. In designs too. Yeah for sure. Well, in the Pacific Northwest vibe, which is like a lot of your designs. I mean, is kind of more guide to like, like, the shirt is unisex, but like, guys, our girls could wear the shirt. That one's to absolutely. So East coasters if you're listening. Sorry. East coasters. Sorry I'm sorry man, but we're alienating East coasters. You can't sit with us. I do have a few that I've been working on because I wholesale to other boutiques. So I have a few things that are not, like geographic specific. Like, I have, books and coffee or some coastal stuff that's just coastal. It could be East Coast or West Coast, and I do have some plans to do some more of those, just like boutique designs, but it will always be like heavily Pacific Northwest. Yeah. Well, I'm which is fun too, because a lot of we're both obviously from the Pacific Northwest. And so we also like to wear stuff from here with pride, but like so do a lot of other locals. And then sometimes it's nice to have something that's not like PDX specific because like, not everybody's from Portland, so it's nice to have the more of a Oregon range or Washington type range than just PDX, which I like. And if you're from the suburbs, right. Like people say, oh, you're from Portland. Well, I'm not really from Portland. I'm from Tigard. Yeah. And I realize, like for anybody outside of here, they're like, That's Portland. But I'm like, you're like, you're from Tigard. You mean? Yes, you're from bigger. I'm Oregon. Yes, yes. Tigard, Oregon. Yeah. And I'm like close. But yeah, it's not exact, but I don't really want to wear something that says Portland. Yeah. And I do have some Oregon stuff. I have some Washington stuff that's not on the store, but I sell my Washington store. But most of it is just generally like this region. Yeah, for sure. And I, I'm also obviously not anti Portland, but sometimes it is nice just to wear something that's like northwest specific versus like a town. Well I mean everybody loves to hate on Portland right now right. Like we're just terrible. So I'm like, all right fine. If we're so terrible, at least you like our waterfalls and our trees and trees. Yeah. That's so funny. No offense. Portland, we love you. We do, we do. How do you select, like. Because you can obviously only have, like, so many other businesses and at one time do you how do you select or when you partner with another business. Is it like on a seasonal basis or like it's temporary or is that ongoing? It's hard. I'm still figuring it out. Yeah, definitely still figuring it out because like, the nice side of me is like I want everybody to have a chance. But I have to be honest that like some stuff is like it was when I started screen printing. Right. Like maybe it's cool but it's not really store quality yet. Sure. And it's really hard to say that to somebody like, hey, I think you're on to something and you should keep trying. But I was a little too homemade crafty for something that I can carry in a store. Right? So I'm trying to still figure out how to do that, but I try to keep, like, competitors separate. So if I have somebody that makes candles, I'm trying to not bring in three other candle shakers that make sense. And then once I kind of have something filled, it's filled until something changes. Yeah. Something changes. Either I sell out and maybe the maker doesn't want to make more or it's not really selling. And we just kind of decide, let's try something different here. I have been giving everybody about like, we'll give everything a three month commitment and see how things sell. And then if they're not moving and you want to try something different with your products, I'll give you that shot before I say, like, hey, I'm going with somebody else. But for sure it's hard. I did have somebody that like, makes hats, that's local. Try to get Ahold of me and say like, hey, can you sell my hats? And I was like, well, no, because I make hats. And that's like a really direct, competitive thing. So then you're asking me to, like, invest in your product and sell your product as a competitive against what's making it what mine is. So I was like, no, I'm sorry, that's not really the right fit. And I don't think they liked the answer it was. But you know, it's it's a learning process. Yeah for sure. Well, and if you're in the retail space you just have to respect that like at the tables or turn. But yeah you sell other people's hats. Probably not. My advice for makers is always like, you need to know who you're going to approach to. Like if you're coming to me and saying, hey, can you sell this? You should probably know what I sell. Yeah. Or at least something about my store. I'm not saying you have to come in and, like, for sure check everything out. Although I think if you really want to build a relationship with a store owner, it's probably a good thing to do if you can. Yeah, I did the same thing when I got started where I was contacting shop owners and being like, this is what I sell. Are you interested in knowing more? Right. And it's scary and it's not fun and nobody wants to be rejected. Right. But if you just are like blanket sending stuff out there, it feels really genuine. And I enjoy having like a good relationship with all of my vendors. Anybody that has something in the store, I could text them right now and ask a question. So for sure it's pretty nice to have that kind of respect for each other. Well, and then that way to have like a customer comes in and ask about a certain product like, oh, do you know if I can get these earrings and XYZ and you're not the earring maker, then you can be, let me ask her then. I'm not all right now. She usually gets back to me in less than five minutes. And oftentimes I have an answer for somebody before they leave. Right. Which is nice when you have those relationships, if you're like, oh, I don't know. Yeah. She just drops earrings off. I yeah, like it's just totally different when you have like a true relationship where you can reach out and connect to it is and it's great because I have had people come in and be like, oh, the person that makes these bags, I really want something like this, but a little bit bigger. And I'm like, well, let me ask if that's something she does. And they're like, I'd love to take on a custom job. And like, here's their contact info and here's theirs, and everybody's happy. And I'm like, that was fun. Yeah, that was fun. Yeah, it feels good. You're like, I love being that connector too. That's partly why I love being a realtor so much as, like, you're just connecting people. Yeah. All day, every day. It feels good. Yeah it does. Because then you're like oh I feel like I know you and I know you and you guys would get along. I want to like put you in contact with each other. Yeah. Maybe we'll go to Disney together. That's my goal with everyone by the way. Everybody should do it. Yeah. We're always trying to figure out how do we all get to Disney together. Do you want to grab coffee or do you want to go to Disneyland? Or do you want coffee on Main Street? You tell me. Yeah, coffee on Main Street. My goal, like one of my ultimate, like, dream board goals, is to, like, pull in Ellen DeGeneres and, like, rent out the park for a half a day with just my people. That would be amazing. Yeah, like, if I ever get to that status, I will have a whole list of just like everyone, we're going to California. It's going to be the best day ever. Yeah, yeah, everybody by this airline, we're all flying at this time. We'll take over the whole plane. Yeah, well, well, how cool would that be, though, to be walking around Disneyland and you just know, like, everyone there, that's my name are my friends. Those are my friends. That's my family. We went to school together. That would be so funny. Amazing. So anyways, that's like some real celebrity status. I don't know, I, I don't know if I'll ever get there, but if I do, you guys are all coming with me. I believe you can thank me. And I got I got a store on Main Street in Tigard there. Good. Yeah. Yeah. Disney. Yeah, I have no idea who knows how much that even cost today. Like when Ellen did it, that was let's not talk numbers like oh yeah yeah let's girl Memphis. Yes everybody. If everybody pitches in a little bit and we all share an Uber. Yeah. It'll be like for my 80th birthday we'll all be at Disney surfing. We'll be like, I finally saved enough. How many of those scooters do you guys have? We'll have like a rascal race down Main Street. Oh my gosh, who needs a ride? If you could get on a rascal, that's all. Where is over space? Massive. Yeah, we got a rascal. Dreams happen in here. Yes. Oh, there he is. Oh my gosh, that would be really fun, though. That's. I feel like when you like. I've made it. Yeah. Something like that. Yeah. I'm going to all have like drinks at club 33. This is like it would be amazing. You're like everyone. We're here, nobody else. And then we all get to go to club 33, which nobody ever gets to do. That would be really cool. So I have to Disney if you're listening. That's my dreams. I'm sure they are. I'm sure I wouldn't be listening. Yeah. They're like, have you heard of that realtor who whines? Yeah, she's got big dreams. She's got big dreams. We should help her out. Yeah. That's so funny. I have to think about what my like your arrived moment would be. What would I do with all of my people? And don't hate me. It probably wouldn't be Disney. Well, I mean, we all have our own dreams. Yeah, probably be like renting out an entire coastal town or something. Yeah. You know, like the festival. Katy. Yeah, that's what I would call it too. Oh, that would be the name for sure. My mom's name is Melinda, and she calls everything Marlin Deville. She's like, we should Marlin deviled us. I think that I should know her. I feel like I should know I will bring her, but she would love all your stuff, too, because we have a beach house. And so I wear the hoodie I have from here at the beach house all the time. I think that was the first text that I got from you was probably from them. I know I was like, look, I'm wearing like coastal. I'm wearing like a coastal hoodie with somebody that I didn't even know that knew you. Also, that was really funny, actually. So I was at the beach house with a mutual friend that I didn't realize as a mutual friend of ours, and she came out of a room wearing northwest accent shirt, and I was also wearing a northwest accent shirt. We're both like, whoa, you know, Katie and they were like, let's send her a video. That was the coolest video I've got. Yeah. I was like, because I didn't know that you guys know each other. Yeah. And I was like, oh my gosh, this is so cool. And she's texting me. She's like, yeah, that's my best friend. And I was like, I'm sorry, I didn't know that. You had, but I didn't know you had a best friend. Like I'm like, I thought I was your. No, I didn't think that. Did she tell you how we know each other from high school? We didn't. We went to high school together, but we didn't really know each other. Yes, because she bullied me. Yeah. You guys are West Side Story. I don't know, I'm kidding. My first kiss. Oh, gosh. Was her ex-husband Dan. First kiss? I was in seventh grade, which. This freaks me out because she's going into seventh grade right now. My kiddo. But we were, like, on the play stage crew together, and I was not going to get on stage and perform, but I like, wanted to be involved. So yeah, I was like, I'll just change the sets in between scenes. And that's how we met. And I kissed that guy. And then immediately it was like, no, immediately, no. Not not anything bad to say about this poor guy. That hopefully is most seventh grade romances don't go anywhere. So yeah. But then she later was like, we met up at my shop because she came at the old one. She came to do a pop up and she's like, do you know so-and-so? And I was like, yeah, I kissed that guy in seventh grade and she's like, I married him. And then I didn't. This is really. I was like, no, we're divorced. And I'm like, okay, great way to meet girlfriends. It's like, oh yeah, I made out with your husband a long time ago. That's that's a really good. Anybody that like you're about that. That's like an insecurity to the next level. Like, what do you mean? You kissed my husband in seventh grade. It's like, that is true, right? It's like, yeah, we all had past lives. Like it is what it is. And it was seventh grade and it was terrible and so scary. And I was like, I'm never going. No, I'm never going to be around boys again. I wanted to talk to that after this. Yeah, that's so funny. So we bonded then. And I think like that was kind of our moment that now we're friends and yeah, she's so much fun. Yeah she's ahead. And then it was funny while that same beach trip we went wine tasting of course. What else would you be doing if you're with me? And while we were and wine tasting, we saw three other female owned businesses that we both know. And so we're like, look, Kelly's jellies. And like all the stuff, we're like, taking pictures with all these things or like, it's like all these people, you know, and their products everywhere. It was pretty cool. It is cool. I love when I go places and I'm like, I know, I know the lady that made that. Yeah, I know who designed that. Yeah. It's fun. It is super fun. And I like to, like, take pictures. I mean, like, I saw your earrings today. Yes. Like, you know, one of your hats in the store. I think I like to tag people on Instagram and I'm like, look at me out and about. I'm, I'm over here at this bakery and look, I'm. I'm mom. It's almost like I'm with some of my friends, right. And then it feels good. I know, that's why. That's why I got me, too. It's the wine. The wine's fruity and it's jam on the fly. We had the door open for several hours yesterday, so during the ribbon cutting. Yeah. That is one thing that people can do. I don't think that you realize that if you really want to support a small business, a local business is tag them on social media. Just like that little thing. If you post a picture, even if you like, buy a shirt from Katy and you're out about and take a picture in the shirt and tag her in it, just like help spread the word of the different businesses and things so it doesn't. You never know who's going to see it and be like, oh, I like that. I want that where you get it. And like they might become the next best customer or they might be like, hey, you know, I, I'm trying to think of like what I've shown that people have come to me for, but it ends up being a connector and then they end up placing like a really big order with somebody that I'm like, I just wanted to show off her earrings. Like the I mentioned Natalie earlier was wearing, like she had made some pride earrings. And we did a pop up at Tiger's Pride festival this year. And so I had those on and somebody asked about it and I'm like, oh yeah, here's her website. Yeah, who she is and how to find her. Or when people come in and I'm like, oh, I can tell you all about the maker. And then they can connect. And that's kind of fun. Yeah, totally. And it's just a nice, easy way to support local businesses. So like when you were at the bakery and you tag another so you can tag the bakery and then like tag if you saw somebody like the coasters or something in there and then you're tagging that business, you're like supporting multiple businesses at once and it's so easy. And it takes like 10s, it takes 10s. And it's also just like a little way when you're crazy running around. Doing parenting and working and everything to like kind of still connect with your friends like, hey, I'm thinking about you. Yeah. Let me give you a shout out. And then it sparks a conversation and I'm like, the next thing I know I'm talking to the lady that makes the coasters. And I'm like, hey, actually, I have some other ideas. And she's like, cool, let me make you a sign. So I have like a really cool, open and closed sign that she made. But yeah, just because we got talking about it and she's like, oh, I could do that for you. Yeah. Well and also as a business owner, like sometimes the thing that people struggle with the most is their own marketing. And if people are tagging you on stuff, you can just share it and be like, hey, I don't have to brag about myself or be like, come check out the shirt. I can be like, look, people are wearing the shirts. Yeah, it's social proof. Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's my favorite. On a day that I'm like, I'm overwhelmed or I'm like, I've got so much printing to do and I'm like, or something's going on. I'm like, I know I have 900 emails to respond to, and I see somebody tagged me and I'm like, oh God, I'm still present on social media and I don't even have to do anything. I can just hit reshare. Yeah, it makes my day totally. Well, I'm sure you love seeing people wear your stuff and think of you to tag you, but then also it does give you something to share too. It's it's like a win win. It like there's no feeling like seeing somebody wear something. You made it. It's so cool. Yeah. Every time I still get like, oh my God, I made that. And you're actually still wearing it. And yeah, we had that moment yesterday at the ribbon cutting. They gave me ten minutes to do whatever I wanted with. And when I saw like the massive amount of people, I was like, oh my God, I'm sweating. It wasn't massive, but it felt massive to me. There was a big crowd. I was here yesterday. There's a pretty big crowd. But I was like, I really just want to get a picture with people that are like wearing things that I've made because I haven't ever really done that before. And I mean, I've had like one on one pictures, but not like a group. So I was shocked when I was like, hey, I'm going to get maybe like ten people that come up and take it. It was like me, almost the whole crowd. It was pretty cool. I was like, oh, wow. And I didn't even realize until later when people had sent me photos and I looked back and I'm like, wow. I thought there was like a couple people behind me. I didn't realize, like, how many people were up there. And so now I'm like, I have to send everybody thank you cards. Yeah, yeah. They made the announcement. That was like, if you're wearing something that Katie's made for you, please come up. And like, it was literally over half the crowd came out. That wasn't God. That was so cool. Yeah, yeah, it was really cool. It was. I was so glad so many people sent me pictures and videos because I would have, like, had zero perspective of how everything went yesterday if I didn't have, like the time to look back when I was. And it's hard when you're in the moment of something like that too. It's just like any big event, like it's you're so focused on, like being the host and being in the moment and like timelines and things like that. You're not really paying attention to like the little stuff. Yeah. So it's nice when people send you stuff like selfies with each other and like in front of your stuff or just like, oh, or pictures of you and you're like, oh yeah, I was talking to so-and-so and laughing about whatever. Yes, that was that was pretty cool. Yeah. That's awesome. What is some advice you would give somebody if they were like thinking about or opening their own brick and mortar? Because a lot of people now get nervous about it or they're like, I'll just sell my stuff online. And you were really passionate about having a brick and mortar. So like, what kind of advice would you give somebody if they're wavering between brick and mortar and online? I would say, don't do it. No, I'm kidding, I'm kidding, I'm kidding. I think I would. That's all we have for today. Thank you. And that's our time. I think, I mean, I would say, like, estimate the cost of everything that you can absolutely think of way higher than you actually think. It's going to be like, if they're like, hey, your rent's going to be let's just use round numbers because I'm an artist, not a math person, but like 100 bucks and then you're, you know, utility bills are going to be 100 bucks and then your merchandise is going to be 100 bucks and you're like, that's literally everything. I need $300. I would double it and be like, at least it's going to cost you double what you think and then add in some for that stuff that you're like, I don't know what else I'm forgetting. I've done all the research I can think of doing. There's literally nothing else. Yes there is. There's always something else. Yeah, something will happen. I had like I felt like moving into this space. I was like, okay, I know what to expect. This time around versus like the last time around where I was like blindsided because I didn't know what I didn't know. Right? And I'm like, oh, that was so expensive. I'm like, I can do this so much more efficiently this time without all of these, like, hidden costs where I just then I'm like, you have to come in and buy something because I can't tell you how much money I just spent. Yeah, I still I still was like, oh, I need another electrician. Oh, this outlet just fell out of the wall. That's cool. That wasn't in my budget. Yeah. Oh, it's 100 bucks for you to come look at it before, like it's even fixed. Okay, well, even when you're, like, leasing a space or renting a space like landlords and, like, they don't cover all that, like, this is your space. You want to. But I don't think a lot of people realize that the like they'll call the like management company and be like, oh, the plumbing is not working. They're like, great, call a plumber. It's on your recommendation. Yeah. It is, so different than renting, like a apartment or a house where it's like, oh, something broke. We'll take care of that. There is literally there cover, like the walls and the roof and. That's right. So, it's scary, but I feel like, you know, blind confidence is helpful. Like, if you just kind of think that you can do it and block out the doubt. You'll figure it out. Yeah. And while I was having a brick and mortar like important to you was that the connection with the clients. Was it being able to carry other people's products. It was a little bit of both of those I initially like. It wasn't necessarily day one that I planned on having a brick and mortar like for shopping. I wanted a brick and mortar for a shop, and it was like going to be filled with employees and we'll be running so much merch that we've got several presses going, and we'll, you know, have a staff of like 25 people, but which we still will. Yeah. Someday. Yeah. But, and they'll all get to go to Disney with me. Yes. I know it'll be great. I'll be like, well, you guys joined just in time because I'm friends with Rochelle. So we're on the list. It was definitely like connection with people was important to me. I missed having coworkers. I had some close friends when I was like in my last career that I really missed. And then I was like, oh my God, it's so lonely. I'm doing this all the time, and the only time somebody comes in is when they're like, hey, can you make something for me? And I'm like, can you just talk to me for a minute, please? I'm really lovely. Yeah, so that was fun. But, like, the women owned business thing was a big part is that when I was like, man, I remember trying to get out there and trying to, like, do pop ups where it's, you know, 100 degrees on a weekend, but you have to be up at like 5 a.m. to make everything up and get somewhere and unload it and set it up, and you're just, like, tired and sweaty before the event even starts. And then you're you have to be on and talk to everybody for six hours, and then you have to load everything back up. Yeah, I was like, that's exhausting. I would love to have a place so that, like, people that are making really nice stuff can just drop it off, right? You know, and it's like, as long as they don't need it with them, it's either sitting in their craft room at home or wherever they're production spaces, right. And might as well sit here. And if they can make like kind of passive income, that's really cool. Yeah. Well in year round because like festivals and markets and all that stuff, that's not always year round, especially in the Pacific Northwest, because we don't always have the best weather in like January. So there's like no festivals or anything. And January you also let a lot of your, gals that you represent here in the shop do like pop up. So like I've mentioned before, where it was like the candle goes in and she had extra candles that day or whatever, or some of the earring girls were in and stuff like that, which is always fun. It's so fun. It's just a fun energy. It'll be interesting to do that here, which I'm sure we'll do something around the holidays, because the space is a little bit smaller. But I think we can make it work and. Yeah, figure it out. But it's fun. It's a fun event. It's fun for customers. But, I mean, even in the old space, I have, like a small retail space. So people that, you know, I have a small amount of people that come in regularly to then get to like, meet the maker and see what else they do beyond just the little display I have. I think people really like that. It's kind of cool. Yeah, for sure. And it's just also nice for them because they don't have the brick and mortar. It's just a nice way for them to meet their customers in person to to invite their own customers, like, hey, I'll be at Northwest Accent, come check me out this one Saturday. Yeah, I'm doing a pop up. Yeah, kind of a thing. Which is cool. I really, really appreciate you having me in the store today. Thank you. This was so fun. Yeah, I love this wine. So now I feel like I might have two favorite wines. Well, I'm rich. Yeah, I'm a wine club member there, so if you ever want to go, that's one of my favorite spots I'd be happy to take. Yeah. I'm off on Mondays and Tuesdays. Perfect, perfect. Cheers. Cheers. Thank you so much. And thank you for listening. We'll see you next week. Bye.