By: Deborah Johnson Wood
In tough economic times when many boutiques go out of business in their first year, Smooch Beauty Boutique is celebrating success. Next month, owner Mia Walker will celebrate her first year in business, and a remarkable 62 percent increase in staff from five employees to eight.
The shop specializes in exclusive cosmetics and skin care brands—Stila, Bare Escentuals, NARS, and others—normally found only in places like New York or Chicago. After working 18 years for cosmetics giant Estée Lauder, Walker decided to stop traveling and opened the 1,200-square-foot store in East Grand Rapids' Gaslight Village.
"I've always had a passion for cosmetics," Walker says. "I told my husband, 'there's such a miss in the Grand Rapids area for these very exclusive products.' I saw the [Gaslight Village] development happening and thought it was the very right location for this type of shop. I had a lot of connections in the industry, and always wanted to own my own business and went for it."
The boutique is a place where, as she says, "a girl can be a girl," with a New York-esque décor with lots of white and a touch of pink. Services include makeup application and lessons, manicures, pedicures, waxing, and facials, all performed in stations designed with privacy in mind.
"The community has been very supportive," Walker says. "I feel we have a huge potential for growth in the next year."
Source: Mia Walker, Smooch Beauty Boutique
Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth. She can be contacted at [email protected].
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