对于四月的聚光灯，我们与布列塔尼·帕克（Brittany Parker）交谈Wink Boutique.
Wink Boutique is a quaint small town gift shop located in the heart of downtown Pflugerville, Texas. The shop sells a variety of buzzworthy gifts for every type of person and occasion. From candles to clothing to kitchen necessities, Wink Boutique prides itself on its unique finds, friendly staff, and personalization.
您能告诉我一些有关您的工作和提供的信息吗？
我们为各种各样的人提供各种礼物，并可以通过会标和雕刻来个性化礼物。最近，我们还开始提供女装。我们不仅为妈妈，婴儿，生日，毕业等等提供礼物，而且如果您想为自己买东西，我们还可以选择很多。我们拥有从蜡烛到衣服再到洗衣粉（我们最畅销的人之一！）所需的一切。
是什么让您决定开始眨眼精品店？
Wink was actually already a shop when I purchased it. I always loved going into Wink in my hometown. When I came back from college (with a buying background), I worked with the previous owner, and I said I really wanted to take part in Wink in any way that I could. Her life was changing and she didn’t have the time to keep up with the shop anymore—and I was looking for the opportunity. I ended up purchasing the shop from her.
I kept Wink Boutique pretty much the same, but made some slight changes to it and added my own personality. Wink Boutique is such a big part of the community, so continuing on with that community value was very important to me. We work with a lot of local artists to showcase and sell their hard work. I wanted to give a voice to makers and artists in the town that don’t necessarily have a physical location (and give them visibility in the shop).
What’s your favorite part of running your own business?
老实说……帮助人们。我们总是说：“我们不是需求商店，而是一家欲望的商店。”帮助某人找到礼物或喜欢的东西，甚至只是与他们交谈，这是如此充实。
Whether you’re making a sale or having a nice conversation, seeing someone smile because they find a gift or they’re getting to know someone in the shop makes it worth it. You can learn so much just by talking and listening to someone. Having that connection on a different level and being that thread to their smile is the best.
经营自己的业务的最大挑战是什么？
Getting the word out there. More and more these days, people are getting pulled in a bunch of directions with social media, and people are busier than ever.
确保我们保持领先地位和居中可能很困难。我们想成为某人说：“哦，我需要拿礼物！”时，我们想成为第一个想到的地方。
通过所有其他选择的混乱，可能很难与加强比赛的大型零售商竞争。我们只是试图让许多人以尽可能多的方式知道，在Wink Boutique中，您可以获得在Target或Kohl等某个地方找不到的独特礼物。
爱国者的全方位服务薪资如何帮助您经营业务？
哦，天哪，是so有帮助！我妈妈帮助我进行日常操作，因此她通过工资单帮助我很多。和Full Service Payroll，她很容易登录，为每个人花费时间并收集报告。
这些报告确实有助于每季度提供惊人的突破，并且易于理解。如果我们犯了一个错误或遇到问题，爱国者的每个人都非常有帮助且易于联系。您的价格也很棒，这使价值变得更好。
当涉及到您的业务时，您最骄傲的是什么？
我在Wink工作的人。我们都对我们想要的东西有同样的想法，并且我们投资于商店并帮助人们。我对自己的团队感到更加感恩和自豪。每个人的经验水平都不同，但是归根结底，我们所有人的目标都是帮助其他人进入商店的人。
Additionally, we’re all female-operated, and I think that’s important, too. I’m proud that Wink is able to give women the opportunity to be part of a fun team and work environment and that we can lift each other up and push each other.
您对希望创办自己的小型企业的人有什么建议？
研究，研究，研究。尽可能多地进行研究，并尝试找到可以倾诉的导师。这可以是您家乡甚至州外的人。
Consider also getting involved in a knowledge share group (e.g., on social media). I joined a few groups and have learned so much from people all over the U.S. It’s made it a lot easier to run my business.
You can also get involved in your city and work with them on improvements and initiatives. In a way, it’s kind of like free marketing for your business.
Connect with Wink Boutique:
Images courtesy of Jillian Savage.
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