Business: George & Fred
Address: 216 S. Main St., Naperville
Website: www.georgeandfred.com
Owner: Sharon Rodney, 55, of Naperville
Years in business: 1
What does this business do? “I like to describe it as unique finds from independents, either mom-and-pop shops or independent jewelry designers. Nothing private equity-owned or corporate, as much as I can possibly avoid,” Rodney said. “Home goods and jewelry.”
What’s your key to success? “I worked non-stop the first six months, seven days a week. I nearly lost my mind. … Even now, I still work on my days off but it’s more inventory, ordering more product and social media, website maintenance.”
When are you open? “11 to 6 Wednesday through Saturday, 11 to 4 on Sunday.”
What was your goal? “I’m not out to make a million bucks. I’m out to pay the bills and have some fun. … My idea was I didn’t want to be a shop where you come in and find cool things, whatever. I want it to be a community, so I host different events.”
What kind of events? “I’ve had a newspaper reporter, a ceramicist, a docent from Brookfield Zoo, a singer songwriter and a floral arranger speak here. … I had three people here teaching us how to play mahjong. It’s huge right now. … We had a non-alcoholic wine walk with other independent businesses. People went from shop to shop.
“Again, I didn’t want this to be just a come and shop place. I wanted to be part of the community. Let people find new fun things to do and see and learn. … I’d go bananas if I was just selling stuff all the time.”
What’s the next guest speaker’s topic? “To be determined. I have to think about what’s good for summer. Also, a lot of people are busy during the summer.”
Maybe one on grilling? “I’d probably burn the place down.”
Where do you find items? “A lot of people ask that question. There are lots of wholesale sites for retailers. Like a conglomerate of all companies that want to sell to retailers.
“I also go direct to different companies that I find. I found April Cornell, linens this woman has been doing for 30 some years. She’s out of Burlington, Vermont. Beautiful aprons, textiles.
“Before I started, I did a ton of research on small independents that produce in small batches. … It’s super hard. It’s a bit of research and figuring out if I like it. … That’s my research. My days off, I’m doing that. But I like finding those cool (items).”
What do you like best about the business? “I like talking with people who come in here. I guess I’m more social than I thought. … If I want to go to a Cubs game, I’ll go to a Cubs game. If I want to go to Riot Fest, I can do that. Yes, I work a lot, but I can also work on my laptop and watch a movie. It’s freedom. While there may be stress, it’s a completely different type of stress. I’m not going to fire myself. It’s a more peaceful way of life.”
Anything you don’t like? “Sometimes, I get a little stir crazy up here. But there’s the candy shop down the road. There’s Allegory, which has amazing food.”
Do you miss the corporate world? “No. I talk about that a lot here. I was in corporate for 35 years. I met amazing people. I got to travel. Great stories. But at the end, I was very stressed and anxious.
“There are so many people who don’t take that chance. They end up working every day of their life and end up being miserable. Why not take a chance? What’s the worst that can happen? There are no tigers. Back in caveman days, that was your biggest worry, being eaten by a tiger.”
What challenges do you face? “The biggest challenge is being on the second floor, having people see my doorway. I have a sandwich board out there.”
What does a new customer say? “This is really cool. It has such a great vibe to it. I like all the fabrics. … I love to buy matchboxes. They’re beautiful gifts to bring people when you don’t know what to take,” said former Naperville resident Kathy Lee, 68, who now lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
What’s your advice for someone starting a business? “Do what makes you happy and research, research, research. Have a game plan. I feel a lot of people don’t plan. You need a game plan for every day, every week, every month, every year. How is this going to work? … Be passionate about it.”
Steve Metsch is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun. If you know of a business you’d like to see profiled in Down to Business, contact him at metschmsfl@yahoo.com.
