Even though she’s been running her
women’s clothing boutique for 27 years, Faye Wetzel still wakes up at 1:30 a.m. some nights with concerns about the business. In short, the panic of being an entrepreneur doesn’t go away.
Instead of fighting it, Wetzel embraces the daily risk that comes with running her own business.
“Panic is my friend; I don’t try and get rid of her. I don’t stick my head in the sand,” she said on the latest episode of the BizTimes MKE Podcast with The Brimful Life. “I just realize that that is part of being an entrepreneur and you need to have the stomach for that. And not a whole lot of people do.”
While the retail industry has undergone seismic shifts in recent years, Wetzel said her company’s approach hasn’t really changed,
“At the heart of it it’s just listening to the customer,” she said.
Styles and trends may change, but Wetzel said her company’s customer has always been defined by a lifestyle. She said her customer is interested in fashion or has a need to be fashionable, she’s involve with a busy lifestyle and appreciates that Faye’s can help her dress from age 35 to 55.
“My customer is astute, she knows what the heck is going on,” she said.
On the podcast, Wetzel discusses how she’s worked to instill a customer focused culture in her staff, especially now that she no longer works the store floor and what its like to be “as retired as I want to be.”
“The satisfaction in my business is making women feel good about themselves, it’s not about selling another cashmere sweater,” Wetzel said.
She also shared her advice on building a wardrobe, planning what clothes to wear and what items every woman should keep in her car or purse.
A partnership with
The Brimful Life
