A former recruiter trained in the art of networking, this small-business owner harnesses the power of personal. Find out how she built her business on relationships.
FEBRUARY 02, 2015
When Beth Davidson becomes friends with her customers, she knows she’s succeeded at her No. 1 goal: making customer service top priority. “If I’m on a first name basis with my customers, I’ve humanized my business,” says the owner of The Dragonfly Shops & Gardens in Orange, California. “In order to be successful, you have to be personal.”
Davidson’s brick-and-mortar lifestyle shop carries a wide variety of home and garden goods, including housewares, jewelry, clothing, and plants and garden art; offers classes; and provides a venue for birthday parties, weekend retreats and weddings. Whatever the small-business owner cooks up at the bustling shop focuses on people connecting with people.
The shop is located in a 1924 former house that consists of 1,500 square feet, including a yard where she carries garden products. In July 2013, after weathering the recession and continuing to grow, she doubled her space by setting up the Dragonfly Studio in another historic house next door. While the first building holds the merchandise, the second serves as an indoor and outdoor art studio and classroom space.
“The studio has the same welcoming vibe as the shop—with lots of character,” says Davidson. “The space features incredible artists and instructors who are known throughout the community.”
The studio harkens back to Davidson’s original intent with the shop. “When I first opened the business, my primary emphasis was holding beading classes, so I reserved one room as a classroom,” she says. “In the retail world, they might have called that move ‘Beth’s Folly,’ because it would be considered sacrilegious to use retail space for a classroom.”
The tactic increased customer engagement and business, though. “Those who came to bead were introduced to the shop and vice versa,” Davidson says. “Best of all, many customers have taken my beading class for several years and have become great friends.”
From Recruiter to Shop Owner
Davidson is no stranger to networking. A former executive recruiter for 20 years, she decided to leave the recruiting business in March 2007 to open up Dragonfly Shops & Gardens in order to “feed a need to bead.” After beading for 30 years, Davidson wanted a place to showcase and sell her jewelry, so she opened the Dragonfly.
The shop is located in a 1924 former house that consists of 1,500 square feet, including a yard where she carries garden products. In July 2013, after weathering the recession and continuing to grow, she doubled her space by setting up the Dragonfly Studio in another historic house next door. While the first building holds the merchandise, the second serves as an indoor and outdoor art studio and classroom space.
“The studio has the same welcoming vibe as the shop—with lots of character,” says Davidson. “The space features incredible artists and instructors who are known throughout the community.”
The studio harkens back to Davidson’s original intent with the shop. “When I first opened the business, my primary emphasis was holding beading classes, so I reserved one room as a classroom,” she says. “In the retail world, they might have called that move ‘Beth’s Folly,’ because it would be considered sacrilegious to use retail space for a classroom.”
The tactic increased customer engagement and business, though. “Those who came to bead were introduced to the shop and vice versa,” Davidson says. “Best of all, many customers have taken my beading class for several years and have become great friends.”