The shop turned three at the beginning of July. It feels every day of it. I mean that in the most grateful way possible. This helping-women-find-a-bra-that-works thing is really a real business. Everyday…and I mean every day the bra shop doors are open, we help women find their joy from the inside out. That’s our mission. And it’s stronger than ever.
We have seven employees now…actually eight if you count the woman I hired earlier this week…and actually nine if you count me. Our latest addition is a woman named Shaylee who knows how to set up online shopping and brings a whole new retail experience to JOY. As for online, we are going to start out with just pajamas, bralettes, and underwear because those sizes are a lot easier to manage (extra small through extra large) than sizes of bras (28 through 48 band, A through K cup), and plus…I don’t know… helping women find their joy with bras on the internet just kind of doesn’t work. Check out the shop’s Facebook page and the “shop now” button. More soon.
We take phone orders. The phone has rung a lot lately. Maybe because 802-362-BRAS is kind of easy to remember, but women do actually sit down to call us. Had one do it the other day. She wanted a robe exactly like the one she bought two years ago. I was able to look up the size and style in her file and get it out to her. She lives in Manhattan. Had another one call a few months back. Lives in Dallas and has tried a couple stores, but none of them have the bra she got from us that she really likes. “Will you ship to Texas?” she asked me. Of course, we will.
The JOY team is something else. Courtney, Julie, Lila…these women are in the shop A LOT. I trust any of them with just about anything when it comes to what goes on at the shop. Same goes for Connie and Katherine. The shifts they pull allow someone else to go on vacation or be sick or just have it a little easier on a busy day. This crew doesn’t just fit bras, they have qualities that you can’t teach like initiative and empathy. We laugh a lot. They push me forward. I am blessed.
I count Dorie and Holly in as members of Team JOY even though both have several clients due to them being a bookkeeper and graphic designer. Maybe I’m stretching the numbers a bit, but if there’s one thing I know for sure it’s that having smart and capable finance and marketing departments who also get your mission are critical when it comes to building an empire. That leaves Shaylee and me to bring it up to nine.
This Joy on JOY blog is nearing three years old too. I sometimes feel like I have so many stories to tell that I don’t actually sit down and write any. On any given day, there will be some customer or some merchandise or some business situation that makes me say to myself, “I should/could write a blog about that.”
I had this one broad in the fitting room on Tuesday whose confidence was raised higher than the four inches of her breasts in that new bra. You could see it in her shoulders and the expression in her face when she looked in the mirror. Bralettes are such a big bra fashion trend that even the Wall Street Journal is doing stories about it. Hell no, they won’t hold you up like a bra with wire, but they sure are cool. Selling a lot of bras is lot different than making money at it. Running a business is not easy.
My first blog was titled “Joy on JOY” and I wrote it six weeks into the brashop when I was about to get my first day off. The title has stuck as the name of my blog, with each entry having a sub-title. Like pretty much everything about JOY all things underthings, the Joy on JOY blog has come as if pre-destined. Joy on joy is an even bigger thing. It’s like I’m on my own personal mission. With your help, I’m finding my own.
From the inside out, thank you.
Let’s rock.
– Joy
Joy Slusarek is the owner of JOY all things underthings in Manchester Center, Vermont. Her mom named her after a woman who came to cash her check at the bank where she was a teller in 1966. The woman was the most beautiful woman she had ever seen. Her name was Joy.
