June 9, 2025 • 39 mins
In a landscape dominated by big box stores, how do small retailers not just survive but thrive? We’ll find the answers today as we chat with Stevie Cummins, the powerhouse behind Jewel of the West, to explore how independent stores can win in 2025. Listen in...
WESA Retail Roundup June 9, 2025
- Host: Glenn the Geek, Host of Horses in the Morning
- Facebook: Retail Roundup Facebook group
- Guest: Stevie Cummins of Jewel of the West | Facebook | Instagram
- Presented By: Western English Sales Association
Time Stamps:
00:11 - Introduction to the WESA Retail Roundup
00:34 - Strategies for Small Retail Success
11:55 - Marketing Strategies for Local Businesses
24:14 - The Importance of Authenticity in Merchandising
30:36 - The Importance of Positivity in Business
34:25 - The Importance of Reevaluation in Business
Takeaways:
- The podcast emphasizes the necessity for small retailers to adapt and innovate in an increasingly competitive marketplace dominated by larger corporations.
- Stevie Cummins of Jewel of the West highlights the significance of fostering a positive work environment and empowering employees to enhance customer service.
- Effective marketing strategies, such as soliciting genuine customer reviews and engaging in social media, can significantly boost a small business's visibility and sales.
- The discussion reveals that maintaining a unique and authentic brand identity is crucial for small retailers to differentiate themselves from big box competitors.
- Utilizing local advertising and community engagement activities can drive tourist traffic to brick-and-mortar establishments in small towns.
- The episode underscores the importance of resilience and a positive mindset for small business owners during challenging economic times.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Well, hi everybody.
Glenn the Geek, back with you.
Founder of the Horse RadioNetwork and host of Horses in the
Morning, the longest runningdaily horse podcast, one of the longest
running daily podcasts in theworld at 15 years.
Welcome to the WESA Retail Roundup.
The Retail Roundup is your goto virtual hub for all things retail.
Join panel discussions, learnfrom webinars, share your thoughts,
ask questions and connect withyour community.
(00:23):
We host a virtual event onMondays and share educational content
with you every week via theRetail Roundup Facebook group.
If you're not a member yet,search for Retail Roundup on Facebook.
In a landscape dominated bybig box stores, whether they're,
you know, physical stores,brick and mortar stores, or online
stores, how do small retailersnot just survive, but thrive?
(00:47):
We'll find answers today as wechat with Stevie Cummins, the powerhouse
behind Jewel of the west, toexplore how independent stores can
win in 2025.
Stevie is the founder andcreative force behind Jewel of the
West, a western inspiredboutique known for its unique creation,
curation and fiercely loyacustomer base.
Stevie, where are you guys located?
(01:07):
We are in a little town in theBlack Hills of South Dakota by the
name of Hill city.
We're about 10 miles fromMount Rushmore.
Are you the only businessother than Mount Rushmore in Hill
City?
No, no, actually we have areally cute little downtown.
It's kind of one or two blockslong, but a lot of stores, art, galleries,
(01:30):
restaurants, things like that.
We have strong traffic May midMay through mid October.
So about five months out ofthe year.
Are you open the other months?
We are, we are.
I do not own the building thatwe are in.
I rent and as you can imagine,the rent in a little tourist town
(01:53):
can be pretty high as have allthe other expenses gone up.
So there's no way I couldsurvive if I didn't stay stay year
round, stay open year round.
And we found some really greatworkarounds that we've built upon
over the years that havereally helped us succeed.
So you're brick and mortar and online?
(02:14):
Well, we don't have an onlineshopping cart website.
We have a website that kind ofshows the vibe of our store and where
people can go and schedule avirtual shopping appointment.
It also has a very robustcalendar of events so that people
can see what we have going on.
We do so much virtual, ourvirtual and our social media.
(02:40):
Honestly, they're probablyresponsible for 75% of our revenue
throughout the year, includingtourist season added in.
So we've really built uponthat and it's been a huge Focus.
And we've stayed veryconsistent with it.
So that has been very helpful.
Well, that leads to the firstquestion, right?
(03:01):
Is how do you compete with theAmazons and the big box stores of
the world?
You know, how do you competeindividually with that?
Yeah, well, I'll be honest.
You know, it can be hard at times.
One, we're pretty transparent here.
You know, sometimes you'llhave a customer come in and say,
well, I saw this online attheir website for $5 cheaper than
(03:25):
you're selling it.
And, you know, I'm just realhonest with people that, you know,
90% of vendors sell direct tothe end user.
And that can make it very hardfor their wholesalers, you know,
the people that buy wholesale,to sell retail.
Because we eat that freightcoming to us and with what freight
(03:45):
costs have done, I just can'teat them all or I won't stay alive.
So I'm just honest that I wishI could.
But this is, you know,recently I got in 29 boxes of boots
and the freight on it was $497.50.
You know, I can't eat all ofthat and charge the same price they
(04:06):
are.
So I'm honest and transparentwith people.
But also I feel like we standout in a lot of other ways too.
One I can honestly say, mostimportantly is the women that work
for me.
I don't even know how to sayenough about them that really, I
(04:28):
don't even know how you put avalue on them.
In South Dakota, the minimumwage is $11.50 an hour.
I start my employees at 15 an hour.
We never advertise that wehave a job opening.
I would rather work 16 hours aday, seven days a week than have
someone in our establishmentthat is not a good fit for the type
(04:54):
of customer service elementthat we want to provide to our customers.
So pretty much all of ouremployees, they were either a really
good customer that we reachedout to, they were a referral by a
good customer, or a friend ofan employee that decided they wanted
to come on board.
(05:15):
And what we have developed istruly a family here.
We give a different experiencethan I think you can get in most
big box stores.
I don't know about you, butthese days when I walk in a big store,
I feel like I'm having to askfor someone to help me.
And even sometimes when youask, you can't get the help.
(05:39):
And I've given up on that.
I never even just assumenobody's there to help you.
You just make that assumption, right?
You find it yourself.
A lot of times, yeah.
And a lot of times the youngerfolks, which I don't want to stereotype
people because I've had someamazing young employees that left
and went off to college.
But a lot of times, you know,they're busy on their cell phone
(06:02):
and they don't even look up toacknowledge my age range currently
of staff is 53 to 70.
I love it, isn't it?
And I feel like it comes froma generation that truly cares about
the in person experience, thecustomer service element.
(06:23):
There is not a person thatwalks in our door that is not greeted
and thanked for coming in andthat is not thanked when they leave
for stopping in whether theymade a purchase or not.
And I love that about thewomen that work for me.
And I think that is one thingthat really helps us stand out.
(06:43):
Another thing that has reallyhelped us is the marketing company
that I work with that managesmy website.
They told me that if you couldget more Google reviews it would
help your business.
They said do not ask for goodreviews, just ask for honest feedback.
And they said the more ofthose you get, the more it is going
(07:07):
to drive people to yourwebsite when they're looking for
a keyword like turquoisejewelry or what have you.
And so we started a thing.
One of my techie young galsthat went off to college, she created
a barcode for us and we dothem on these fun little postcards.
We put one in every package.
Sometimes we'll hand them outto people that just come in to browse.
(07:31):
And it's got our return policyon there.
It takes this takes you rightto our Google page where they can
leave review and we just askfor honest feedback and tell them
it really helps us if you tellus how we can improve what you enjoyed.
And we do a $250 giftcertificate drawing every 100 Google
(07:54):
reviews that we get.
And the marketing companyactually used us as, what do I want
to say, kind of an example toother clients because it's driving
so much website.
We are sometimes in the firstor second position when people search
(08:14):
certain items.
Our tiny little store that'snot even 1,000 square feet.
So that really helped us as well.
That's interesting because youknow, one of the things we always
said in business and marketingis you have to make it simple or
they won't do it.
And what you've done is madeit simple for them to do it.
Yes.
And we do our drawings live.
(08:36):
I use that wheel of names, youknow, where you're em all in.
So People can see that it'sfair and honest and it has really
driven people to give ushonest feedback and it's really helped
out.
And I love how they're alwaysgiving a shout out.
If you go to our Google page,one of the overview things that Google
(08:59):
says about us is that peoplecomment on how lovely the staff is.
And you know, we're not pushy.
We let people know, you know,we want to help you just let us know
if there's anything you'd likehelp with.
But we also don't breathe downtheir neck while they're shopping.
We let them enjoy theexperience and kind of fill out the
(09:20):
vibe.
Some people want you to engagewith them from the minute they walk
in and not ever let go of them.
And others, they just want tobrowse and be left alone till they're
ready for something.
So.
So we try to read the room there.
But I feel blessed becausetruly I call my staff the jewels
and they are amazing and theyare worth gold.
(09:44):
And I think that is one waythat you can really stand out as
a smaller store instead of abig box.
You have control over who'shired and the type of vibe and the
type of people and you know,with the servant's heart that are
in there.
(10:04):
Instead of being put out andfeeling like, you know, that's not
my job, it just.
That is probably the biggestdifference in our store is my staff.
So one of, you know, one ofthe things too that I think smaller
stores, and I know we feltthis too, you feel the pressure to
that you need to kind of scale up.
(10:25):
You need more products to becompetitive with the big box stores.
And that's killed a lot ofstores too.
I mean that's, that's atemptation that gets you in trouble.
Yes, it does.
And it definitely can.
And things have not alwaysbeen perfect.
There are times I've had toright the ship in different ways.
(10:46):
But I will tell you, you know,the one thing that's kept me grounded
is money.
I don't have as much money asthe big box.
Kind of grounds all of us,doesn't it?
Yes, it does.
Darn it.
Wouldn't it sometimes.
Unlimited checkbook.
But not the case.
But I think too what I love isthat instead of trying to be everything
(11:10):
to everyone, you figure outwhat your customers love the most.
And not just being a certainbrand store.
It's fun because you can bringin all these different brands and
just carry the most epic ofwhat they have to offer.
And I think that's anopportunity where I Think depending
(11:34):
how you look at that, to meit's an opportunity to outdo the
big box store.
They might have moreofferings, but not every single thing
is amazing.
If you just really hone youreye in on what's most exciting to
your customers, I think youcan really see some good sales.
(11:55):
So you're in a location thatbrings a lot of tourists in for a
certain period of time.
How do you get them to come inyour store locally?
So let's, let's forget theInternet now.
Now you're, you're, you'rebrick and mortar in, in a local town.
And how are you getting tocome in?
Is it just that they'rewalking by and they're going to stop
in anyway because they're justhitting store to store to store?
(12:15):
Or are you doing advertisingin the area?
How are you getting the word out?
I will tell you.
In our state, I advertise withKello Land.
I absolutely have gotten somuch bang for my buck.
Not only do they advertise inthe entire state of South Dakota,
it's a TV station that goes asfar as Sheridan, Wyoming, which is
(12:39):
three and a half hours from us.
It goes into Iowa, Minnesota,Nebraska, not the whole state, but
the parts closest to our.
So it's a, it's a, it's a TV station.
It's a TV station and we do commercials.
But also once a month theyhave something that they do every
(13:03):
week that's called Kello Land Living.
And it's like a program whereall these different businesses get
featured and it's six to eightminutes long, your segment is.
And they film it and it'swhere you can really talk about the
heart of your store and whatit is and what you have to offer
and the things you're doingthat has drove so much business for
(13:27):
us.
And so that is where the bulkof my advertising goes.
And I assume it's in all thehotels that it's shown in all the
hotels.
It is one of the main channelsthat most of the hotels put out,
you know, like on their newsand everything.
So it's, it's been good money.
And I'll be honest, I haven'thad a lot of money to advertise other
(13:52):
than that.
But we're very lucky becausewe are a small downtown.
And so the tourists, when theycome, they do kind of start and go
down one block and up theother side and we are blessed with
a very good location.
I pay the highest rent intown, but I'm Kitty Corner from a
(14:13):
world famous restaurant thatis owned locally, that was started
by a little German womancalled the Alpine Inn.
And we also are directly likethe railroad, the old Hill City Railroad.
It's a huge tourist attractionto ride that.
And when people get off therailroad and cross the street to
(14:34):
come to downtown, that thatstreet takes you right to the corner
where we are.
So we are blessed with that.
We definitely pay more.
But it does help us out.
What's been your mostsuccessful social media?
Gosh, you know, I would saytwo things.
(14:55):
One is just we do verydescriptive videos, and it's really
prevented a lot of returnsbecause I'll tell you, amongst designers
and even within a designer'sline, like in Double D Ranch, I have
everything in my closet from asmall to a 1x.
(15:15):
And just sizing can be allover the place on things.
And I'm not putting them down.
I'm just saying all designersare like that, you know, and even
just from designer to designer.
And we've.
We hardly ever get a return oran exchange because of the description
we put out there about the fit.
(15:36):
And we'd recommend going up orthis piece is really not good for
someone with large boobs, youknow, or this looks better on someone
with more of a boyish figure.
Not curves.
You know, we try to reallyjust be authentic and honest.
So that has been helpful.
But the big event for us onsocial media is I grew up in a basketball
(15:59):
family.
My dad was a basketball coachfor over 35 years.
And March Madness, big thingin our household.
Big, big thing amongst my family.
And we decided to do MarchMadness thing every year.
We've done it three years now.
And we do it in correlationwith one of our vendors, Juan Antonio,
(16:24):
his great one of a kind handbag.
And we take photos of everyhandbag we have in store.
And we do brackets where wematch them up against each other.
And we do a poll every daywhere people have to vote on their
favorite bag.
And the winning bag advancesto the next round.
And it's drove a lot oftraffic because we'll give you an
(16:48):
extra entry if you tag five ofyour friends.
That sort of thing.
That has been huge for usevery year.
We've noticed major growthduring that.
You know, it's huge becauseit's just fun, right?
I mean, it's just fun.
Yeah.
And someone's winning ahandbag at the end of that.
You know, one of a kind,gorgeous leather handbag.
(17:10):
So that's probably been ourbiggest event.
I love that because it's so interactive.
And two things.
It's interactive, but it's,it's repeat interactive.
They're coming back to voteevery time, so that builds over time
too.
But people want to come backand vote every time because they
want to see the one that theyactually want to win as the winner.
It's a brilliant.
That's brilliant actually.
(17:32):
And a lot of times the onethat wins sells during the contest.
So we always will pick anothergreat bag.
We try to pick one that's, youknow, going to appease most people.
You know, some people don'tlike fringe, some don't like cowhide.
So a lot of times we'll gowith more of like a leather bag that's
(17:54):
a little more common, youknow, and stuff if the one that wins
sells.
So, so what can you domerchandising wise in the store that's
never different than the bigbox and maybe calls more attention
to obviously the products with.
Do you, do you, do youmerchandise in a way with the products
with the higher margins?
Where, you know, do you, doyou think about that?
(18:15):
We actually always try to.
First of all, once a week,every Monday, we change out all of
our displays and we do that.
Which displays?
Let's clarify that becausesome stores can have a lot of displays.
Mannequins, where our clothingracks are, there's shelving on top
of all of them.
(18:36):
And you know, we may havepillows and blankets up there or
you know, we have a lot ofthose not full on mannequins, but
like the shirt, the iron shirtstands that you can put a shirt or
a blouse over and we'll pairit with a handbag and wallet, you
know, and, and a hat or whathave you.
And we just always try tochange our displays.
(18:58):
We also try to mix, which is.
A lot of work.
It is, it's a lot of work and.
But it produces sales and it is.
We try to mix high end andmore affordable pieces together so
that not everything is superhigh end.
And it is a lot of work.
But I'll tell you, if you everhave a piece that's really fabulous
(19:21):
and for some reason it's notselling, we'll move things around.
We do a floor reset every weekwhere we just kind of change things
up a little bit.
That way if you're in a periodwhere you can't afford to get a lot
of new merchandise in, itgives things a fresh look and makes
people see it with a differentset of eyes.
(19:43):
Is there one particulardisplay that you that just, you know,
did 10 times better than youthought it would or was Your best
one of the year or whatever.
Was there one that stands outto you?
Well, I will tell you that wehave this one employee that she just
has this amazing style andsome of the stuff she puts together,
(20:04):
it's like, I would have neverthought of that, but it's really
good.
But we.
We name our mannequins.
We're kind of goofy here at work.
Work.
And Marilyn.
Marilyn's our mannequin that'sabout five feet in the door when
you walk in, right before youturn to go to the cash.
She blonde and shapey, andshe's headless, actually.
We always have a hat on her ofsome sort, you know, because she
(20:28):
stops about right here and wejust lay a hat there.
But she always puts somethingreally fabulous and unexpected on
that mannequin, and it justalways seems to bring the comments
big time.
And I'll be honest, I don'twant to name throw, but I will tell
you, Pat Danke, her pieces areso special.
(20:51):
And there's almost always apiece of Pat Danke on there.
Just something really uniquethat's maybe paired back to more
everyday stuff.
But we have a lot of fun with Marilyn.
She's definitely our flashy model.
So obviously social media kindof helps you a little bit to level
(21:14):
the playing field, even withsome of the big ones.
Yeah, they spent a ton ofmoney and all of that, but I still
think that the smallercompanies can get more engagement.
They may have, you know, amillion followers on Facebook, but
your company, I'm not sayingyou specifically, but, you know,
everybody's company that has50,000 can get more engagement than
(21:34):
their millionaires.
You know, that's.
And actually Facebook, youknow, they made some changes a couple
years ago that really trashedour pages.
Right.
And we all had to get creative to.
To bring back the engagement.
But that allowed us to.
Right.
I mean, it allowed us to.
To level the playing field more.
And is that what you found?
I.
I do think so.
And one thing we really focuson is quick response.
(21:57):
We have done away with ourlandline in our store, and we have
two cell phones.
We.
We transferred that landlinenumber over and we have them in conjunction
with each other.
It's two separate phone numbers.
So we've got two lines peoplecan be calling in on or us calling
out on, but we can.
(22:17):
It updates the social media,any texts going back, virtual shopping
via text with customers.
So we try to really keep aneye on that.
The employees, somebody'salways got one of the phones on them.
And when they get a Second,they're making sure.
I think being responsive isvery important.
(22:38):
But I also think, you know,one of the things you were talking
to me about was how do youfeel like you can compete with the
big box store?
And I kind of looked into, youknow, when they made all those changes
and things kind of crashed down.
I was like, maybe I need tohire an influencer.
(22:58):
And I quickly reigned myselfin because I noticed two things.
One, I didn't have the moneyto hire an influencer.
And two, I gotta be honestwith you that, that, that's not my
customer and that's where Ineed to stay grounded.
I think it's amazing to seethose beautiful reels that are real
(23:20):
fancy and they have all thesespecial features and highlights and
all these things they do.
I'd have to go to college forsix months to learn how to do all
of that.
And we just have stayed really authentic.
And there are times we've donereally well with our outfit of the
day videos.
People are always saying, Iloved what Stevie had on in that.
(23:43):
So we started like when I shota video of something else.
So I've started doing anoutfit of the day video every day
and putting it up on my stories.
And you know what?
Some days I realize I haven'tdone that till I'm ready to go home.
And maybe it was a 14 hour day.
And we're all that age wherehaving hot flashes and, you know,
(24:05):
things.
We're not always looking so hot.
Sometimes I'm barefoot, myfeet are tired.
We have kept it so authentic.
And that is one of our biggestcompliments we hear over and over
is that people say, I love howyou guys are authentic.
You show the clothes on peoplethat aren't a size 2, that aren't
(24:26):
a 5, 10 size 2, supermodelwith airbrushed makeup, you know,
hey, sorry.
All I've got on is mascaratoday because I had a hot flash and
the rest melted off.
I think that's really helpedus is being authentic and really
learning who is your customer.
(24:47):
And we have customers of alldifferent ages.
But I would say honestly, ouraverage customer is 45 to 65.
And so we're just trying tokeep it real.
So it's interesting becausewith the Horse Radio Network, our
listener base, which is tensof thousands, but they tend to be
in the 40 to 70 range.
(25:07):
Women 40 to 70 is.
Tends to be who, who the.
Our active listeners are.
Yeah, yeah.
And, and that.
So that makes sense, right?
I mean, it does kind of makesense, I think for us and probably
you that is coming down alittle bit in age.
We're picking up more of theyounger than we ever have in the
past.
And I think that's because,you know, the whole world's catching
(25:28):
up, right?
So, yeah, I agree.
And I think, too, you know, Ithink things have gotten a little
crazy these last four or five years.
Oh, really?
And, yeah, just a little bit.
Anyway, I will tell you that Ifeel like the Western way of life,
(25:50):
that down home, you know,giving thanks to God, you know, being
grateful, it's really.
I feel like people want moreof that in their life.
And I feel like it's become alife that is more appealing to a
broader age range now.
And it's just grounded andit's wholesome and it's good and
(26:13):
it's positive.
And I do think that's part ofit, too.
That's.
That is what is driving moreof an age range in there.
I think people are realizingafter what we've been through that,
wow, I want to be grounded alittle more and have these roots
and care about things thatreally matter.
(26:34):
And so I think in a way,that's been a blessing, too, for
all of us in business.
You know, it's interesting,too, people whine all the time about
the negative effects of socialmedia, right?
But what they don't realize isit even younger people, teenagers
or whatever, you're exposed toso much more than we ever were growing
up, right?
(26:55):
I mean, we had the newspaperand magazines and tv.
That was it.
So you're exposed to so muchmore than you ever were before.
You're seeing things that youwould have never seen 20 years ago.
So it does open it up morethan it ever has in the past.
It's not all negative.
A lot of that's a positivebecause you are exposed to more than
you ever were before.
(27:17):
I don't view that.
Yeah, there are negativeaspects of anything, but I don't
view that as a negative inthis case.
I ran an acting company for 10years pre Internet.
We would have done so muchbetter had the Internet been around,
because we could have beenexposed so much more.
Right.
We had to do everything thehard way.
You know, we were advertisingon radio and TV and newspapers.
(27:37):
Everything was harder.
You know, even selling ticketswas harder.
So it has made doing businesseasier in many ways.
And also, you know, there arechallenges that come with that, too.
It's keeping up with.
Keeping up with it all is the challenge.
But you're right.
And going back to what yousaid about doing those daily posts
about the outfit of the day.
(27:58):
What we have found through allof our experiment, I'm part of the
Equine Network, which is thelargest network now for the media
world in the horse world, period.
They own everything.
And what we have found isposts first thing in the morning
with horse people.
It's between 6 and 7 o' clockand get 10 times more play than if
you posted at 4 o' clock inthe afternoon.
(28:19):
And we just found that that'sthe way it is, you know, we get a
lot more play.
So now I'm at the point noweven for Horse Radio Network, if
I don't post it by 10 o' clockin the morning, I wait till the next
day.
I don't even post it.
Yep.
Yeah.
Because I know it's going toget lost.
That's interesting you saythat because that is kind of what
(28:39):
we've noticed.
I'm an early riser, so I'malways up by 5am and I kind of have
morning routine and I'musually in a chair doing my to do
list and my social media forthe day between 6 and 7am before
I go out to feed horses.
So that's interesting.
And another thing that yousaid really caught me when you said
(29:03):
that everything was harderback in the day.
And I think sometimes, likewhen I was talking about employees
and stuff, I don't ever liketo stereotype anyone, but I do think
that people of our age didhave to work harder for things.
It wasn't.
(29:24):
You know, I see such adifference these days, even just
at a high school level.
Used to if you were a goodathlete and worked hard, you could
get playing time at high school.
Nowadays, if your parentsdon't have you on these expensive
travel ball teams, you know,that literally destroy any weekend
time at all.
(29:46):
It's so expensive and everything.
But then maybe things come easier.
But back in the day, if thatwas how it would have been, that
wouldn't have been me and my sisters.
My parents couldn't haveafforded that.
And we just, I mean, I had twojobs in third grade, I had a paper
route and I mowed lawns andI've just always been a hard worker.
(30:09):
And I don't know, there'ssomething about that gratitude, that
gratefulness level that comesout when you've really had to work
hard for something and itmeans more.
And I love that.
There you go.
So we're running out of time.
I wanted to ask you, what doyou see as the biggest opportunity
(30:29):
for small retailers in 2025?
Do you see?
Do you see opportunity, andwhat do you see?
Where's it fall?
I do see opportunity because Ifeel like this is an opportunity
with things looking up.
First of all, I think everyowner of small businesses needs to
first look in the mirror.
You know, these last severalyears have been so hard that it's
(30:51):
so easy to get down, feel defeated.
You've got to do a check andget yourself in place.
How bad do you want it andwhat is your attitude like?
This is an opportunity to.
To totally reset yourattitude, to manifest amazing things
for your business, your staff,everything, to reevaluate, you know,
(31:14):
who is our customer, what dowe want to be?
What do we want to focus in on?
It's really a time for resetand, you know, really think about
what fun you can bring.
I think that is one reason wehave a lot of people coming back
to our business.
We do a lot of fun events forthe locals.
In the middle of winter, whenthe weather's crappy and no one wants
(31:37):
to get out and half thebusinesses are closed in town, we
do a pajama party and we servemimosas, and people come in in their
pajamas and slippers, and weall drink mimosas and we take pictures
and we give a killer prize tothe person with the best pajamas.
We have so much fun in our store.
And I do, I feel like thisyear things are looking up.
(32:01):
So ride that wave, get on thatwave of positivity and, you know,
look up and be grateful andreally figure it out what it is that
you want to do.
And anytime you feel yourselfmaybe slipping back into that negativity,
rein yourself in and refocus,because it does bring amazing things
(32:22):
to a person.
And I feel like, too, thatthings have been tough and we're
coming out of that really,really tough, bleak stuff, that if
you just hang on and bepositive, think of all the amazing
things that are coming, andyou don't want to waste all of that
(32:43):
struggle bus you went throughthe last four or five years.
And so I just encourageeveryone to find your passion, be
positive, manifestawesomeness, and just look up and
look ahead.
I couldn't agree more.
We, I always said, you know, Ido some consulting, and, you know,
I've owned a number ofbusiness over the years, some successful
and some not.
(33:04):
As all of us that have beenaround for a long time, we owned
a number of businesses, someare successful and some are not.
That's just the way it is.
But our thing, my wife and Ialways said, are we having fun?
Are we still having fun?
And the minute we said weweren't having fun anymore, that's
when we sold the business orwe moved on.
You know, and, you know, ifyou're not having fun, your employees
aren't having fun, yourcustomers are not coming back because
(33:26):
they don't want to come to aplace that's not fun.
Right.
But just what you said.
Yep.
And you're probably done.
Go find something then that is fun.
Go.
You know, it doesn't.
Because you're closing thebusiness for whatever reason or selling
it, doesn't mean that you failed.
It just means you've learnedsomething and now you're going to
go find the thing that is fun.
You know, I started the HorseRadio Network.
(33:46):
Now it's almost 18 years ago,and I started it because I wanted
to have.
I was a performer and I wantedto have fun again.
I hadn't performed in a while,and, you know, that's why I did it,
was to have fun again.
And, you know, this is thelongest job I've ever had because,
you know, because I'm stillhaving fun.
And I think.
I think that's, you know, wetalk about the money and all that
stuff, but sometimes you'remaking money and not having fun,
(34:09):
and then you have to look atthat too.
You know, that's, you know,life is short.
Do we all want to just dosomething we're not having fun with
for the rest of our lives?
Yeah.
That is so important.
It is.
And I do.
I feel like 2025 is a.
A time to reevaluate.
And as small business owners,we're lucky.
We get to make a lot ofdecisions that big corporate businesses,
(34:33):
you know, they're being ruledby someone higher up that is maybe
making decisions that themanager doesn't agree with.
And, you know, you're luckybecause, as you know, we're lucky
as small business owners, wecan make changes, we can.
Write, while we're a lot more nimble.
Right?
(34:54):
Yep.
Yep.
That is one of the huge advantage.
That's probably the biggestadvantage we have, is we're nimble.
I agree.
We can make a decision todayand implement it tomorrow.
They make a decision today andimplement it in six months to a year.
Absolutely.
You know, it's even like on anapplication for anything these days.
They want to know all thesedifferent things about you.
(35:16):
And, you know, I don't carewhat religion or what race someone
is.
I want to hire people thathave a vision and a heart that fits
in in our establishment.
And I think that's where it starts.
You know, sit down and reevaluate.
Is who you have working foryou really portraying the vision
(35:38):
you have for your business?
Are they all in?
You know, and I just, I lovethat as a small business owner you
get to make decisions thateliminate a lot of headache.
Other things might be harderin ways, but there's a lot of really
positive things, a lot of them.
And then there's the 100 hour weeks.
(36:01):
Yes.
And I've done some of those.
Isn't it better when it's foryourself and you're building something
for your family versus doingit for someone that you know, doesn't
say thank you, maybe doesn'tappreciate it, expects more.
Instead of saying thank you,good job.
(36:22):
They're like, why didn't youget this done too?
And I love that.
And I do think as a smallbusiness owner, you have to ask yourself,
are you filling up youremployees cups?
Do you, do you sandwich apiece of criticism between two pieces
of praise?
Are you lifting them up?
(36:42):
Are you empowering them?
I just, I think it's so important.
I always knew if I could evergo in business by myself that the
most important thing to mewould to be that, to be the kind
of boss I always wished that I had.
And I did have one or twobosses like that in my years of working.
(37:03):
And I feel very grateful for that.
Yes, we all had both.
Major difference.
Where can people find you?
People can find us on social media.
We're on Instagram andFacebook at Jewel of the West.
It's singular.
There's someone in NorthDakota that's jewels, plural.
(37:24):
So you can find us there.
And Our website is www.jewelofthewest.com.
you can contact us through there.
You can read about our pillarproject annual award we give out,
which has been a huge thingfor us.
You can schedule a virtualshopping appointment or check out
how we do it.
(37:44):
It's really fun.
Not many people use ourvirtual calendar.
We do it through calendly.
We have a few use that butmost people just call the store and
sched one.
But yeah, you can definitelycheck out the vibe of our store and
everything there.
Very good.
Thank you, Stevie.
Appreciate you being on withus today and thank you all for joining
(38:05):
us for WESA's retail roundup.
We're only what, two monthsaway from Dallas again?
Yeah, yeah, we're only twomonths away.
To to watch the retailroundups, check out the WESA trade
show YouTube channel.
You can also find episodes onWisdom by WESA podcast.
So if you want to listen to iton the Wisdom by WESA Podcast Feed,
(38:26):
and they have a terrificpodcast over there as well.
And on the WESAwebsite@wesatradeshow.com Retail
roundups will be publishedevery week.
Stay up to date with theRetail Roundup on the Facebook group
at wesatradeshow and atwesatradeshow.com you can find me
at horsesinthemorning.com wehave 4000 episodes of horses in the
(38:47):
Morning to listen to, so youhave a little catching up to do.
And you can subscribe byWisdom by WESA on Apple, Music, Spotify,
or any podcast player.
Don't miss out on the RetailRoundups here every Monday.
Thanks, Stevie.
Next time I come up.
Thank you so much to see the rocks.
I'll come over and say hi.
Okay?
All right.
That would be awesome.
(39:08):
We'd love to have you in.
Well, hi everybody.
Glenn the Geek, back with you.
Founder of the Horse RadioNetwork and host of Horses in the
Morning, the longest runningdaily horse podcast, one of the longest
running daily podcasts in theworld at 15 years.
Welcome to the WESA Retail Roundup.
The Retail Roundup is your goto virtual hub for all things retail.
Join panel discussions, learnfrom webinars, share your thoughts,
ask questions and connect withyour community.
(00:23):
We host a virtual event onMondays and share educational content
with you every week via theRetail Roundup Facebook group.
If you're not a member yet,search for Retail Roundup on Facebook.
In a landscape dominated bybig box stores, whether they're,
you know, physical stores,brick and mortar stores, or online
stores, how do small retailersnot just survive, but thrive?
(00:47):
We'll find answers today as wechat with Stevie Cummins, the powerhouse
behind Jewel of the west, toexplore how independent stores can
win in 2025.
Stevie is the founder andcreative force behind Jewel of the
West, a western inspiredboutique known for its unique creation,
curation and fiercely loyacustomer base.
Stevie, where are you guys located?
(01:07):
We are in a little town in theBlack Hills of South Dakota by the
name of Hill city.
We're about 10 miles fromMount Rushmore.
Are you the only businessother than Mount Rushmore in Hill
City?
No, no, actually we have areally cute little downtown.
It's kind of one or two blockslong, but a lot of stores, art, galleries,
(01:30):
restaurants, things like that.
We have strong traffic May midMay through mid October.
So about five months out ofthe year.
Are you open the other months?
We are, we are.
I do not own the building thatwe are in.
I rent and as you can imagine,the rent in a little tourist town
(01:53):
can be pretty high as have allthe other expenses gone up.
So there's no way I couldsurvive if I didn't stay stay year
round, stay open year round.
And we found some really greatworkarounds that we've built upon
over the years that havereally helped us succeed.
So you're brick and mortar and online?
(02:14):
Well, we don't have an onlineshopping cart website.
We have a website that kind ofshows the vibe of our store and where
people can go and schedule avirtual shopping appointment.
It also has a very robustcalendar of events so that people
can see what we have going on.
We do so much virtual, ourvirtual and our social media.
(02:40):
Honestly, they're probablyresponsible for 75% of our revenue
throughout the year, includingtourist season added in.
So we've really built uponthat and it's been a huge Focus.
And we've stayed veryconsistent with it.
So that has been very helpful.
Well, that leads to the firstquestion, right?
(03:01):
Is how do you compete with theAmazons and the big box stores of
the world?
You know, how do you competeindividually with that?
Yeah, well, I'll be honest.
You know, it can be hard at times.
One, we're pretty transparent here.
You know, sometimes you'llhave a customer come in and say,
well, I saw this online attheir website for $5 cheaper than
(03:25):
you're selling it.
And, you know, I'm just realhonest with people that, you know,
90% of vendors sell direct tothe end user.
And that can make it very hardfor their wholesalers, you know,
the people that buy wholesale,to sell retail.
Because we eat that freightcoming to us and with what freight
(03:45):
costs have done, I just can'teat them all or I won't stay alive.
So I'm just honest that I wishI could.
But this is, you know,recently I got in 29 boxes of boots
and the freight on it was $497.50.
You know, I can't eat all ofthat and charge the same price they
(04:06):
are.
So I'm honest and transparentwith people.
But also I feel like we standout in a lot of other ways too.
One I can honestly say, mostimportantly is the women that work
for me.
I don't even know how to sayenough about them that really, I
(04:28):
don't even know how you put avalue on them.
In South Dakota, the minimumwage is $11.50 an hour.
I start my employees at 15 an hour.
We never advertise that wehave a job opening.
I would rather work 16 hours aday, seven days a week than have
someone in our establishmentthat is not a good fit for the type
(04:54):
of customer service elementthat we want to provide to our customers.
So pretty much all of ouremployees, they were either a really
good customer that we reachedout to, they were a referral by a
good customer, or a friend ofan employee that decided they wanted
to come on board.
(05:15):
And what we have developed istruly a family here.
We give a different experiencethan I think you can get in most
big box stores.
I don't know about you, butthese days when I walk in a big store,
I feel like I'm having to askfor someone to help me.
And even sometimes when youask, you can't get the help.
(05:39):
And I've given up on that.
I never even just assumenobody's there to help you.
You just make that assumption, right?
You find it yourself.
A lot of times, yeah.
And a lot of times the youngerfolks, which I don't want to stereotype
people because I've had someamazing young employees that left
and went off to college.
But a lot of times, you know,they're busy on their cell phone
(06:02):
and they don't even look up toacknowledge my age range currently
of staff is 53 to 70.
I love it, isn't it?
And I feel like it comes froma generation that truly cares about
the in person experience, thecustomer service element.
(06:23):
There is not a person thatwalks in our door that is not greeted
and thanked for coming in andthat is not thanked when they leave
for stopping in whether theymade a purchase or not.
And I love that about thewomen that work for me.
And I think that is one thingthat really helps us stand out.
(06:43):
Another thing that has reallyhelped us is the marketing company
that I work with that managesmy website.
They told me that if you couldget more Google reviews it would
help your business.
They said do not ask for goodreviews, just ask for honest feedback.
And they said the more ofthose you get, the more it is going
(07:07):
to drive people to yourwebsite when they're looking for
a keyword like turquoisejewelry or what have you.
And so we started a thing.
One of my techie young galsthat went off to college, she created
a barcode for us and we dothem on these fun little postcards.
We put one in every package.
Sometimes we'll hand them outto people that just come in to browse.
(07:31):
And it's got our return policyon there.
It takes this takes you rightto our Google page where they can
leave review and we just askfor honest feedback and tell them
it really helps us if you tellus how we can improve what you enjoyed.
And we do a $250 giftcertificate drawing every 100 Google
(07:54):
reviews that we get.
And the marketing companyactually used us as, what do I want
to say, kind of an example toother clients because it's driving
so much website.
We are sometimes in the firstor second position when people search
(08:14):
certain items.
Our tiny little store that'snot even 1,000 square feet.
So that really helped us as well.
That's interesting because youknow, one of the things we always
said in business and marketingis you have to make it simple or
they won't do it.
And what you've done is madeit simple for them to do it.
Yes.
And we do our drawings live.
(08:36):
I use that wheel of names, youknow, where you're em all in.
So People can see that it'sfair and honest and it has really
driven people to give ushonest feedback and it's really helped
out.
And I love how they're alwaysgiving a shout out.
If you go to our Google page,one of the overview things that Google
(08:59):
says about us is that peoplecomment on how lovely the staff is.
And you know, we're not pushy.
We let people know, you know,we want to help you just let us know
if there's anything you'd likehelp with.
But we also don't breathe downtheir neck while they're shopping.
We let them enjoy theexperience and kind of fill out the
(09:20):
vibe.
Some people want you to engagewith them from the minute they walk
in and not ever let go of them.
And others, they just want tobrowse and be left alone till they're
ready for something.
So.
So we try to read the room there.
But I feel blessed becausetruly I call my staff the jewels
and they are amazing and theyare worth gold.
(09:44):
And I think that is one waythat you can really stand out as
a smaller store instead of abig box.
You have control over who'shired and the type of vibe and the
type of people and you know,with the servant's heart that are
in there.
(10:04):
Instead of being put out andfeeling like, you know, that's not
my job, it just.
That is probably the biggestdifference in our store is my staff.
So one of, you know, one ofthe things too that I think smaller
stores, and I know we feltthis too, you feel the pressure to
that you need to kind of scale up.
(10:25):
You need more products to becompetitive with the big box stores.
And that's killed a lot ofstores too.
I mean that's, that's atemptation that gets you in trouble.
Yes, it does.
And it definitely can.
And things have not alwaysbeen perfect.
There are times I've had toright the ship in different ways.
(10:46):
But I will tell you, you know,the one thing that's kept me grounded
is money.
I don't have as much money asthe big box.
Kind of grounds all of us,doesn't it?
Yes, it does.
Darn it.
Wouldn't it sometimes.
Unlimited checkbook.
But not the case.
But I think too what I love isthat instead of trying to be everything
(11:10):
to everyone, you figure outwhat your customers love the most.
And not just being a certainbrand store.
It's fun because you can bringin all these different brands and
just carry the most epic ofwhat they have to offer.
And I think that's anopportunity where I Think depending
(11:34):
how you look at that, to meit's an opportunity to outdo the
big box store.
They might have moreofferings, but not every single thing
is amazing.
If you just really hone youreye in on what's most exciting to
your customers, I think youcan really see some good sales.
(11:55):
So you're in a location thatbrings a lot of tourists in for a
certain period of time.
How do you get them to come inyour store locally?
So let's, let's forget theInternet now.
Now you're, you're, you'rebrick and mortar in, in a local town.
And how are you getting tocome in?
Is it just that they'rewalking by and they're going to stop
in anyway because they're justhitting store to store to store?
(12:15):
Or are you doing advertisingin the area?
How are you getting the word out?
I will tell you.
In our state, I advertise withKello Land.
I absolutely have gotten somuch bang for my buck.
Not only do they advertise inthe entire state of South Dakota,
it's a TV station that goes asfar as Sheridan, Wyoming, which is
(12:39):
three and a half hours from us.
It goes into Iowa, Minnesota,Nebraska, not the whole state, but
the parts closest to our.
So it's a, it's a, it's a TV station.
It's a TV station and we do commercials.
But also once a month theyhave something that they do every
(13:03):
week that's called Kello Land Living.
And it's like a program whereall these different businesses get
featured and it's six to eightminutes long, your segment is.
And they film it and it'swhere you can really talk about the
heart of your store and whatit is and what you have to offer
and the things you're doingthat has drove so much business for
(13:27):
us.
And so that is where the bulkof my advertising goes.
And I assume it's in all thehotels that it's shown in all the
hotels.
It is one of the main channelsthat most of the hotels put out,
you know, like on their newsand everything.
So it's, it's been good money.
And I'll be honest, I haven'thad a lot of money to advertise other
(13:52):
than that.
But we're very lucky becausewe are a small downtown.
And so the tourists, when theycome, they do kind of start and go
down one block and up theother side and we are blessed with
a very good location.
I pay the highest rent intown, but I'm Kitty Corner from a
(14:13):
world famous restaurant thatis owned locally, that was started
by a little German womancalled the Alpine Inn.
And we also are directly likethe railroad, the old Hill City Railroad.
It's a huge tourist attractionto ride that.
And when people get off therailroad and cross the street to
(14:34):
come to downtown, that thatstreet takes you right to the corner
where we are.
So we are blessed with that.
We definitely pay more.
But it does help us out.
What's been your mostsuccessful social media?
Gosh, you know, I would saytwo things.
(14:55):
One is just we do verydescriptive videos, and it's really
prevented a lot of returnsbecause I'll tell you, amongst designers
and even within a designer'sline, like in Double D Ranch, I have
everything in my closet from asmall to a 1x.
(15:15):
And just sizing can be allover the place on things.
And I'm not putting them down.
I'm just saying all designersare like that, you know, and even
just from designer to designer.
And we've.
We hardly ever get a return oran exchange because of the description
we put out there about the fit.
(15:36):
And we'd recommend going up orthis piece is really not good for
someone with large boobs, youknow, or this looks better on someone
with more of a boyish figure.
Not curves.
You know, we try to reallyjust be authentic and honest.
So that has been helpful.
But the big event for us onsocial media is I grew up in a basketball
(15:59):
family.
My dad was a basketball coachfor over 35 years.
And March Madness, big thingin our household.
Big, big thing amongst my family.
And we decided to do MarchMadness thing every year.
We've done it three years now.
And we do it in correlationwith one of our vendors, Juan Antonio,
(16:24):
his great one of a kind handbag.
And we take photos of everyhandbag we have in store.
And we do brackets where wematch them up against each other.
And we do a poll every daywhere people have to vote on their
favorite bag.
And the winning bag advancesto the next round.
And it's drove a lot oftraffic because we'll give you an
(16:48):
extra entry if you tag five ofyour friends.
That sort of thing.
That has been huge for usevery year.
We've noticed major growthduring that.
You know, it's huge becauseit's just fun, right?
I mean, it's just fun.
Yeah.
And someone's winning ahandbag at the end of that.
You know, one of a kind,gorgeous leather handbag.
(17:10):
So that's probably been ourbiggest event.
I love that because it's so interactive.
And two things.
It's interactive, but it's,it's repeat interactive.
They're coming back to voteevery time, so that builds over time
too.
But people want to come backand vote every time because they
want to see the one that theyactually want to win as the winner.
It's a brilliant.
That's brilliant actually.
(17:32):
And a lot of times the onethat wins sells during the contest.
So we always will pick anothergreat bag.
We try to pick one that's, youknow, going to appease most people.
You know, some people don'tlike fringe, some don't like cowhide.
So a lot of times we'll gowith more of like a leather bag that's
(17:54):
a little more common, youknow, and stuff if the one that wins
sells.
So, so what can you domerchandising wise in the store that's
never different than the bigbox and maybe calls more attention
to obviously the products with.
Do you, do you, do youmerchandise in a way with the products
with the higher margins?
Where, you know, do you, doyou think about that?
(18:15):
We actually always try to.
First of all, once a week,every Monday, we change out all of
our displays and we do that.
Which displays?
Let's clarify that becausesome stores can have a lot of displays.
Mannequins, where our clothingracks are, there's shelving on top
of all of them.
(18:36):
And you know, we may havepillows and blankets up there or
you know, we have a lot ofthose not full on mannequins, but
like the shirt, the iron shirtstands that you can put a shirt or
a blouse over and we'll pairit with a handbag and wallet, you
know, and, and a hat or whathave you.
And we just always try tochange our displays.
(18:58):
We also try to mix, which is.
A lot of work.
It is, it's a lot of work and.
But it produces sales and it is.
We try to mix high end andmore affordable pieces together so
that not everything is superhigh end.
And it is a lot of work.
But I'll tell you, if you everhave a piece that's really fabulous
(19:21):
and for some reason it's notselling, we'll move things around.
We do a floor reset every weekwhere we just kind of change things
up a little bit.
That way if you're in a periodwhere you can't afford to get a lot
of new merchandise in, itgives things a fresh look and makes
people see it with a differentset of eyes.
(19:43):
Is there one particulardisplay that you that just, you know,
did 10 times better than youthought it would or was Your best
one of the year or whatever.
Was there one that stands outto you?
Well, I will tell you that wehave this one employee that she just
has this amazing style andsome of the stuff she puts together,
(20:04):
it's like, I would have neverthought of that, but it's really
good.
But we.
We name our mannequins.
We're kind of goofy here at work.
Work.
And Marilyn.
Marilyn's our mannequin that'sabout five feet in the door when
you walk in, right before youturn to go to the cash.
She blonde and shapey, andshe's headless, actually.
We always have a hat on her ofsome sort, you know, because she
(20:28):
stops about right here and wejust lay a hat there.
But she always puts somethingreally fabulous and unexpected on
that mannequin, and it justalways seems to bring the comments
big time.
And I'll be honest, I don'twant to name throw, but I will tell
you, Pat Danke, her pieces areso special.
(20:51):
And there's almost always apiece of Pat Danke on there.
Just something really uniquethat's maybe paired back to more
everyday stuff.
But we have a lot of fun with Marilyn.
She's definitely our flashy model.
So obviously social media kindof helps you a little bit to level
(21:14):
the playing field, even withsome of the big ones.
Yeah, they spent a ton ofmoney and all of that, but I still
think that the smallercompanies can get more engagement.
They may have, you know, amillion followers on Facebook, but
your company, I'm not sayingyou specifically, but, you know,
everybody's company that has50,000 can get more engagement than
(21:34):
their millionaires.
You know, that's.
And actually Facebook, youknow, they made some changes a couple
years ago that really trashedour pages.
Right.
And we all had to get creative to.
To bring back the engagement.
But that allowed us to.
Right.
I mean, it allowed us to.
To level the playing field more.
And is that what you found?
I.
I do think so.
And one thing we really focuson is quick response.
(21:57):
We have done away with ourlandline in our store, and we have
two cell phones.
We.
We transferred that landlinenumber over and we have them in conjunction
with each other.
It's two separate phone numbers.
So we've got two lines peoplecan be calling in on or us calling
out on, but we can.
(22:17):
It updates the social media,any texts going back, virtual shopping
via text with customers.
So we try to really keep aneye on that.
The employees, somebody'salways got one of the phones on them.
And when they get a Second,they're making sure.
I think being responsive isvery important.
(22:38):
But I also think, you know,one of the things you were talking
to me about was how do youfeel like you can compete with the
big box store?
And I kind of looked into, youknow, when they made all those changes
and things kind of crashed down.
I was like, maybe I need tohire an influencer.
(22:58):
And I quickly reigned myselfin because I noticed two things.
One, I didn't have the moneyto hire an influencer.
And two, I gotta be honestwith you that, that, that's not my
customer and that's where Ineed to stay grounded.
I think it's amazing to seethose beautiful reels that are real
(23:20):
fancy and they have all thesespecial features and highlights and
all these things they do.
I'd have to go to college forsix months to learn how to do all
of that.
And we just have stayed really authentic.
And there are times we've donereally well with our outfit of the
day videos.
People are always saying, Iloved what Stevie had on in that.
(23:43):
So we started like when I shota video of something else.
So I've started doing anoutfit of the day video every day
and putting it up on my stories.
And you know what?
Some days I realize I haven'tdone that till I'm ready to go home.
And maybe it was a 14 hour day.
And we're all that age wherehaving hot flashes and, you know,
(24:05):
things.
We're not always looking so hot.
Sometimes I'm barefoot, myfeet are tired.
We have kept it so authentic.
And that is one of our biggestcompliments we hear over and over
is that people say, I love howyou guys are authentic.
You show the clothes on peoplethat aren't a size 2, that aren't
(24:26):
a 5, 10 size 2, supermodelwith airbrushed makeup, you know,
hey, sorry.
All I've got on is mascaratoday because I had a hot flash and
the rest melted off.
I think that's really helpedus is being authentic and really
learning who is your customer.
(24:47):
And we have customers of alldifferent ages.
But I would say honestly, ouraverage customer is 45 to 65.
And so we're just trying tokeep it real.
So it's interesting becausewith the Horse Radio Network, our
listener base, which is tensof thousands, but they tend to be
in the 40 to 70 range.
(25:07):
Women 40 to 70 is.
Tends to be who, who the.
Our active listeners are.
Yeah, yeah.
And, and that.
So that makes sense, right?
I mean, it does kind of makesense, I think for us and probably
you that is coming down alittle bit in age.
We're picking up more of theyounger than we ever have in the
past.
And I think that's because,you know, the whole world's catching
(25:28):
up, right?
So, yeah, I agree.
And I think, too, you know, Ithink things have gotten a little
crazy these last four or five years.
Oh, really?
And, yeah, just a little bit.
Anyway, I will tell you that Ifeel like the Western way of life,
(25:50):
that down home, you know,giving thanks to God, you know, being
grateful, it's really.
I feel like people want moreof that in their life.
And I feel like it's become alife that is more appealing to a
broader age range now.
And it's just grounded andit's wholesome and it's good and
(26:13):
it's positive.
And I do think that's part ofit, too.
That's.
That is what is driving moreof an age range in there.
I think people are realizingafter what we've been through that,
wow, I want to be grounded alittle more and have these roots
and care about things thatreally matter.
(26:34):
And so I think in a way,that's been a blessing, too, for
all of us in business.
You know, it's interesting,too, people whine all the time about
the negative effects of socialmedia, right?
But what they don't realize isit even younger people, teenagers
or whatever, you're exposed toso much more than we ever were growing
up, right?
(26:55):
I mean, we had the newspaperand magazines and tv.
That was it.
So you're exposed to so muchmore than you ever were before.
You're seeing things that youwould have never seen 20 years ago.
So it does open it up morethan it ever has in the past.
It's not all negative.
A lot of that's a positivebecause you are exposed to more than
you ever were before.
(27:17):
I don't view that.
Yeah, there are negativeaspects of anything, but I don't
view that as a negative inthis case.
I ran an acting company for 10years pre Internet.
We would have done so muchbetter had the Internet been around,
because we could have beenexposed so much more.
Right.
We had to do everything thehard way.
You know, we were advertisingon radio and TV and newspapers.
(27:37):
Everything was harder.
You know, even selling ticketswas harder.
So it has made doing businesseasier in many ways.
And also, you know, there arechallenges that come with that, too.
It's keeping up with.
Keeping up with it all is the challenge.
But you're right.
And going back to what yousaid about doing those daily posts
about the outfit of the day.
(27:58):
What we have found through allof our experiment, I'm part of the
Equine Network, which is thelargest network now for the media
world in the horse world, period.
They own everything.
And what we have found isposts first thing in the morning
with horse people.
It's between 6 and 7 o' clockand get 10 times more play than if
you posted at 4 o' clock inthe afternoon.
(28:19):
And we just found that that'sthe way it is, you know, we get a
lot more play.
So now I'm at the point noweven for Horse Radio Network, if
I don't post it by 10 o' clockin the morning, I wait till the next
day.
I don't even post it.
Yep.
Yeah.
Because I know it's going toget lost.
That's interesting you saythat because that is kind of what
(28:39):
we've noticed.
I'm an early riser, so I'malways up by 5am and I kind of have
morning routine and I'musually in a chair doing my to do
list and my social media forthe day between 6 and 7am before
I go out to feed horses.
So that's interesting.
And another thing that yousaid really caught me when you said
(29:03):
that everything was harderback in the day.
And I think sometimes, likewhen I was talking about employees
and stuff, I don't ever liketo stereotype anyone, but I do think
that people of our age didhave to work harder for things.
It wasn't.
(29:24):
You know, I see such adifference these days, even just
at a high school level.
Used to if you were a goodathlete and worked hard, you could
get playing time at high school.
Nowadays, if your parentsdon't have you on these expensive
travel ball teams, you know,that literally destroy any weekend
time at all.
(29:46):
It's so expensive and everything.
But then maybe things come easier.
But back in the day, if thatwas how it would have been, that
wouldn't have been me and my sisters.
My parents couldn't haveafforded that.
And we just, I mean, I had twojobs in third grade, I had a paper
route and I mowed lawns andI've just always been a hard worker.
(30:09):
And I don't know, there'ssomething about that gratitude, that
gratefulness level that comesout when you've really had to work
hard for something and itmeans more.
And I love that.
There you go.
So we're running out of time.
I wanted to ask you, what doyou see as the biggest opportunity
(30:29):
for small retailers in 2025?
Do you see?
Do you see opportunity, andwhat do you see?
Where's it fall?
I do see opportunity because Ifeel like this is an opportunity
with things looking up.
First of all, I think everyowner of small businesses needs to
first look in the mirror.
You know, these last severalyears have been so hard that it's
(30:51):
so easy to get down, feel defeated.
You've got to do a check andget yourself in place.
How bad do you want it andwhat is your attitude like?
This is an opportunity to.
To totally reset yourattitude, to manifest amazing things
for your business, your staff,everything, to reevaluate, you know,
(31:14):
who is our customer, what dowe want to be?
What do we want to focus in on?
It's really a time for resetand, you know, really think about
what fun you can bring.
I think that is one reason wehave a lot of people coming back
to our business.
We do a lot of fun events forthe locals.
In the middle of winter, whenthe weather's crappy and no one wants
(31:37):
to get out and half thebusinesses are closed in town, we
do a pajama party and we servemimosas, and people come in in their
pajamas and slippers, and weall drink mimosas and we take pictures
and we give a killer prize tothe person with the best pajamas.
We have so much fun in our store.
And I do, I feel like thisyear things are looking up.
(32:01):
So ride that wave, get on thatwave of positivity and, you know,
look up and be grateful andreally figure it out what it is that
you want to do.
And anytime you feel yourselfmaybe slipping back into that negativity,
rein yourself in and refocus,because it does bring amazing things
(32:22):
to a person.
And I feel like, too, thatthings have been tough and we're
coming out of that really,really tough, bleak stuff, that if
you just hang on and bepositive, think of all the amazing
things that are coming, andyou don't want to waste all of that
(32:43):
struggle bus you went throughthe last four or five years.
And so I just encourageeveryone to find your passion, be
positive, manifestawesomeness, and just look up and
look ahead.
I couldn't agree more.
We, I always said, you know, Ido some consulting, and, you know,
I've owned a number ofbusiness over the years, some successful
and some not.
(33:04):
As all of us that have beenaround for a long time, we owned
a number of businesses, someare successful and some are not.
That's just the way it is.
But our thing, my wife and Ialways said, are we having fun?
Are we still having fun?
And the minute we said weweren't having fun anymore, that's
when we sold the business orwe moved on.
You know, and, you know, ifyou're not having fun, your employees
aren't having fun, yourcustomers are not coming back because
(33:26):
they don't want to come to aplace that's not fun.
Right.
But just what you said.
Yep.
And you're probably done.
Go find something then that is fun.
Go.
You know, it doesn't.
Because you're closing thebusiness for whatever reason or selling
it, doesn't mean that you failed.
It just means you've learnedsomething and now you're going to
go find the thing that is fun.
You know, I started the HorseRadio Network.
(33:46):
Now it's almost 18 years ago,and I started it because I wanted
to have.
I was a performer and I wantedto have fun again.
I hadn't performed in a while,and, you know, that's why I did it,
was to have fun again.
And, you know, this is thelongest job I've ever had because,
you know, because I'm stillhaving fun.
And I think.
I think that's, you know, wetalk about the money and all that
stuff, but sometimes you'remaking money and not having fun,
(34:09):
and then you have to look atthat too.
You know, that's, you know,life is short.
Do we all want to just dosomething we're not having fun with
for the rest of our lives?
Yeah.
That is so important.
It is.
And I do.
I feel like 2025 is a.
A time to reevaluate.
And as small business owners,we're lucky.
We get to make a lot ofdecisions that big corporate businesses,
(34:33):
you know, they're being ruledby someone higher up that is maybe
making decisions that themanager doesn't agree with.
And, you know, you're luckybecause, as you know, we're lucky
as small business owners, wecan make changes, we can.
Write, while we're a lot more nimble.
Right?
(34:54):
Yep.
Yep.
That is one of the huge advantage.
That's probably the biggestadvantage we have, is we're nimble.
I agree.
We can make a decision todayand implement it tomorrow.
They make a decision today andimplement it in six months to a year.
Absolutely.
You know, it's even like on anapplication for anything these days.
They want to know all thesedifferent things about you.
(35:16):
And, you know, I don't carewhat religion or what race someone
is.
I want to hire people thathave a vision and a heart that fits
in in our establishment.
And I think that's where it starts.
You know, sit down and reevaluate.
Is who you have working foryou really portraying the vision
(35:38):
you have for your business?
Are they all in?
You know, and I just, I lovethat as a small business owner you
get to make decisions thateliminate a lot of headache.
Other things might be harderin ways, but there's a lot of really
positive things, a lot of them.
And then there's the 100 hour weeks.
(36:01):
Yes.
And I've done some of those.
Isn't it better when it's foryourself and you're building something
for your family versus doingit for someone that you know, doesn't
say thank you, maybe doesn'tappreciate it, expects more.
Instead of saying thank you,good job.
(36:22):
They're like, why didn't youget this done too?
And I love that.
And I do think as a smallbusiness owner, you have to ask yourself,
are you filling up youremployees cups?
Do you, do you sandwich apiece of criticism between two pieces
of praise?
Are you lifting them up?
(36:42):
Are you empowering them?
I just, I think it's so important.
I always knew if I could evergo in business by myself that the
most important thing to mewould to be that, to be the kind
of boss I always wished that I had.
And I did have one or twobosses like that in my years of working.
(37:03):
And I feel very grateful for that.
Yes, we all had both.
Major difference.
Where can people find you?
People can find us on social media.
We're on Instagram andFacebook at Jewel of the West.
It's singular.
There's someone in NorthDakota that's jewels, plural.
(37:24):
So you can find us there.
And Our website is www.jewelofthewest.com.
you can contact us through there.
You can read about our pillarproject annual award we give out,
which has been a huge thingfor us.
You can schedule a virtualshopping appointment or check out
how we do it.
(37:44):
It's really fun.
Not many people use ourvirtual calendar.
We do it through calendly.
We have a few use that butmost people just call the store and
sched one.
But yeah, you can definitelycheck out the vibe of our store and
everything there.
Very good.
Thank you, Stevie.
Appreciate you being on withus today and thank you all for joining
(38:05):
us for WESA's retail roundup.
We're only what, two monthsaway from Dallas again?
Yeah, yeah, we're only twomonths away.
To to watch the retailroundups, check out the WESA trade
show YouTube channel.
You can also find episodes onWisdom by WESA podcast.
So if you want to listen to iton the Wisdom by WESA Podcast Feed,
(38:26):
and they have a terrificpodcast over there as well.
And on the WESAwebsite@wesatradeshow.com Retail
roundups will be publishedevery week.
Stay up to date with theRetail Roundup on the Facebook group
at wesatradeshow and atwesatradeshow.com you can find me
at horsesinthemorning.com wehave 4000 episodes of horses in the
(38:47):
Morning to listen to, so youhave a little catching up to do.
And you can subscribe byWisdom by WESA on Apple, Music, Spotify,
or any podcast player.
Don't miss out on the RetailRoundups here every Monday.
Thanks, Stevie.
Next time I come up.
Thank you so much to see the rocks.
I'll come over and say hi.
Okay?
All right.
That would be awesome.
(39:08):
We'd love to have you in.
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