The Green Onion Boutique: PREMIER STORE SPOTLIGHT Q&A

We interviewed boutique owner, Elliesha Villanueva, of The Green Onion Children’s Boutique in Brooklyn, New York. Elliesha gives us the lowdown on Halloween happenings in the Cobble Hill/Carroll Gardens neighborhood, her views on growing up in the community and the perfect take-me-home gift for baby. Read more to discover more about The Green Onion!

 

The Green Onion

274 Smith Street
Brooklyn, NY 11231
718.246.2804

 CHECK-IN and JOIN 
The Green Onion’s Facebook
page and click HERE

 

1.    Tell us the inspiration behind opening your own boutique?
Having my own business has always been a dream I wanted to pursue. The Green Onion was originally founded and opened in 1998, and I had the opportunity to purchase this successful existing children’s boutique in 2008 and I love it!

2.    How did you come up with the name?
The name was already conceived, and I kept it because it stood out, and people always remembered us because of our name.

Inside the Green Onion

3.    Tell us the inside scoop about any special events that you have planned for your boutique for fall, especially the fun deals we can expect! Anything for Halloween?
Cobble Hill/Carroll Gardens is a great neighborhood to raise a family – we have an amazing community! We normally open for Halloween and give out candy. Cobble Hill Park and Carroll Park both have separate parades. Prospect Park, which is located in Park Slope, is one of our nearby neighborhoods that has a ton of events during the weekend leading up to Halloween.

4.    Please tell us 1 fun Halloween tradition you had with your family as a child that you can share with our readers?
I grew up in Cobble Hill Brooklyn, and being an urban child during the early 80’s in New York was a different experience than it is now, but our tradition was to keep the “trick a treating “ within our local small business community. I have fond memories of Halloween in my neighborhood!!!

5.     What is one fun way to decorate a pumpkin or your home for Halloween?
My Husband and I love to fill our home with the scent of cinnamon and we also love to decorate our windows at home and in the store!

6.    Tell us…before you “had kids or grandkids, what is one thing you swore you’d never…?”
We have not started our own family yet, but my husband and I have sworn to never let our children create a habit of sleeping in our beds.

7.    Describe the neighborhood of your store location in Brooklyn, New York. Did you grow up in the local area?
I grew up in Cobble Hill Brooklyn, New York and it is and was a great neighborhood to grow up in. Downtown Brooklyn is socially and culturally diverse. Those who don’t know Brooklyn tend to think of it as a middle & lower class dormitory suburb of Manhattan. That’s not the image most New Yorkers have nowadays. Like Manhattan, its smaller cousin in terms of population (2.5 million versus 1.5 million), it has always been a borough of many neighborhoods, some rich, some poor and many solid middle-class. The challenge for the coming years will be to manage Brooklyn’s growth and maintain its cultural diversity.

8.    What Le Top or rabbitmoon Fall 2011 collection is your store’s favorite and why?
From Le Top we love the layette bunting (or what Le Top calls a “snugglebag” that also comes in blue and pink) in mint green! It has been one of our best sellers since fall 2010. We love it because it’s a great take-me-home piece and a fabulous gift for a new baby. Our other favorite are the knit sweaters from Rabbitmoon. 

rabbitmoon "anjou" color-blocked sweater dress

The Green Onion

274 Smith Street
Brooklyn, NY 11231
718.246.2804

CHECK-IN and JOIN 
The Green Onion’s Facebook
page and click HERE 

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Le Top Takes: Out of the Mouths of Babes!

Lilah wearing a Rabbitmoon "Harmony" Sweater Dress

When I was leaving my daughter’s room after putting her to bed, she asked me not to close her door. I had done it the night before and she didn’t like it. I explained that I had closed it because we were talking loudly and I didn’t want to wake her. She said,

That’s okay mom. You don’t have to close it because I know how to turn my ears down when I go to sleep.”

-Lilah (age 4 1/2) 

Editor’s Note:
Please spread the giggles by sharing your funny quotes with us!

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Mama Bear’s Childrens Boutique: PREMIER STORE SPOTLIGHT Q&A

We interviewed New Jersey children’s boutique guru and fashion expert, Tiffany Patch, from Mama Bear’s Childrens Boutique – one of the BEST kids specialty stores on the East Coast – for this week’s Premier Store Spotlight.  She gave us the inside scoop on working as a family business, how their logo came about, their AMAZING sales going on right now for fall, a charity the store strongly supports (and so should you!), as well as the local family hangouts for your family and kids. Read more to find out!

Mama Bear’s Childrens Boutique

8 Village Center Drive
Beckett Village
Swedesboro, NJ 08085
856.467.6100

Go to www.mamabearschildrensboutique.com for more information

 CHECK-IN and JOIN  Mama Bear’s Children’s Boutique Facebook page and click HERE

Want to send Mama Bear a tweet?  Become a Twitter fan HERE

 

1.    What is the inspiration behind your store’s name?
Tiffany:  We are a mother/daughter business and thought Mama Bears are warm and loving. We opened our store the week after my son was born. We used a picture from his baby book as the inspiration for our first sign. It was a mama bear reading to her baby bears. Hard to believe it’s been almost 17 years. My son now helps out in the business and has been involved with our buying since he was old enough to make decisions.

2.   Tell us the inside scoop about any special events that you have planned at your store as summer comes to an end, especially the fun deals we can expect.
Tiffany:  We are currently having a 20-75% off fall and summer dress sale, 20% off all summer clothing, and always have a 50% off rack in the back of our store. We also offer special Facebook only promotions.

Le Top "Under Contruction" Collection double sleeve fire truck shirt and french terry pant

3.    Back-to-school is just around the corner – what are 3 trends you can tell parents to look for when buying their kids’ wardrobe?
Tiffany:  For girls the animal print trend is still a big one for us and mommies seem to want colors other than pink. Big blingy headbands are selling like wildfire and are the perfect finishing touch to any outfit. For the boys, our customers are getting a little more adventurous with color, but it still has to be masculine. Anything with dogs, motorcycles or construction equipment is always popular. 

4.    Tell us…before you “had kids or grandkids, what is one thing you swore you’d never…?” Please share!
Tiffany:  I swore I would never put my son in a gown. He lived in the gowns for at least the first two weeks when he came home from the hospital. We love Le Top’s gowns, especially the converter gowns. They are practical and cute.

5.    What children’s charity do you most believe in and would love to support?
Tiffany:  Alex’s Lemonade Stand. We have participated in Lemonade days in the past. There is a very special boy in our community we honor. His name is Mario. He has inoperable brain tumors that are treated by chemotherapy. We met him when he and his mom volunteered to help our lemonade stand. The community really comes together to raise money to find a cure for pediatric cancer. We also donate to many other charities related to pediatric illnesses and donate some of our clothing to organizations that help foster families.

6.    Please tell us 1 easy tip or snack/meal for a child’s back-to-school lunchbox?
Tiffany:  For a break from the boring old peanut butter and jelly sandwich, try a peanut butter and nutella sandwich instead. For the mommy’s put a dollop in your morning coffee.

7.    Describe the neighborhood of your store location in Swedesboro, NJ. Did you grow up in any of the local area?
Tiffany:  We are lifelong South Jersey girls. Our store is in a suburban area that is considered one of the fastest growing on the East Coast. It’s an area with lots of young families. The area surrounding our store was mostly farmland ten years ago. Now we have new businesses and lots of beautiful new homes.
 

rabbitmoon's "Harmony" Collection sweater dress

8.    Tell us about a “special” moment that made  your day working at your store.
Tiffany:  There are so many special moments with our wonderful customers every day. Whether it is finding the special outfit to bring a baby home from the hospital, working with a customer to find the perfect Christening gown/suit, choosing a birthday outfit or helping a bride with flower girl dresses/boys suits. I am blessed to have a job that I love so much. We have a special bulletin board by our front door where we post pictures of our customer’s children in our clothing. It makes my day whenever our customers bring a picture or post a picture on our Facebook page. I have to say we have the cutest customers.

9.    Where are the best/essential family hangouts and places to go around your store location?
Tiffany:  I asked my son that question since our business is a family affair. He said Dave and Busters. We have been taking him there since he was two-years-old. It was our tradition to go to the Philadelphia market to meet with the sales reps to buy for the store. If he was well behaved, we would go play afterward at Dave and Busters. With fall coming, we also have farms in the area where families can pick their own pumpkins, go on hayrides and corn mazes.

Le Top "My Best Friend - Boys" Collection stripe shirt and pant

10.    What Le Top or rabbitmoon Fall 2011 Collection is your store’s favorite and why?
Tiffany:  That was a tough choice. Both lines are fabulous as always. I love the My Best Friend collection from Le Top because I am a sucker for anything with dogs and so few companies do brother sister. I also love the rough and tough manly Under Construction group. If I had to pick my  favorite, I would say it’s Harmony from the rabbitmoon Collection. I love the unique color combination and bold prints. Our customers love that they are fashionable and still buttery soft.

8 Village Center Drive
Beckett Village
Swedesboro, NJ 08085
856.467.6100

For more information go to
www.mamabearschildrensboutique.com

 CHECK-IN and JOIN
Mama Bear’s Children’s Boutique
Facebook page and click HERE

Want to  send Mama Bear a tweet? Become a Twitter fan HERE 

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