Bead Store of The Month
Laura’s Beads
Congratulations Laura’s Beads, Hudson, FL
Bead Shop of the Month!
Congratulations, Laura, on having your shop,
Laura’s Beads in Hudson, FL, selected as RitzyToo’s Bead Shop of the Month! Every local bead
shop has its own character, and we love our first
sense about Laura’s Beads! Thank you, Laura,
for giving us a bird’s eye view of your store from
the perspective of a very entrepreneurial owner.
Thank you, it’s an honor!!
Q. 1. Laura, how long have you been a beading enthusiast?
It’s been about 7 years. Prior to that, I’d always
enjoyed various creative arts, so when a friend
suggested we go to a local chain store to learn
how to string beads for fun, I was definitely up
for it. After enjoying that experience and stringing for several months, I stopped into a locallyowned bead shop to see what else there was to
discover in the world of beading. The owner there
introduced me to bead weaving and I was immediately hooked!
Q. 2. When did you open, Laura’s Beads?
We just celebrated our fourth anniversary. We
opened after the locally-owned bead shop, I
mentioned, earlier closed when that owner decid8| April-May | RitzyToo! | RitzyToo.com
ed to move out of state to be near family. Many
of us suddenly found ourselves without a local
source of bead-weaving supplies. And, so now,
would have to travel a ways to get to the next
closest shop. It just made sense to me to pick up
where that previous store had left off.
Q. 3. Had you been a business owner prior to
opening your current store, Laura’s Beads?
If so, what was it and how did it compare to
your new love, Laura’s Beads?
No, this was my first time opening a business
and it’s been an amazing experience!
Q. 4. How long had you been thinking about
opening Laura’s Beads before you actually
opened your bead shop?
It was a very spontaneous decision. The closing
of the previous shop happened at a time in my
life where I was between jobs, just sent my son
off to college, and was trying to figure out my
next step in life. It was a scary decision to make,
I had to act quickly if I wanted to purchase any
items from the previous business owner and retain her other former customers. It took about two
months to establish the new business, freshen up
the space and completely restock the store.