EATON — My Arrow Princess, a woman’s consignment boutique, held its grand opening celebration on Saturday, May 12.
The new shop is located in downtown Eaton on the third floor of the Acton House, 115 West Main Street. The celebration featured refreshments, entertainments, discounts, and a celebratory ribbon cutting with the Preble County Chamber of Commerce.
Elaine Herrick, Regional Liaison for the Ohio Secretary of State’s office, was also on hand to present owner Jessica Marie Taylor with a Certificate of Commerce.
Taylor originally opened the shop out of her home following health issues. Once she healed, and saw what a success My Arrow Princess already was, Taylor decided to move her business to downtown Eaton.
“I’ve worked in retail for over 20 years and I was a store manager. Last year, I actually got hurt. I had an accident at home and I couldn’t walk for a few weeks due to a really bad back injury. While I was at home for my surgery and recovering, I just got really bored and missed being at work. I started an online jewelry store. It was something I could do on the couch and while I was going through rehabilitation,” she explained.
“I had so much stuff from being a store manager and working in retail for so long, I was just like, ‘Why do I have all this stuff? Do I really need all of this?’ I started selling it on Facebook. I don’t need 30 pairs of boots or all these shoes and everything. People asked me if I could sell their items. So, I started selling my items on consignment and then other people’s items on consignment and I combined it with the jewelry,” she said.
“I did the wine festival in Eaton and the Ruffles and Rust show and both were very successful,” she added. “I actually started doing it at home. I bought these fixtures from stores that closed down and ran the consignment shop from my garage. I got so many more customers and people were coming out to shop with me, even though I lived out in the country. I used a Facebook group for that and it slowly grew. It got to the point where I needed to get the store out of my house.”
“When I was looking around, I found this place at the Acton House and when I walked in, it was a perfect fit for me and the store,” Taylor said. “It has just grown. Being here in Eaton is awesome. I’m up to 50 people who consign with me and I get new stuff every day. I always update and post on my Facebook, so the ladies can know what I get in for new product.”
”The great thing about my group is that I hold things for people,” Taylor added. “They can comment on the Facebook and I will hold it for them until they’re ready to buy it.”
My Arrow Princess will be open Wednesday, Thursday, and Fridays from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. Hours will differ during special events and holidays, but changes will be posted on the My Arrow Princess Facebook page.
The grand opening celebration featured music by Double Tap and acoustic soloist Jada Taylor. The event was also catered by Personal Chef Andrea Short.
Taylor added, “I’m super excited about the grand opening, because a lot of my customers know I’m here, but the City of Eaton does not know I’m here yet. That’s why we’re doing the grand opening — so everyone knows that I’m here and that they can bring me their consignment clothes to sell with me.
“I started this business at home and grew it at home, so I am very thankful to all of my friends and family for their support,” she said. “My daughter Courtney has helped me with everything, when I couldn’t walk and she helped me with my toddler Olivia. My son and niece Jada helped so much. It really was a family effort for me to have surgery, go through rehabilitation, and try to start a business to support my family.
“This experience has been great. It is funny how something tragic can happen and something so bad can happen and something like this can grow from it.”
