Meet Kim Weldy | Style Encore owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kim Weldy and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kim, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I had been an educator for 28 years and never really thought about doing anything else. Then covid hit and closed the schools. One of my best friends owned a Plato’s Closet and had to close it as well. She was trying to upload product to an online store and sell it that way. I would go in and help her. We would work in that store 10-12 hours a day uploading product to an online platform. When things began to open back up, many of her workers did not come back, so I stayed on and helped her. I have always been a people person and enjoyed the retail atmosphere. There was a space in the same shopping center as her Plato’s that was available, The landlord had been begging her to do something in that space. Winmark, the franchisor behind Plato’s closet, had started a new franchise called Style Encore focusing on “more mature” styles. The entire time I had been in Plato’s helping my friend, we were continuously telling customers their items could not be purchased because they were to mature for Plato’s, or more mature women were coming in the store looking for stylish clothes to purchase. With some research, we quickly realized there was not a Style Encore in the state of Georgia. There really wasn’t anything local where more mature women could go to buy and sell their styles. After striking up a great deal with the landlord on the space, my friend and I decided to jump headfirst into opening a Style Encore right at the end of the Covid shut down. Many people thought we were insane for doing this. I looked at it as an opportunity to invest in a business that I could continue to do after retiring from education. My husband completely supported my in the decision. We were empty nesters. I didn’t have any obligations to come home to each day. Why not give it a shot? Before beginning our own store remodel and construction, we went to visit some of the more successful Style Encore’s including the one in Exton Pennsylvania. This gave us a better understanding of what we were getting into. Up to this point, I had never worked retail a day in my life other than when I was 16 years old and was a cashier at the local K-mart. Our only concern going into it was people would not be as familiar with the name Style Encore as they are with Plato’s closet, so were going to have to really educate and communicate to the community and surrounding areas who and what we are. That is how Style Encore Cumming got it’s start.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I think one thing I would want people to know is that you are never to old to do something that you set your heart and mind on. I was 53 years old when I decided to start what I call my “second career”. I feel the thing that sets me apart from other stores is that I am personally invested in my employees and my customers. I am a talker, and I like to get to know people. I get to know my employees and my customers. I try to call my customers by name and ask them about their families or grandchildren. I try to remember something personal about them that I can speak with them about. I make it a habit to make connections with people. I like to make them feel important, I want them to know that they matter to me, and that I recognize that they are back in the store. We do Facebook lives and social sell on Tuesday and Thursday nights. We have women from all over the country that join those facebook lives. It has become like a girl’s night out for many of them. This group of women from all over the United States have now become friends and look forward to our shopping time together each week. We are invested in each other and know each other. They have become like family to me. They know events that are going on in my personal life and likewise, I know events that are going on in their personal life. We have laughed together, drank wine together on facebook, and cried together when any of us have experience hard or tragic events. I think that is something that I am most proud of. It is the personal investment as a business owner that I have made not only with my employees, but also with my customers. I think I have also won their trust by selling really good product. Even though it is used product, we are particular with the used product that we purchase. We are a resale store, we do not buy just anything. We are looking for current and trendy styles that are in good condition. My customers know that I have good product at good prices. The same goes for those who sell to me. They know that I offer them fair prices for the items they want to sell to me. It is the relationships that I have created with my customers that has allowed us to be successful and build upon that success.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
First of all, I am a huge Atlanta Braves fan, so I would start the trip with tickets to a Braves game! Of course, we would hang out at the Battery then hit up the game. The following day, I would take her to Ponce City Market to the different shops and restaurants. I also love the Fox Theatre. So, I would hope that there is a good show at the Fox so that we could hit up a show at the Fox. It is always fun to dress up, go to dinner at Mary Mac’s Tea room then on to the show. After a busy couple of days, the next day may be nice to do just chill with picnic at Piedmont Park. I do love the Aquarium so that is on the list for the next day with lunch at the Varsity. You cannot come to Atlanta without eating at the Varsity. Then we would have to do Skyview. And then on to the World of Coke. Being that I am a UGA fan, it is not a trip to this area without going to Athens for a tailgate! So we would finish our week with a tailgate in Athens on Saturday with my friends cheering on our DAWGS.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
The store would not be the success it is today without the support and love of my family! From the beginning, they all have been willing to jump in and do whatever needed to be done to make this dream a success. My husband has been my motivator, my shoulder to cry on, my handyman, whatever I needed, he has answered the call without hesitation. I have three children – Hannah and her husband Nathan, Connor and his fiancé Meghan, Jake and his girl friend Abby. They have all worked all kinds of shifts at the store. They have mopped floors, inventoried backstock, hung and tagged clothes, ran the registers, whatever I have asked. They have all been willing to jump in and do it. As a matter of fact, Meghan has left education and is now managing the store, and Abby is the assistant manager. My parents come in and do my shipping for me each week and keep the store clean.. They clean the bathrooms, vacuum the floors, dust the counters, whatever needs to be done to make sure the store looks presentable and clean. When I tell people it is a family affair, it is truly a small family owned operation. It has been from the beginning. My husband did most of the remodel- building the dressing rooms, putting up the boards for the handbag walls, the counters, etc. My dad would be right in there with him. The boys would come home from college at the time and do whatever needed to be done.

Website: www.shopstyleencorecumming.com

Instagram: @cummingstyleencore

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