How did Marie Gregory get started?
Rachel grew up working in her family-owned business where she now serves as CEO and runs one of the largest woman-owned, family-owned, custodial, and facilities maintenance companies in the nation. She learned so much about business from that experience and knew she could take that knowledge to execute on fulfilling her dream to open a boutique.
Around four years ago, Rachel was shopping in Bishop Arts and ventured into a cute store with great items. But most of all, she had a connection with Justin, who was working at the store. He was cheerful, engaging, and super fun to shop with. He was able to select items that made her feel confident and happy! It was a memorable shopping experience and so much so that she made sure to visit Justin for future shopping excursions to Bishop Arts.
In May of 2021, Rachel was in Bishop Arts for a girl's day out and told her friends they had to see Justin and shop with him. While Rachel was there and catching up with Justin, she mentioned to him her dream of opening a boutique. Turns out, they had a mutual dream! Rachel told him, "I know exactly where I want it to be...Historic Downtown McKinney, Texas. Justin had never been to McKinney but told her he had heard great things about it. They decided to set up a day to meet there so Rachel could show him around and he could see the overall vibe. Justin instantly fell in love with the downtown square and understood why Rachel wanted the boutique there.
In the meantime, Rachel reached out to her realtor to start looking for available spaces. Neither Justin nor Rachel had a clue how much rent was going for. Rachel told her that they envisioned something small and historic.
Fast forward and a space became available...a whopping 175 square feet in a 105-year-old building with the nicest owner you could ask for. Rachel went and looked at the space, face-timed Justin and they both saw the potential in the space.
It continued to be on Rachel's heart...she just couldn't get the quaint tiny little space out of her head and Justin felt the same. They moved forward with securing the space and the fun began!!
Looking back they are both absolutely amazed at how they accomplished to open the boutique in just a couple of months. With sheer determination and their dream at the forefront they made it happen and had their Grand Opening on October 16th, 2021.