Thank you to Kathie Williams for hosting CEO at Small Town Creations! It was a leap of faith for her to purchase not one, but TWO local businesses at once, and combining them to create this staple of the downtown Lincoln business community.

Kathie shared insights on transitioning from a corporate career to entrepreneurship (she had never worked retail), managing startup financing, and building your business around something you love. As a young girl she was smitten with personalized items - with an unusual spelling for her name, they made her feel special. And now she creates unique and personalized items for everyone!

Kathie emphasized brand differentiation, customer experience, and local cross-promotion. She also outlined the strict vendor criteria required to secure top product lines like Nora Fleming, strategies in inventory management, supply chain planning, and visual merchandising, as well as how intentional floor presentation and strong organizational systems help drive retail sales.

Small Town Creations partners with with the Downtown Lincoln Initiative to bring events like Christmas Express and Retail Therapy to Lincoln shoppers. And Kathie enjoys giving back to the community by helping to create special Christmas memories like sleigh rides on the square and Christmas trees on the courthouse lawn🎄🎄🎄. (She may have a mild addiction to Hallmark movies.)

As someone who loves ties to history, Kathie has a five dollar bill that was produced on-site, long ago when the building housed a bank. (We even got to see the vault downstairs!) She offers caramels in tribute to her grandma who took her to the pharmacy and bought penny candy. Her iconic yellow door pays homage to the Yellow Unicorn, the downtown store that offered her that first personalized item - with her name spelled correctly. 💛

Thank you to Kathie (and Bean, her adorable Frenchie) for a fascinating visit!