One of Clawson’s Newest Small-Business Owners is ‘16 Going on 34’

Inés Soulliere is redefining what it means to be an over-achiever.

The 16-year-old is taking online courses and is on pace to graduate ahead of her peers, but that’s only a small part of Soulliere’s story. She’s also a successful entrepreneur and owner of her own small business, C and G Newspapers reports.

Faded Raven Boutique opened in November at 38 E. 14 Mile Road in Clawson.

She comes from a family of small-business owners.

“My parents are in small business,” Soulliere said in a recent interview with the newspaper. “There’s always been kind of a push to open a small business and work for yourself.”

Her grandmother, Shirley Inez, said Soulliere’s industriousness at such a young age surprised her family.

“It’s like she’s 16 going on 34,” Inez told the newspaper.

Soulliere used her savings from various jobs, including one at a boutique in Birmingham when she was 15, to open the store. Her family has been mostly hands-off, and was involved only in the lease-signing process, something she couldn’t do alone as a minor.

Her inventory includes a wide range of affordable fashions, with styles for everyone “whether you are 18 or you’re 40.”

She hopes her business is dispelling the myth that boutiques are places only the affluent shop

“I feel that people assume boutiques are going to be really expensive, and I’m trying to prove that wrong,” Soulliere said.

>>> Read the complete report on the C and G Newspapers web site.