Nanuet Business Spotlight: Home Parties to Help You Organize Your Stuff and Your Home with Flair

Every local business has a story worth sharing with the community. The plan behind this series at Patch is to shine the spotlight on all our favorite local businesses, and to learn a little about the ones we may not know that well.

This is as much about supporting local businesses as it is about celebrating the places and faces that make our community special. Click here to get to a simple form where local business owners can answer a few quick questions to be part of this ongoing feature.

Our spotlight today is on Laurie Flanagan.

Business: Initials-inc
Owners: Laurie Flanagan
Website: www.myinitials-inc.com/flanagan
Address: Nanuet, New York

How did you come up with the name?

I didn’t actually. I am an independent Creative Leader with the company Initials-inc. I run my own business with their support.

Why choose that location? Why start a business in this town?

I chose to start my very own business right at home! I love the flexibility and ease I have working right from home. It allows me t work around my family’s schedule and still have a successful business.

Briefly, what business are you in?

Direct Sales

What’s the most difficult moment or challenge you’ve faced as a business owner?

Working from home, my biggest challenge is getting in front of people to show my product. Once I have a party or vendor event booked, the sales come because the products are amazing and all personalization is free!

Were there any challenges that made you second guess your decision to be an entrepreneur?

Now that I have become a Creative Leader, there are personal quotas as well as team quotas each month. At times, it has been a struggle to motivate the team to keep up with their sales in order to meet the quota. I find that keeping my enthusiasm up is the best motivator for my team.

What’s been your favorite moment or proudest achievement since opening?

Promoting to Creative Leader and building a team of friends.

What’s the most innovative idea your employees or customers have had that you put into practice?

Finding new a creative ways to book parties. We use themes, games, promotions to have people welcome us to their homes to do a bag boutique.

How do you deal with difficult customers?

Customer Service is our number one asset. We do our best to fix any problem that arises in order to keep our customers happy and hopefully they will be repeat customers.

How does your business give back or get involved in the community?

Individually, I donate my products to my children’s schools for fundraising efforts such as trick tray or vendor events. I have also done fundraising events where I donate my commission to a cause. As a company, we are partnered with Bethany Foundation. We donate $5 from the sale of every YBL (your best life) case to help fund foster care adoptions here in the United States. Last year we fully funded 10 adoptions for children in foster care!