Alison Dodson is native to the Hampton Roads area and grew up surrounded by retail. She attended LSU to pursue a veterinarian career but soon switched to merchandise and double majored in fashion. She also attended the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City working on a Master’s degree in Textile. While there, she interned with some of the most famous designers in the world including Christian Dior, Balenciaga, Givenchy, etc. One thing that I admire most about Alison’s story is the fact that her parents pushed her so much. In her speech, she explained how would she call her parents all the time and tell them she was ready to come home, but her parents always encouraged her to continue working in NYC to pursue her dream. I relate to this because my parents are my number one supporters and it make me feel to good to know that if I wanted to pursure my dream, that my parents would support me as well.
Alison continued to work hard and moved back in 2003 to open up her first boutique in Suffolk, VA. She cashed in her 401k, spent 5,000 to make her building stand out, and she successfully still has the same business 15 years later. She launched her first website in 2011 but it didn’t become popular until 2013. She also opened her second location in 2013 on Colley Ave and her third location in 2015 in Virginia Beach. One thing Alison really focused on with her business was making sure that everyone who came into her business, felt like they were at home. I relate to this because I have worked in customer service for over 4 years and making customers feel like they are welcomed and apart of the business helps to keep them coming back.
Alison also discusses her business plan in her speech. When she first opened her business in 2003, she priced her items from $500 to $1,000 since that was she was used to in NYC. To put it in perspective, the average amount of the clothes she was selling were only worth about $45 in Suffolk. She explained that she quickly learned her mistake and realized that she needed to change her target market in order to successfully sell clothes. Knowing who you are selling to and the demographics of where you are selling is very important part to marketing and selling your innovation.