Sep 17, 2010

b. ellen boutiqueBy Betsy EllisonImpactNews.com

Houston, TX – At b. ellen, it’s a family affair. Shannon and Brandy Divin, along with their son Cameron, have worked to make their retail, décor and gift store an award-winning, Houston-area boutique.

Brandy, a fourth-generation Texas retailer, never thought she would follow in her family’s footsteps and own her own business, but in 1998 she opened a gift store with her sister in Frelsburg, Texas—about 80 miles west of Houston.

In 2005, during the last four months of Brandy’s pregnancy, she was put on bed rest and could no longer drive from Houston to Frelsburg daily to run the store. When a new shopping center began construction on Spring Cypress Road, the couple decided to set up shop closer to home.

Called b. ellen, after Brandy’s first and middle name, the boutique opened June 2006, and the Divins began reaching out to U.S. wholesalers. Brandy said she likes to sell merchandise made in the States because of its quality and uniqueness.

“We don’t want to just be a store that sells ‘things’ people buy,” she said. “We want to carry merchandise people will cherish. We’re building a brand and creating a legacy for our family.”

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