I have had so much fun these past few months visioning, planning, and implementing all of the exciting changes for Impressions Gifts and Gourmet. As much fun as it has been, it has also been a tremendous amount of work, and I could not have done it without the help of the amazing Impressions team! So it seems only fitting to take a moment to introduce the team that made it all possible: Carolyn Leusink, Tasha Hogg, Jordanna Nicolson, and yours truly, Nicole Leusink.
IEE & IGG
Those of you who have been stopped by the store in person know that we share a location with Impressions Embroidery and Engraving. Our partnership is awesome because it allows us to offer you uniquely personalized gifts with custom embroidery and engraving. It also allows us to offer companies and teams coming to Impressions Embroidery and Engraving some great options to compliment their purchases with custom giftware. This arrangement means our staff does some double duty as well! While Carolyn and Jordanna spend most of their time on IEE and Tasha and I primarily focus on IGG, we all pitch in and help where needed. And in the last few weeks especially, there's been a lot of pitching in at IGG!
Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
Jordanna has been a production assistant with IEE since 2016. She always has a smile and friendly word for customers and has mad embroidery skills. She has lent her creative talents to IGG, especially when I experienced writer's block in naming or describing the gifts in our new collections. And she is the QUEEN of bow tying - I mean really, have you seen how gorgeous our boxes look?! That's due to Jordanna's bow-tying skills and Tasha's photography skills. Our team is seriously talented! Tasha joined the IGG team as a co-op student, focusing on marketing and sales. She brings excellent photography skills, social media savvy, and a great work ethic to our little team. She's always willing to dive into whatever project or idea I throw her way. It's been lots of fun coming up with creative ideas and working together to bring them to fruition! You'll get to hear more about Tasha's experience working with us as a co-op student in an upcoming post, so stay tuned!
A Family Affair
Last, but certainly not least, is Carolyn. A successful businesswoman for the past 16 years, Carolyn has been a wealth of knowledge and insight for me. She also happens to be my mom, and she's one of the greatest sources of inspiration in my life. It has been a huge help to have her as a sounding board, someone I could bounce ideas off of and know that no question was too small or too stupid to ask. I'm thankful to have a business mentor I know I can trust implicitly, and who cares as much about building my dream as I do.
Stop By and Say Hi!
I've got nothing but thanks for this great group of women. You should definitely come and meet them - I know you'll be impressed by their awesomeness. We can't wait to meet you, so feel free to stop by and say hi!
~Nicole