Bee You Boutique Opens In New Berlin

NEW BERLIN,WI — A longtime friendship led to a new business in New Berlin. Bee You Boutique, 16060 W. National Ave., held its grand opening Tuesday. Owners Christine Kowske and Debbie Johansen met 11 years ago while picking up their daughters from school.

"Our daughters became best friends, and I and Christine have been friends ever since," Johansen said. "Our husbands became good friends."

Johansen described friendship as a blessing. Over the years, they traveled together and enjoyed many of the same interests, especially shopping at smaller boutiques for unique items and supporting local businesses.

Both Kowske and Johansen live in New Berlin and wanted to bring the boutique experience to the city.

"We always wanted to own our own business," Johansen told Patch. "It took a few years, but we decided to go for it and make it happen."

They found a great location on National Avenue, and all the pieces started to fall into place.

Bee You Boutique offers stylish, unique, casual clothing suitable for everyday life. The store features an assorted range of clothing, accessories and home decor. People can accessorize their home with trendy decor and themselves with one-of-a-kind jewelry, handbags and beauty products from local vendors.

Opening during the pandemic

Johansen described the grand opening as a "whirlwind" and the business as a "labor of love."

At first, given the pandemic, the owners wanted to start by offering merchandise online.

"We are taking a risk, but both of us felt passionate about having a storefront because we want to interact with our customers," Johansen said.

They wanted to get to know people coming inside the store and build relationships in the New Berlin community. They sent bee-shaped cookies to area businesses as a way of introducing themselves.

"We both love people, and that interaction was very important to us," she told Patch.

Safety is also important to the owners, and the grand opening offered time slots for shoppers to come inside the store so they could have the most comfortable shopping experience possible. They used SignUpGenius, a free online software tool for volunteer management and event planning. With it, they were able fill 24 out of 25 shopping slots.

"We feel we can offer enough safety procedures that will allow people to come in here and have a great experience," she said.

Johansen told Patch there is a concern businesses will be shut down again due to the pandemic. However, they have a backup plan that offers online shopping to customers and curbside pickup. Both women are also using Facebook as a way to interact with customers about specials and other fun promotions.

Johansen said that, right now, social media is how businesses do marketing, allowing them to sell products even if their doors can't be open.

During Small Business Saturday on Nov. 28, Bee You Boutique will be open, and the owners will again offer the SignUpGenius tool for customers to pick time slots. The owners hope to partner with other local businesses for the big shopping day.

Johansen said they will also offer a wish list for women to fill out. They will then have a special event for spouses or significant others to shop with the wish list.

"Sometimes, guys have a hard time figuring out what to get their wives. It takes the brainwork out of it," she laughed.

They also will offer private shopping time slots for people who are concerned about the pandemic.

"We want people to have that personal experience, too," Johansen said.

They said Bee You Boutique is designed to offer something for everyone. The website states, "Stop by and let us help you feel bee-you-tiful."

For more information, visit Bee you Facebook page.