After a January hiatus, the reimagined Gypsy Fix at the corner of Sterling Avenue and Flossmoor Road opened its doors Feb. 7 to a crowd of curious and enthusiastic shoppers, who browsed the merchandise displays with celebratory mimosas and snacks in hand.
“This space has been a real labor of love,” said Kellie Lucas, who rents space for a plant nook in the boutique. Lucas also installed a living window dressing of plants to give the store an intentional bright and airy look, per owner Morgan Sullins vision. The two completed the store’s remodel in a month.
“I would say that the re-opening was a success,” Sullins said. “It was super busy all day long and people were so unbelievably awesome. I was definitely surprised by how much support we received. We’re incredibly grateful to live in [this] community.”
Shops on Sterling store. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
About six years ago, Sullins opened the first iteration of Gypsy Fix in a space once occupied by a Coldwell Banker realty office. But just three days after opening, her store was shut down by COVID restrictions and it did not reopen for four months.
A setback like that could have wiped out her business—and her dreams—overnight, but she regrouped and her boutique became wildly successful once the COVID crisis waned.
This past year, the economic climate and other factors once again brought Sullins face-to-face with the prospect of closing the store. But instead of giving up, she made lemonade out of lemons.
“I’m a quick decision-maker, but this one wasn’t coming quickly because I didn’t want to walk away too soon, but I also didn’t want to be financially irresponsible.” Her answer was to inject the store with new energy, new inventory and a bold new interior design in just one month.
“The store is just stunning,” said Homewood resident Nicole Castagna, who was shopping for a gift cactus in Lucas’s “plant nook,” a space loaded with artfully arranged plants and garden-themed sundries. “Morgan has put such effort into redecorating her place.”
When asked if she had mapped out a plan in advance for the refreshed store, Sullins said, “It just happened. That’s always how I do things, to be perfectly honest. One day I saw the new wallpaper which I bought and hung where my desk now is, and I picked my paint colors and fixtures based on that.
“I just worked from there. I now have a lot more here in clothes and jewelry than I’ve had in a long time,” she said.”
Sullins said she orders most of her jewelry from WorldFinds, a woman-owned organization that works with cooperatives in India to create ethically sourced, sustainable designs for retailers. Part of her jewelry sales profit goes back to them. Her completely new inventory includes clothing lines from New York vendors that she knows and trusts, and she still features art from local artists without taking any commission from their sales.
“This has been a complete reset,” Sullins said. “It’s been nerve-wracking, but I’ve gone back to my original idea for the store.”
To find out more about Gypsy Fix’s second act, contact Morgan Sullins at [email protected].
