RISK TAKERS

R
OTHERS
HANGING ON
TO THE
I
S
K
T
A
K
E
R
S
DREAM
RISKING IT ALL TO GIVE BACK TO THE COMMUNITY.
Morris’s
tips
for starting a
business:
Laura Morris’s
life has been
a whirlwind of
change in the last
year or so, and it
has everything to do with putting
her personal life and finances on
the line to bring something good
to the community. Morris is the
owner of Others, a boutique in
Downtown Fargo that donates
100 percent of the profit to
charities. She also co-owns and
works full-time at the Dakota
Clinic Pharmacy.
Morris and her husband were
trying to figure out how to
incorporate giving back into their
daily life. That’s where the idea
for Others came in. They weren’t
too keen on the idea of starting a
basic nonprofit group, having to
consistently ask for money, but
the store is something that fuels
itself. It has created a means for
an income that does great work.
“At the same time we had to buy
the inventory, get the lease, pay
employees… that stuff costs
money. And we don’t benefit from
profit on the store, so we had to
othersshop.com
do some fundraising campaigns
and take a look at our personal
finances,” said Morris.
After realizing the amount needed
to make the store happen was
equal to Morris’s yearly salary,
they decided to live solely off of
her husband’s income for a year
and completely put hers aside for
the shop. At the same time all of
this was happening, Morris was
pregnant with her first child and
also had the opportunity to buy
into the pharmacy she works at
full-time.
“The biggest risk was ‘Can we do
all of this at once?’ with operating
the pharmacy adequately and
giving it the time and patience
it needs, but also providing our
community with this cool piece
and still having time to be new
parents,” she said.
With everything moving online,
retail is incredibly difficult.
Morris’s personal motivation for
the shop comes from wanting to
do something that was greater
than herself, and something that
left a legacy for the community
and inspired her children. She
wanted to find a fulfilling piece
that had more of a lifestyle
benefit than anything.
“Nobody in our organization is
looking to make financial gain.
We’re just looking to better our
community and communities
across the globe,” stated Morris.
Not only did Morris have
personal motivation, but she
also had outstanding support
from other storeowners in the
downtown area and from the
community as a whole.
“We’re not a competitive
community. The more you can
collaborate and ask for help, the
more it will come back to you.
Everything comes around fullcircle,”
explained Morris.
Every day, Morris looks at the
store’s finances and sometimes
wonders how she can make the
shop continue to thrive. But, with
giving back to others being the
most important to her, her end
goal is coming to life with brilliant
success.
Do whatever
you say you’re
going to
do, make it
happen and be
accountable.
Figure out
what matters
most to you
and direct that
toward your
end goal.
Put yourself
out there in the
community.
Don’t be
afraid to reach
out and ask for
help, because
it will all come
back to you.
If you have a
dream and you
know it’s going
to happen, treat
it with adequate
attention.
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