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– W O M E N I N B U S I N E S S –
A D V E R T O R I A L
Allyson Johnson has always loved retail. She
grew up in St. Petersburg, Florida, but spent
summers and holidays in Laurel. Armed with
a business degree, Allyson went to work for
J.C. Penney, then Hallmark. “I was with Penney’s
for 14 or 15 years,” she says. Allyson also has a
crafty side, and she painted glassware that she
would sell.
When her mother passed away, Allyson took
some time to reflect on her own life. “I started
thinking about what I was supposed to do in
life. I was working at MDOT, and it was a
great job with benefits, and I was still painting
glassware.” But something tugged Allyson
from deep inside. The family had moved from
Madison to Puckett when Bethany (Allyson’s
daughter) was eight years old. “I realized that if
we needed to get a present for a birthday party
or anything else, we had to go back to the
Jackson area. There just wasn’t much in Rankin
County at that time. The more I thought about
it, the more I wanted to open my own store.”
Allyson drew up plans for a retail boutique.
She incorporated in 2011 and in March 2012,
she opened the doors to AllyOops in Pearl.
“AllyOops was my nickname growing up, and
I thought it would be a fun name for a store,”
says Allyson. “I always loved the concept of
Anthropology, where they carry a variety of
items – gifts, clothing, lifestyle. That’s what
I wanted to do. Sometimes we nail it, and
sometimes have a buying dud, but we always
try to learn from our mistakes.”
Allyson was determined to do things right.
“Every point of sale and every procedure was
to ensure customer satisfaction. I even have an
employee handbook.” AllyOops opened in one
suite, and it was very small, but for Allyson,
owning her own business was a gift from God.
“He put the right people in my path, like Mr.
James Bennett, a professor at Hinds Community
College, who coached me on all I needed to
do to start a business.”
By December 2012, business was so good
that Allyson decided it was time to quit her
job at MDOT and devote her time to her
new business. “My education, my experience
and God were working together to make
AllyOops a success!”
Bethany Frazier, Allyson’s daughter, says
that when her mom decides to do something,
she is going to do it and she is going to go all
in. Bethany grew up in Puckett and graduated
from Puckett High School. She attended
Mississippi College where she majored in
pre-med. “I wanted to go into medicine, but
once I graduated, I had the feeling that I
wasn’t on the career path I was supposed to
be on. While in college, one of my professors
asked us what was the one thing we would do
every day for free? For me, that was a no-brainer.
It would be working in the store with my mom.”
Bethany was concerned that her parents
might be upset that she had spent all that time
and money going to college for something she
didn’t want to do. “But instead, they encouraged
me, and my mom welcomed me into
her business.”
Over the years, the store has grown, first
into the suite next door, then to the next suite.
“We’ve had to really learn who our customer is,”
says Allyson. “We don’t follow trends, but we do
buy trends and make them our own,” Bethany
explains. “Because Mom has so much knowledge
and background in this, we listen. We tend to
buy what we love, and hope others will like it,
too. We don’t want to do what others are doing.”
Allyson agrees, saying “I don’t even shop our
competition. I just stay in my lane and we do
what we love and that seems to work for us.”
When the Covid pandemic first hit,
Allyson said, being brutally honest, that she had
a meltdown. “We were one of the first stores
to close, out of an abundance of caution. We
didn’t know how long that would last. We were
able to continue selling, and deliver items
curbside, if customers wanted that. And
although we are not an online boutique, the
pandemic forced us to examine our online
presence. We had to change the way we did
things, including having lots of sales, and that
really pushed us out of our comfort zone. I’m
an old-school retailer. I needed to be on
e-commerce, but I had to be pushed to switch
over to that. I am a people person, and I like
person-to-person interaction!”
Bethany upgraded the point-of-sale system
and that changed a lot for the family. “I think
it enabled my mom not to work 24/7. She was
able to prioritize her time better, and value
family more. As her daughter, I love it. I had
my first child, a son, last year and he has an
awesome grandmother!”
Covid challenged the business in other
ways as well. “Our supply chain was compromised,
so that made it difficult to get inventory,”
says Allyson. “We had to trust God, trust the
process and trust our customers, and by the
grace of God, we have made it through!”
One thing Allyson has always learned in
business is to train up your replacement. “I
was sick for two weeks and couldn’t work, but
the store operated just fine under my daughter’s
leadership. I couldn’t be more thankful and
proud. She deserves big kudos!”
The business is a real family affair, of course
with Allyson and Bethany, but Allyson’s other
daughter, Caitlin, is also a big help. “She’s a
full-time teacher, and she loves it, but she also
helps us with the backend and receiving, and
she helps with our other business, Markethouse.”
Just before Covid, the traveling show
business was really picking up, and Allyson’s
husband, Rick, was a big help. “It was fun seeing
Dad interact with the customers at our booth,”
says Bethany. “He loved to go with us, and it
turns out that he is a great salesman!” Even
Bethany’s young son gets into the act. “He will
clean the floor for us,” laughs Allyson. “I think
when you are doing a business like we are, you
need family support. We are blessed that we
have been able to do this.”
AllyOops is located at 5647 Highway 80, #7, in Pearl.
For more info visit allyoops.com.
Hometown RANKIN • 63