Today we’d like to introduce you to Autumn Geist and Jennifer Rizzo.
Autumn and Jennifer are two friends, who for a really long time, had talked about opening a creative retail space in their hometown. It would be a space where women could come to feel inspired to create a beautiful home and feel empowered to nurture their creativity.
The co-owners are not only business partners but, they are friends who collaborate as Partners in Creativity, or PIC for short. Autumn has an extensive background in event planning, project management and is an award-winning speech coach. Jennifer Rizzo is a popular lifestyle blogger, author, licensed artist, creative class teacher, and social media influencer.
In August of 2017, together they opened The Collective lhe & Makery an inspired retail store, and a hands-on creative makery experience. The retail portion is filled with products and gifts they personally love and have carefully curated. With 70-80% of the products being American made, locally produced, handcrafted, or created to serve a cause. The Makery portion of the store is a place to create in community with workshops, and/or private events such as art, and craft classes, experiences such as Meditation with Tibetan bowls, and visiting artists offering immersive workshop art weekends.
In addition to hosting events and offering beautifully curated products, we believe that collaborating with other entrepreneurs is a win-win for all. We host pop-ups in the store regularly which gives the independent or non-brick and mortar businesses exposure and drives new foot traffic our way. We have had chocolatiers, honey makers, yogis, independent florists, bakers and essential oil sellers.
Since opening the doors, The Collective lhe & Makery has hosted events that have generated increased activity to the downtown Lisle business community. Events including Moms On Main, Merry on Main and the upcoming Bloomin’ On Main, to be held Saturday, May 12th. In addition to organizing downtown events, and hosting a place to shop and create, they love to connect with their community thru digital media such as Facebook Live and Instagram stories.
Recently, The Collective lhe & Makery earned the honor of Best New Store and 3rd Most Unique Gift Store in a suburban magazine from Oak Park to Geneva.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
The greatest lesson we have learned is that brick and mortar is no joke. We both have entrepreneurial spirits and have run successful businesses from home offices. There are so many layers of brick and mortar. From scheduling hours that allow us to still honor our families needs, to agreeing on the products that we carefully curate.
Prior to this, we both were the sole decision makers for our businesses, and only had our own vision to execute. In a business partnership (not unlike a marriage), it’s all about collaboration. There is a compromise that needs to happen on a daily basis. All of which has helped us to grow as business partners, and ultimately, better friends.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about The Collective lhe + Makery – what should we know?
We believe we were meant to live an authentically creative life, expressed in our homes, our style, and the thousands of things we do every day.
The Collective llc is an inspired lifestyle store and Makery for creative workshops. We love filling our shelves with beautiful locally made, made in the USA, custom, and handmade goods. We offer creative hands-on classes in our Makery that range from painting canvases, jewelry making, DIY home decor and more. We also offer interior design services, staging, and ways to re-imagine your home.
What sets us apart is that we are a place to shop, and create. Most boutiques offer one or the other. We believe that we were meant to create in the community and that we have just as much a need to create hands-on, as making our home a beautiful place to be.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
There are so many people that have helped us along the way, that it’s hard to narrow it down! We’ve had not only our own family as a large part of our support network, but friends, neighbors, customers, and even other shop owners. We are just so grateful to everyone who has cheered us along the way.
Pricing:
- Makery classes $25-$49
- Gifts for home $5-$109
- Private events $49 pp + $75 for room rental (after hours)
Contact Info:
- Address: 4724 Main St., Lisle, IL 60532
- Website: www.thecollectivelhe.com
- Phone: 3319036158
- Instagram: @thecollectivelhemakery
- Facebook: The Collective lhe & Makey
- Yelp: The Collective lhe
- Other: The Collective lhe
Online Shop: www.thecollectivelhe.com/shop
Image Credit:
ER Studio Photo and Video, Brooke Smucinski
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
