Brynn Byerly and Ashlee Payton, owners of the Collective, are not strangers to owning businesses. The two owned Salvaged and Willow in Lewes but have also owned businesses together. When the owner of their Lewes building ended their lease, they considered just working from home.
“At first we weren’t going to do anything, just sell online but we missed the chaos,” Payton said. “I live on Hall Place, I grew up here and when I saw that Blooming Boutique had gone out of business in Milford, I suggested we come look at it.”
The two women looked at staying in Lewes but found the rents to be significant and nothing really fit their needs. Customers had been asking them to come to Milford for some time, so they decided the former Blooming Boutique would fit perfectly.
“We also got a warehouse where we can work on our furniture, we have an inventory room, office space,” Byerly said. “That is really nice because we have never had a space like that before.”
The Collective will offer high-end, repurposed and new furniture as well as clothing for both men and women. The women plan to keep Willow and Salvaged as online options but are hoping the new location in Milford will not only bring their current customers but be attractive to new customers as well.
“The furniture is professionally painted, and we will also do custom orders, including kitchen cabinets,” Byerly said. “Our husbands are basically carpenters, so they help us with the custom items. We will also be carrying a custom paint line. I am handling the home décor portion of the business and Ashlee is handling the clothing, accessories.”
Payton says she has an “old soul” and the clothing she chooses for the store will reflect that. She also offers styling help to those who may want to make a change to their look or have gone through a life change, like significant weight loss or the birth of a child.
“One of the things we do is we keep things super affordable, even when we were in Lewes,” Payton said. “The word “boutique” has a stigma of being expensive, but that is not what we do. Our items are high-quality but affordable.”
Both women say the biggest challenge they think they will face is the misperception that there is not any parking downtown. In fact, when they began working on remodeling the space, they found there were many public parking lots that have ample space as well as free on-street parking, something not available at the beach.
“People are coming to Milford, even from other areas,” Payton said. “I work at Paradise Grill and, one day, while I was waiting for someone to get here and standing outside, two of my regular customers there who are from Pennsylvania walked by. I have pink hair, so I am pretty easy to recognize. They told me they stop in Milford quite often going to and from the beach.”
Payton and Bylery hope to offer classes on painting furniture, choosing items for a wardrobe and other fun things that will benefit area residents. They are seeking permission from the landlord and the city to have a local artist paint a colorful mural on the front of the building as well.
The Collective is planning a grand opening in August. They are still deciding hours, but know they plan to be open Wednesday through Sunday. The new store will be located at 33 North Walnut Street in Milford. Follow them on Facebook.
