Threads Boutique located in the Historic Downtown Kennewick area overcomes obstacles to celebrate 16 years of business

KENNEWICK, Wash. – A local Downtown Kennewick business owner is celebrating the fruits of her labor but the road to this celebration wasn’t all roses to road to having her store open for 16 years.

Apple Valley News Now spoke with the business owner and she told us as a business owner what she had to overcome over the years.

Donna Holloway is the owner of Threads Boutique located in the Historic Downtown Kennewick area. She's celebrating her 16th anniversary of being open but she said the start of her business journey wasn’t what she thought it would be.

“I actually opened up then just before the recession, the one in 2008 and that was a struggle. I didn't know if I would survive or not. So I had to really sit down and look over my budget and look over where I could cut back on costs. I didn't pay myself for a really long time and I just kept going and I ended up surviving through that,” Holloway said.

But 2008 wasn’t the only year Holloway found herself having to go back to the drawing board with her business.

“So I kind of did the same thing when this recession hit I looked at, you know, where I could cut costs and I worked with my landlord and I had to cut back on employee's hours and I didn't, I haven't paid myself you know, here and there, but you just have to do what you can do. So that's what I ended up doing,” Holloway said.

Being able to put a smile on people’s faces helps motivate her through rough business patches Holloway said.

“I bought a designer, designer heels from you, and I was never able to afford them at regular cost and I got them at a discount with you and, and they just made me feel good and it's just those experiences,” Holloway said.

When it comes to having to navigate through uncertain economic hardships Holloway said budgeting and looking forward to better days have helped her. She also said that shopping locally makes all the difference in whether a small business can make it.

“With all the people that come and support us, especially after we closed you know for those few months during the pandemic after we reopened. My regulars were coming back and new customers were coming in and we just were non stop busy just with a ton of support from the local community,” Holloway said, “we really need to you know, tell people support small business because your money stays here, it stays locally if you do support small.”

As for any other business that may be struggling financially, communicating with your landlord may help Holloway said.

“Well if you're renting your space, get a hold of your landlord if you've been a good tenant, you know, get a hold of them and see if they can work with you maybe. What my landlord did was I renegotiated my lease and she worked with me,” Holloway said.

Holloway enjoys being part of the Historic Downtown Kennewick area and doesn't see herself moving up shop anytime soon. She will be celebrating her 16th anniversary with a 16% off everything going on until Saturday, July 12th Holloway said.

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