‘This is the dream’: New female-owned small business opens in Myrtle Beach

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – Pink balloons and brightly colored outfits filled the front of Magnolia Row Wednesday to welcome Myrtle Beach’s newest business: Sonya Martin’s Scout & Molly’s Boutique.

Mayor Brenda Bethune and civic leaders were among those on hand to welcome Martin into the city at its North Kings Highway location.

Martin, who’s carried a lifelong love for fashion, spent eight months putting the project together.

“Now that the hard work of getting open is behind me, I can just move forward with servicing my customers, buying inventory and focusing on that,” Martin said.

Martin said the store’s opening fulfilled a childhood dream. She went to work for a private boutique coming out of college and wanted to become an entrepreneur.

It wasn’t until she headed into retirement that she took the leap of faith and made the business happen.

“This is my home. My roots are very strong here. I’ve been here my whole life, so I have a lot of friends, and being involved in the business community at this last stage of working in my life is exciting to me,” Martin said. “If I can do it, anybody can do it.”

The store, located in the Magnolia Row complex owned by Bethune, features jewelry, sweaters, shirts, jackets and more.

“Don’t shy away from hard work. But when you go to work every day and you are doing something you love, it doesn’t feel like work,” Martin said.

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Gabby Jonas joined the News13 team as a multimedia journalist in April 2024. She is from Columbus, Ohio, and graduated from Kent State University in May 2023. Follow Gabby on X, formerly Twitter , Facebook or Instagram , and read more of her work here .

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