Seventh Street Boutique on mission for women
Don’t let her age fool you. At 28, Amanda Bies Partain is a woman on a mission to take the boutique world by storm, and she’s bringing the ladies of Senatobia along for the ride.
The proud owner and face of Seventh Street Boutique, Partain has managed to navigate the difficulties of COVID-19 and, remarkably, grow her business during arguably the hardest year on business owners in recent history.
Partain began her journey into the fashion world five years ago. At the time she was working in Oxford while living in Senatobia. As a mother, the long hours and commute made her question what would be next to break out of the cycle.
“I knew that’s not how I wanted life to go,” said Partain with a quick grin and nod of the head.
So, she started thinking outside of the box, but coincidentally, not much bigger than one. Partain started selling the clothing brand LuLaRoe from a closet under the stairs in her home through social media campaigns. She spent two-and-a-half years selling the brand, but her dreams of wanting more never stopped.
Those same dreams about fashion began at an early age for Partain.
“My mother would buy me clothes when I was a little girl and I would always cut them up and redo them,” she said.
Armed with her dreams of doing something more, Partain wouldn’t let things stand in her way. But she also said she couldn’t have done it without the help of her father, Robert Bies.
“He’s helped build all of this and make it happen!” She said.
Partain set her sights on owning a store and moving out from the closet under the stairs.
“People questioned me,” she said. “But I knew I could do it. That’s the thought I had: ‘I know I can do this!’”
Partain opened her first store at 329 Tate Street in Senatobia in February of 2020.
“Then COVID hit,” she stated. “I was terrified. All we could do was curbside. The store was closed with curbside only for six weeks.”
Despite the hardships caused by COVID-19, Partain’s little boutique continued to grow. In order to keep up with demand, it was time to look at expanding to a bigger store.
“We were bursting at the seams!” Partain explained.
In June of 2020, Seventh Street found its new home at 409 W Main Street. Despite having an actual brick and mortar store in prime location in the heart of Senatobia, Partain and her staff at the boutique have always remembered their start of selling through social media alone.
“We’re live every Tuesday and Thursday night,” Partain said.
Remembering her days with LuLaRoe, Partain said she’s been going live on Facebook every Tuesday for two years.
Because of the longevity of her commitment, Partain has managed to bring her clientele with her as she has branched into new areas. Seventh Street Boutique has a following of over 11,000 on Facebook, with numbers increasing daily.
“It’s all been word-of-mouth,” said Partain. “We’ve never paid for advertising.”
With a goal of keeping it casual, Partain and her staff treat all their customers as family.
“We want to connect with people,” she said. “They have become a part of our lives. They’ve seen our breakups, proposals, when my sister and I had our babies.”
Partain married Jake Partain in November of 2020, but she didn’t let wedding nuptials slow her down. The following month, in December, the store launched the Seventh Street Boutique App.
“We grew instead of getting scared,” said Partain. “We just did it. We did more.”
What started out as a company under the stairs, Seventh Street currently ships to customers in all 50 states.
“We waited for Alaska,” explained Partain. “But we got it and were so excited!”
The shop has experienced tremendous growth locally, as well. Partain and her staff decided to have a Black Friday Sale in November. They put the word out through social media, and local ladies showed up in droves to wait in line for the store to open that evening. Partain said she was humbled to look back at the transactions and see more than 213 people came through her store.
As far as personal growth, Partain said her journey has taught her so much, but the greatest lesson she’s learned is there is no ceiling on what can be accomplished.
“There are no limits!” Partain said. “We put limits on things in our minds, but if we’d stop, there is nothing we can’t do.”
As far as what comes next for Partain, she said they need a warehouse.
“We’re bursting at the seams again, and we need a warehouse to store everything,” she said.
And with her roots firmly planted in Tate County, Partain explained that she plans to keep everything local.
“One of the best parts of all of this has been giving back to my hometown. I went to school here. Played ball here. Now I get to donate back to the community. To the churches, softball leagues, cheerleaders. It’s very cool to do that for somebody else.”
Partain and her team at Seventh Street will continue to promote one message: Boutiques shouldn’t end at size large.
“I’ve seen women, family, struggle to find true trendy clothing in plus sizes. I just don’t think boutiques should end at large,” she explained.
Although the store currently sells, clothing, shoes and accessories, Partain said a new idea may be coming to fruition in the future.
“As far as a ten-year plan,” she laughed. “Maybe design?”
Partain has no plans of slowing down anytime soon. She and Jake have their hands full with their children Kellan, 5, Emery, 4, Ava, 3, and a new baby due on August 4. Partain has included the announcement of the new bundle of joy through her Seventh Street social media account so customers truly are included in her life.
“We really are just a big family,” said Partain.
