Life and Work with Lindsay Persons and Jennifer Cluff

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lindsay Persons and Jennifer Cluff.

Before Sweet to the Soul was born, Lindsay Persons and Jennifer Cluff created a facebook group for makers across Arizona to share their talents and take custom orders. After admiring the talent in their community, they decided to hold a “small get-together” where the community could shop from these small businesses. This small get-together (also known as Sweet to the Soul Boutique) started in 2015 in an elementary school cafeteria. The boutique was so well loved, we quickly expanded to a high school and sold out of booth spaces there as well. Sweet to the Soul is now held at Peoria Sports Complex with over 250 vendors and 4.5k shoppers!

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Sweet to the Soul has been a journey. There have certainly been bumps along the way. There will always be unhappy people that will try to pull you down with them. But we have chosen to focus on our amazing community of makers and small business owners who have a similar goal and mission as us. Sweet to the Soul encourages our vendors to participate in a community over competition and to spread kindness along the way. Because of this, our vendors are great friends and get together frequently and collaborate with each other. It is so refreshing to see!

In 2018, we had our most difficult “bump” that weighed heavily on our hearts. We decided to do something good to uplift our own spirits. The first week of September, we encouraged everyone to participate in Sweet to the Soul’s Kindness Week. For a week straight, our vendors, shoppers, and followers spread kindness and posted about it on social media or emailed us their experiences. We received stories from both people who did random acts of kindness and people who received acts of kindness. This week was so incredible that it will now be an annual event. Even though this particular trial was very hard for us, we are so happy that we were able to learn and grow from it and that Kindness Week was born from it.

Please tell us about Sweet to the Soul Boutique.
Sweet to the Soul Boutique is a street market in Peoria Arizona. 250 makers and small business owners gather twice a year (fall and spring) for a day of shopping and showcasing their products. Sweet to the Soul is a family event with yard games, places for the kids to play, and food trucks the entire family will enjoy. There are a variety of booths such as art, clothing, home decor, bath and beauty products, children’s clothing and toys, jewelry, and much more! There are even products for the man cave such as beard balm, corn hole, grilling spices, and custom metal fire pits.

We are particularly proud of our vendors. They are not only amazing creators, but they are truly incredible people. They take the time to know their fellow vendors, go to each other in times of need, and refer one another to customers they come in contact with. We have a community board that allows our vendors to communicate frequently. Their posts and replies to one another are inspiring. We have made hundreds of life long friends just from Sweet to the Soul! We believe these feelings of community and comradery are felt the moment shoppers walk through our gates.

Were there people and/or experiences you had in your childhood that you feel laid the foundation for your success?
Jennifer and I both grew up in very different households and had completely different experiences. But we both learned how important it was to be compassionate and loving to our neighbors, family, and friends. I believe this has helped us become business owners that attract kind-hearted people to work with.

We also were taught to work hard for things that we want. We saw a vision for Sweet to the Soul in 2015 and have poured our hearts and time into our business.

Pricing:

• $5 admission at the gate for shoppers 18 and over, children are free

Contact Info:

• Website: www.sweettothesoulboutique.com
• Email: sweettothesoulboutique@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sweettothesoulboutique/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sweettothesoulboutique/

Image Credit:
Willow’s Kiss, Collectively Cameron, Made with Love, Sew Unique

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