Meet Kat Proffitt and Kui Mi Oh of Rubymint General in Central Phoenix

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kat Proffitt and Kui Mi Oh.

They have been friends for about 6 years. They met through mutual friends and found out they had a lot in common – they both love food, coffee, hiking, traveling and became fast friends. Their first jobs were even at boutiques! As an artist Kui, was making pieces and selling items at festivals, to friends and online. Kat is business savvy and loves supporting local and creating opportunities for others. The possibility for a space in their neighborhood came up and they knew it would be a fulfilling and fun endeavor to build a store full of local and handmade love and share it with the world. People love going to festivals to find unique and one of a kind treasures, but sometimes you can’t make it due to other plans or they are crowded or hot or rainy. They had the idea to create a space where you can find those same treasures but in a boutique setting. When Rubymint General first opened in December of 2016, they opened with about 15 local artists in the store. Today, they have about 100!

Has it been a smooth road?
The journey so far has been extremely fun, but not without its challenges. Since owning a boutique was new to us it’s almost like every day there’s something new to solve, but that’s also what makes it so fun. Figuring out what products to carry at the store, building and updating the website, getting the word out about Rubymint General, to even trying to figure out store coverage if someone calls in sick are just a few of the everyday challenges that we have. Being in Phoenix, summers are traditionally very slow across many different industries including retail, and our first summer wasn’t any different. But we survived and will be better prepared for the next one!

We’d love to hear more about your business.
Rubymint General specializes in local and handmade goods. We realized that a lot of people like going to festivals to find these one-of-a-kind treasures but sometimes do not have the time in their schedule to attend. We wanted to create a space where you can find the same treasures that you find at craft fairs and festivals but in an affordable boutique store setting. We love that we can help all of our artists grow their craft and businesses – that’s 100 people’s lives that we are making an impact on right there and that number continues to grow. We are also proud to support various charities at the store such as the Caring Coalition, SARRC and the MaxLove Project – to name a few. The combination of these things is what really sets Rubymint General apart.

Is our city a good place to do what you do?
We are located in the Coronado Historic District. We love where we are because it is our neighborhood – nothing beats having your business be just a few blocks away. The business area we are in was once described as one of the most glamorous streets Phoenix had to offer. In the 1950s, Phoenicians dubbed the street “Miracle Mile,” but at the end of that decade, this area started to decline and left many of the storefronts vacant. In the last few years, new businesses have been popping up which is really exciting. Making this area more walkable with things like crosswalks and street lighting would both help existing businesses and attract new businesses as well.

Contact Info:

• Address: 1441 E McDowell Rd Unit 2
  Phoenix, AZ 85006
• Website: rubymintgeneral.com
• Phone: 602-595-8505
• Email: info@rubymintgeneral.com
• Instagram: rubymintgeneral
• Facebook: Rubymint General
• Yelp: Rubymint General

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