Barb and Janet - Sisters at two opposite ends of the business spectrum who have managed to make it work!
Shop at Clares is a sister-owned venture, in a small Pennsylvania town, that loves their e-commerce business and their customers. We started Clares as a consignment clothing store almost 30 years ago. Janet had a building and Barbara had an idea. Resale clothing in our small college was a big hit! For most of 15 years we kept the store open, sometimes with difficulty, in spite of our mainstream jobs; Barb as a teacher and Janet as a CPA. Our thoughts were to have a viable business to supplement our income after we retired.
So in 2005, when we both did retire from the real world, we went global by selling all over the world. We expanded into selling a huge array of items, from eco-friendly, to style accessories, to decor, to gardening, to home organization, to custom dirndls and sheepskin. Ironically we were working more hours than ever but were all-in with the E-Commerce selling culture. But the market quickly got crowded and cut-throat. Giants like Amazon made it almost impossible to stay in business selling other companies' products.
In 2011 we started making our own quality products. We, like many of our customers, were discouraged with the 'off-the-boat' products and the back-stabbing/price-gouging that became common place on large E-commerce sites. So both the ClarUSA and Red Tail Crafters brands were born. Our products are made to our high standards with as much USA made and locally procured raw materials as possible. We are NOT talking about a manufacturing plant and a huge warehouse! Barb found a custom sewing niche working with the talented Mennonite women in our community. And Janet fell in love with the ability of CO2 lasers and went to town designing and crafting unique quality products. Most of our items reflect our PA Dutch and Irish heritage and with the help of local folks we have found our niche in the online world.
As of 2017 both of us had made it to Medicare Eligibility (a milestone when paying for your own health insurance); have a couple of new sons-in-law; have more grandchildren and grand nieces/nephews (Thanksgiving is a zoo); and have downsized our staff, keeping only the related and the most loyal.
With all of the changes we are loving our E-commerce business more than ever . . . and are enjoying a bit more free time in our "retirement' years. What a wonderful life!
Our Contact Info:
Shop At Clares, LLC
58 Noble Street
Kutztown PA 19530
Please Message Us with questions, comments and suggestions.
Phone/Text: 610.223.5763 (text will get answered more quickly)