They sell antiques, piñatas and medical supplies, organize princess parties and major home repairs; they pour coffee, give facials and lead pottery classes, they are the women of downtown Gilroy, part of the fastest-growing segment of small business owners in the country.
Women-owned firms have grown at 1½ times the rate of other small enterprises over the last 15 years and account for nearly 30 percent of all businesses in the country, according to national reports.
And while top executives like Marissa Mayer at Yahoo and Sheryl Sandberg at Facebook have garnered all the headlines for their success in leading global technology companies reaching billions worldwide, small businesses like the ones found along Monterey Street remain the country’s top employers overall and serve the everyday needs of their communities.
“If it wasn’t for the dream these women had to start these businesses, where would downtown be?” asked Marlene Vieira, proprietor of Mafalda’s Bridal Shop located at the corner of Monterey and Fifth streets.
It’s a good question. While a survey of downtown businesses does not include information on gender, according to the Gilroy Downtown Business Association, take a stroll along Monterey Street and you will begin to notice a trend, there are a lot of women-owned businesses downtown.
“There’s the quilt store, the party supply store,” said Pia Tidwell, co-owner of Mango Street Kids and Miss Ooh Lala in downtown Gilroy.
It’s late Thursday afternoon and Tidwell is ringing up customers at the consignment and resale shop while her business partner and sister, Naira Guzman prepares for the launch of a new “glow-in-the-dark” themed party at Miss Ooh Lala next door.
The party boutique where little girls in groups of 12 or more get to play dress up, have their makeup and hair done and sing karaoke on stage has grown in leaps and bounds since the sisters started it out of a back room at Mango Street Kids nearly two years ago.
“When I initially bought the store, it was just retail, but our business expanded as we saw a need,” said Tidwell. At first, she noticed moms, who were no longer pregnant, picking up maternity pieces while they were shopping for their kids, so she added a women’s clothing area to the store.
Then, Tidwell’s niece wanted to have a themed party in Los Gatos, which got the sisters thinking.
“We should do this locally,” said Tidwell, and Miss Ooh lala was born. The party boutique is now flourishing and Tidwell is looking for a new buyer for Mango Street Kids, saying it’s time for the businesses to “fly on their own.”
Down the street from Tidwell and Guzman at Mango Street Kids and Miss Ooh Lala is Sandra Castaneda, owner of Amoretto Boutique, the place downtown to pick up unique jewelry, furniture pieces and the latest fashion accessories by emerging designers from around the world.
Located in what Castaneda called one of the most beautiful buildings downtown, a spacious, cool, corner spot with vaulted ceilings and ample natural light, Amoretto Boutique opened five years ago as an accessories store but expanded to include furniture when the shop moved downtown two years ago.
“When we moved here I saw the location was so big, I had to fill it somehow,” she said.
Hesitant to call her shop a furniture store, she admits that shoppers tend to fall in love with her pieces. If they don’t buy what they want immediately, they return to pick it up later.
“A lot of my clientele are stay-at-home moms so we are busy in the mornings.”
Sharing a story similar to other women entrepreneurs downtown, Castaneda started her business in 2010 as a way to work while also being a mom.
“I decided to start the business when my daughter was still a newborn,” said Castaneda. “I couldn’t be a stay-at-home mom and I didn’t want to drop her off at daycare.”
Over the years, her daughter, now eight, has joined her at work, staying until closing and sometimes going over to Tidwell’s to play.
“We all get along,” said Castaneda of her fellow downtown business owners.
What she would like to see downtown, however, is more of them.
“I wish I had more competition, I wouldn’t mind it,” she said.
Echoing a similar sentiment, Tidwell said she wished there were more stores downtown like Amoretto Boutique that catered to the leisure shopper, the moms and dads (well, mostly moms) that bring their daughters for a themed party at Miss Ooh Lala and have two hours to spend shopping on Monterey Street while they wait.
“Most of the shops here are ‘destination stores’—you go there for a reason,” said Tidwell.
“Women entrepreneurs have a special place in downtown overall,” said Melanie Corona, coordinator of the Gilroy Downtown Business Association in an email. “They offer a wonderful viewpoint on what retail spaces should be offered in downtown.”
“We would like to see more outdoor seating—like Morgan Hill’s downtown, and more cafes and restaurants,” said Vieira, whose Mafalda’s Bridal Shop has been located downtown for more than 21 years.
Started 26 years ago by her mother, Mafalda Freitas, a native of The Azores region of Portugal, Vieira took over the business two years ago when Freitas decided to retire.
“To sell was hard because it had been created with so much passion,” said Freitas, who first wanted to open her own shop as a child when she spied gorgeous dresses in a shop window in Portugal.
When her husband, Richard, passed away five years ago—“too soon,” said Freitas—she found it difficult to continue to run the business and after three years, asked her two daughters if they were interested in continuing it.
“When my husband passed away, it was hard to keep the shop open because it was a happy place and it was hard to be happy,” she said, adding that Richard had always been very supportive of the business, doing “whatever was needed.”
After being a stay-at-home mom for 14 years, Vieira decided to take over the business, saying it was a “life-changing experience.”
“It’s a full-grown, already established business but to keep it going is a challenge,” said Vieira, adding that it was more of a shock for her three kids who had to get used to mom not being there for every little thing.
“It is really hard to work full-time and when you have your own business there are no days off, even for sickness. You miss some kids activities and games. You give up some of that when you are dedicated to the business,” said Vieira.
But, she said she and Freitas have switched roles, and now Freitas picks up the kids and helps with childcare.
“Someone once told me, if you can handle a bridal shop, you can handle any business,” said Freitas.
Breakdown
According to the National Association of Women Business Owners, there are more than 9.4 million firms owned by women, employing nearly 7.9 million people, and generating $1.5 trillion in sales as of 2015. A report by the Guardian Life Small Business Research Institute estimates that women-owned businesses could create 5 million to 5.5 million new jobs across the country by 2018.
While the numbers are encouraging—from 1997 to 2014, there were an average of 591 new women-owned businesses started each day—business support agencies believe there is still work to be done in supporting women as they grow their business.
A report commissioned by American Express found that 82 percent of all firms, including 91 percent of women-owned businesses have no employees other than the business owner. Just 4 percent of all firms and 2 percent of women-owned firms have 10 or more employees.
The average number of employees at women-owned businesses has also decreased from 1.1 employees in addition to the owner in 1997 to 0.9 employees in 2014, according to the same report.
“While more and more women are starting businesses—at rates 1½ times the national average,” the report concludes, “the real issue at hand is not getting more women to start a business, but rather providing support to women who are already in business.”
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has published a series of best practices for supporting women entrepreneurs, which could ring true for downtown businesses. They include providing networking opportunities specifically for women, offering training on a variety of business topics, leadership and mentoring opportunities, and educating business owners in evaluating funding sources and access to capital.
While there are no women-focused business networking events downtown, the Gilroy Downtown Business Association holds quarterly mixers. The next one is March 10, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Old City Hall Restaurant. The association also offers various education opportunities to small business owners.
