Mojito Beach Boutique
Chris Schrum started Mojito Beach Boutique at what may have been the most challenging time for small business owners—in 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
But for Schrum, it was the best move for her family.
Schrum’s son has a respiratory condition that made him especially vulnerable to COVID, leading Schrum to question whether she wanted to return to work after the initial pandemic lockdowns ended.
“When everyone started returning to work, his specialist told us, in her opinion, he shouldn’t be in a summer day camp-like setting because if he did get COVID, it had the potential to be pretty devastating for him,” she said. “After hearing that, I decided not to go back to work.”
Schrum wanted to find a way to stay home with her children while contributing to the household financially. An avid boutique shopper, she started Mojito Beach Boutique as a Facebook group, selling handpicked women’s clothing and accessories, handbags and jewelry. She was successful and didn’t plan to take the business further than that.
One day, while having lunch with her husband at the Markets at Hanover, she saw a vacant spot that looked perfect for a small boutique. She decided it was time to grow beyond Facebook and into a physical location.
“I talked to a few people who said starting a business during COVID was crazy, but it just felt right, so I jumped on it,” Schrum said. “The business took off, and while most businesses were struggling, we were thriving.”
Schrum’s mother, Kim Beck, “loved the boutique from the start” and spent many Saturdays there. She learned the basics of running the business. So, when Schrum decided to return to school and full-time work a few years later, Beck bought the boutique. Schrum stayed involved as time allowed, offering input on which merchandise to feature.
As her lease at the Markets at Hanover neared its end, Beck began looking for a new location closer to her home and moved the boutique to South Market Street in Mechanicsburg in May.
“We are a very people-oriented business,” she said. “So, we didn’t want to go into the malls or something that is so impersonal.”
Beck said her goal is to offer something for everyone, so she carries sizes small to 3XL in a wide variety of styles.
“We try to have clothes that are unique so everybody’s not going to show up to an event wearing the same thing,” Beck said.
While the success of a small business is at the mercy of economic conditions and shoppers’ spending habits, Beck said that the benefits far outweigh the risks.
“If you want to spend a half-hour chatting with a customer and helping them, you don’t have someone pointing at their watch,” she said.
Now retired from full-time IT work, Beck is excited to focus her attention on the boutique and her favorite aspect—the customers.
“I’ve been in IT since I was 19 years old, and being behind a computer is very impersonal,” she said. “Although I loved the work I did, I couldn’t wait to be done so I could be out and about.”
Now, many of her customers have become friends.
“You know them, you know their kids,” she said. “It’s just amazing how many different kinds of people you get to meet and how much fun you have getting to work with them.”
Mojito Beach Boutique is located at 106 S. Market St., Mechanicsburg. For more information, visit www.mojitobeachboutique.com.
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