Kelseyville >> From a young age, Caitlin Andrus had an entrepreneurial spirit. Maybe it was because her parents were their own bosses — her father was a family doctor and her helped mother run his office — but as she was growing up in Kelseyville, Andrus was preoccupied with thoughts of one day running a business. And even then, she knew exactly where she wanted to open it: right on Main Street in Kelseyville.
Although Andrus moved away from the town where she grew up to attend college and live and work in Oakland, family health issues brought her back home, and ultimately prompted her to open her own business. She was coming up from the bay so often that she didn’t see a reason not to make a permanent move home. She was also preparing for her son — who is now three months old. She wanted a job where she could take him to work with her, while also utilizing her creativity.
Plus, with downtown Kelseyville growing busier and busier, Andrus felt the timing was right. She decided to take a leap. She purchased a building last December and spent months remodeling and readying the location, jumping back and forth between Oakland and Kelseyville. It wasn’t until a month ago that she made the move back, full-time. And two weeks ago Andrus’s boutique, Oak, held its grand opening.
Andrus’s target market is fairly broad. She carries items for middle and high schoolers, as well as pieces for women in their 20s and 30s. Plus, she has clothing for older women as well. She doesn’t want to limit herself to certain styles, or the standard sizing of small, medium and large. And soon she’ll have an infant and toddler section. Basically, she’s targeting “the women of Kelseyville.”
She does all her buying from the fashion district in L.A. Every six weeks Andrus plans to make a trip to southern California to buy new inventory for Oak. “I’m kind of able to bring things that they don’t see elsewhere,” Andrus said. “I think it’s important in a small town community.”
While owning a business in Kelseyville was her dream as a child, Andrus didn’t choose the location only because of sentimentality. She felt the market was right. Lakeport already had a few clothing boutiques, but aside from Kathy’s Kloset, a new and used clothing exchange store, Oak would be the only business of its kind on the street. Then there are all the tasting rooms, which generate a decent amount of foot traffic. Add in places like Studebakers, Pogos Pizza, the Saw Shop and the new yoga studio, and Kelseyville just made sense. “The collection of businesses that are on Main Street drew me to the street,” Andrus said.
She also felt that the more businesses to open in Kelseyville, the more likely the location will become a destination, rather than a place to drive through. People can take yoga classes, go shopping, stop for a coffee and a bite to eat, all in a two-block radius. “I go to Lakeport for lots of things and people in Lakeport will come to Kelseyville if there are things here for them,” Andrus said.
It’s all part of Kelseyville finding it’s identity. When Andrus was young, downtown had a quaint, small-town vibe, with a grocery store, butcher and deli. As she grew up, she noticed many empty storefronts. Then the area went through a period where much of the street was filled with antique shops. But now, the diversity and variety are giving the street a real personality. “It has an urban feel,” Andrus said. “You can walk around and do stuff. There’s a good range just on Main Street, which is really cool.”
And others seem to agree. During last weekend’s Wine Adventure, Oak had its best day yet. Although the store only attracted one person from the adventure itself, about 20 tourists meandered into the shop. They weren’t there for the event, they were simply visiting Lake County. It was a highly encouraging sight, one which indicated that tourism is indeed growing in Kelseyville.
Andrus has never run her own business before, and she knows there are plenty of challenges ahead of her, but she’s prepared to tackle them as they come. “It’s a gamble but it’s also a way to try to pursue my dreams just by diving in,” she said. “It is a huge leap. It was just the right thing to do. This is what I’m supposed to be doing.”
Oak is open Tuesday-Saturday from 11 a.m. -6 p.m. The store is located at 3940 Main St. in Kelseyville.
Jennifer Gruenke can be reached at 900-2019.
