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Yowie was a project that Shannon Maldonado started "over nights and weekends" while working as a designer at American Eagle and then at Urban Outfitters back home in Philadelphia. After "hitting a creative wall," she quit her corporate job to focus on her creative studio and lifestyle boutique. Five years later, she has big plans to expand her space while keeping her business small and local. No matter what happens, she will stay true to her core focus as a platform for small businesses and creatives around Philly and as a light source for the local community.

In addition to the store, Maldonado is active in taking on other design and consulting projects and collaborating with fellow creatives like Tersha Anderson, owner of fashion concept store, t.a. Maldonado and Anderson met on Instagram, exchanged stories, and shared advice on running women-owned businesses. They were excited to come together on a special project to support minority-owned small businesses. It is an energy that Maldonado continues to generate at Yowie.

To be honest, a month before we started Yowie, I quit my job with no particular plan. I had some money saved up, but I didn't really know where I was going to land. I was ready to move back to Philly and make it work here. I knew then that there wasn't and still isn't a store like ours here, and I thought it would be a really fun challenge to go back to my hometown, relearn the city, and open a really interesting space that didn't exist yet. I'm really glad we did it here.

I was freelancing for Urban Outfitters and it felt like I was living a double life. I was freelancing for Urban Outfitters and I felt like I was living a double life. So I would say, 'This is my store.' And they said, 'Well, what are you doing there? I said, 'I don't know. I need to figure it out. So I was trying to straddle both walls. I wasn't ready to leave fashion; my dream was to go to FIT and become a fashion designer. But I couldn't devote enough energy to growing Yowie (while working at Urban Outfitters), and after about a year and a half to two and a half, I told one of my best friends, 'Did you move to Philly to work at Urban Outfitters or to start a brand? He said, 'Did you move to Philly to work for Urban Outfitters or to start a brand?' I said, 'I moved to Philly to start my brand. And he said, 'Then get out of there. Focus on your brand. I was still juggling other freelance work, and I'm still doing projects outside of the store.

I was so scared. All I know is that I am a designer. I was not trained as a curator, art designer, or interior designer. I was so used to being an anonymous designer working for big brands that now I feel like I'm standing naked in front of everyone. It's scary to bet on myself, but at the same time it's exhilarating. I have a great community of friends and my family is very supportive. They support me on the sidelines and on days when I don't know what's going to happen next.

I think my biggest lesson during this time is that we can never be static. I have always considered my brand to be in beta mode. We are always testing things, some of them are really successful and some of them are, um, not so good. But I learn something from them and have fun doing them. So I think we should always be ready to evolve since the pandemic started. We pivoted back to online, we held workshops, we held online coffee meetings with clients who wanted advice. Since we couldn't visit them in person, we really tried to maintain a personal connection. As a result, within two months, sales seemed to stabilize. Vulnerability has always been a big part of my brand, and I am open about my journey and what I have learned along the way.

I lead with a certain humility about what is happening and always try to share our platform with others. We are always trying to raise money for local organizations and causes we care about. And in the midst of all the DTC brands and huge big-box stores, we really want to be human. Being small and niche is our strength, not trying to be something for everyone.

I got involved in this project through Tersha Anderson (owner of t.a.) Before Yowie, most of my friends were childhood friends or friends I met through friends or ex-boyfriends, but now my friend group through the internet and social media have expanded. So Tersha was someone that I, as a female business owner, was able to connect with immediately. Her brand was very youthful, playful, yet sophisticated, and we connected on a personal level. So when she called me in on the (American Express) project, I said, 'Oh, this is going to be fun. I liked that American Express was trying to help small businesses at a very critical time. We were really lucky last year to be able to pivot, survive, and grow even more.'

In the short term, we are preparing to buy a building in the neighborhood and turn it into a mixed-use complex. We plan to expand the Yowie store and add a café of some sort, and above the store, we plan to add 10-12 hotel rooms designed and branded by Yowie. The idea of a Yowie hotel is very exciting to me because I have grown to love hospitality through design projects with others. Long term, I want to integrate us into the culture of Philadelphia. We don't want to expand outside of Philadelphia, but we want people to be proud that our brand has grown in Philadelphia. We do pop-ups here and there, but our feet are firmly planted in Philadelphia.