New boutique aims to bring Tacoma community together
A new boutique coming to McKinley Avenue in Tacoma is a dream come true for a local family.
Parable is a family operation, with Deatria (Dee Dee) Williams and her cousins Lakecia Farmer and Le’Ecia Farmer all co-owners.
The family secured the space last fall. Raising more than $11,000 via crowdsourcing, they have been able to pay for initial startup costs and obtain inventory to launch online sales, comprised of books and plants.
Their goal is to raise $50,000 total to renovate the interior space so that Parable can move from online sales to opening its doors in the summer of 2021.
They also have applied for small business loans and grants.
The location is 3502 McKinley Ave., Suite A, the former site of Tacoma Lamp Repair.
The business biography on the business’ website notes it is “family-owned, community-owned, LGBTQ-owned, Black-owned, woman-owned.”
The boutique will offer plants, books, clothing, products from local artists and more. The family also plans for the store to double as a community space for live events, children’s programs and workshops.
The owners met with The News Tribune recently to describe their dreams for the store.
“We’ve all had different entrepreneurship ideas, separately and together,” said Le’Ecia Farmer. “A long time ago, me and Lakecia were talking about opening a cafe. I know, I’ve heard Dee Dee talk about doing certain entrepreneurial businesses like interior design or different services for people. And so as a family, it’s always been on our mind that’s what we want to do. We eventually want to work for ourselves and build up our family, and the next generations.
“And then during the pandemic, a space opened up across the street from where Dee Dee and Lakecia live, and where I used to live. ... But we’re just like, ‘What if we got this space? What would we do? What would it be?’ And we just started, like, dreaming about the potential business it could be. And then the more that we talked, the more excited we were.
“And we applied to this space and got it.”
She added: “I feel like typically businesses do it the other way where they have this fleshed out business plan and all the finances and then they find the space, where we just found the space and we’re like, let’s do it.”
Lakecia Farmer said Parable will be focused on community.
“You know, we say it a lot, ‘community, community, community,’ but it just means a lot to us to have a space for folks,” said Lakecia Farmer. “Dee Dee and I have been in this neighborhood for four years, so one of the things that we just saw that was amazing is how much community comes together for the McKinley street fair, and the farmers market and all these different things ... But there’s no, like, huge space where you can just, like, come with your family ... come just as your whole selves, and you know, maybe shop, maybe just participate in the community.”
Deatria Williams said, “We were walking by one day and it was empty, and it was just like, everything fell into place as if it was lined up for us. So that was pretty exciting.”
They envision reading circles and craft sessions for kids, poetry nights people can partake in, with sitting areas to come in and read or listen to records and music, with each family member taking a particular interest in each aspect.
“Technically, as an LLC, we’re listed as a boutique,” said Le’Ecia Farmer. “But we really want to ... emphasize a more living space where people can interact. And so on top of the music and the children’s programming, the educational workshops ... we have our business side. And then there’s kind of this blending of those two sides, too, where it’s like we want to highlight independent designers and local artists. And we envision a space where they can have events at our spot, they can have pop-ups, if they’re trying to get started as a small business owner ...”
The launch of the store will be in three phases. The online portion has rolled out with sales focused on books and plants. The next phase is interior renovation. The last phase will be opening the store to the public and focusing on launching the community phase in its full vision when it can be done safely in regards to the pandemic.
While opening a business during a pandemic might seem daunting, the phased approach has given them a leg up, Lakecia Farmer noted.
“We’re building up our business in phases. And I think that builds resilience ... we’re being innovative when it comes to online sales,” Lakecia Farmer said. “This is the story of Parable as adaptation. We’re adapting.
“I don’t know if you are familiar with ‘Parable of the Sower’, by Octavia Butler. That’s kind of where we got the name from. But it’s all about resilience during hardships. It’s all about community, building community ... just being resilient.
“And I think that’s ... one of the reasons, ways that we can show up in the community like, ‘Hey, this is hope. This is strength. This is resilience. We can do it. You can do it. And we’re all in this together.’”
“I also feel like we are able to look ahead and be like, we want things to be different for the future generations,” said Le’Ecia Farmer. “We don’t want them to have to fight tooth and nail to just have some kind of sense of security. Even though it seems really wild to be opening during a pandemic, I think it feels like the best option for our family right now.”
“I’m pretty excited about it,” said Deatria Williams. “I’m looking forward to it. And not only that, we’re leaving something behind for the generations to come.”
For more information, go to parabletacoma.com.
