I’m a single mum with a quirky fashion sense – people on the school run love my unique outfits so I launched my own shop
A SINGLE mum with a quirky fashion sense launched her very own clothing shop as other parents praised her unique outfits on the school run.
Kelly Mitchell, 42, is a huge lover of vintage clothing and big fan of styles from the 50s.
The mum-of-two is the proud owner of Cherry Vintage - a shop filled with 50s style dresses, swing trousers and dungarees.
But Kelly has revealed the inspiration behind her launching the store.
When her children were younger, other mums on the school run would tell her that they loved her outfits.
And when her kids started high school, Kelly opened her Chichester store in 2019 in a bid to financially support her family.
She said: "I’ve always loved quirky styles and when the children were young, other mums would say they liked what I was wearing.
"When the children started high school, I opened Cherry Vintage as a way to look after us financially.
"As a single mum, being in a shop all day wouldn’t have been possible when they were younger.
"Cherry Vintage has been open for four years now and I’m proud that it’s a shop that makes people happy, filled with 50s style dresses, swing trousers and dungarees.
"When people love the outfit they’ve bought so much they leave the shop wearing it, I know I’ve got something right."
Kelly encourages other mums to treat themselves ahead of Mother's Day.
She added: "Becoming a mum, you can sometimes lose yourself because your priorities change or you don’t have as much money to spend. It’s something that I experienced personally.
"As a mum, I think you still have to look after yourself and do the things that make you happy, whether that’s buying yourself a little something because you love it and it suits you perfectly or having a catch up with a friend.
"If a mum comes in looking for advice, we’ll encourage them to try things on and see how it feels."
The mum is taking part in a new Mother’s Day campaign for the Chichester Gift Card.
Cherry Vintage is one of over 170 businesses that is part of Chichester BID’s Chichester Gift Card, including shops, restaurants, attractions and more in the area.
The Gift Cards are part of the Town & City Gift Card initiative from fintech Miconex.
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A Town & City Gift Cards survey with over 370 mums in the UK and Ireland has shown that 77 per cent of mums say they feel guilty spending money on themselves.
Clothes, shoes and bags are the items that 76 percent of mums feel guilty spending money on, followed by beauty treatments, nights out/days out and holidays, meals out and the gym/health/fitness activities.