Community Corner
Swap the Veggies for Purses in This Week's Farmer's Market Finds
Make room for homemade high fashion amidst the produce.
The farmer's market isn't just about the produce anymore. Shoppers can find a wide variety of craft and fashion items as well.
One Orland Park resident and vendor has been selling her popular fashion items at the market for 7 years. Lisa Brown of IN.PURSEinators Traveling Boutique says she looks forward to the season every year.
Happy Customers, Helpful Family
Brown, who used to work in credit and collections, wanted to do something that would not only allow her to work around her children's schedules but give her an opportunity to work around people who were happy. By the looks of things at the stand last Friday morning, she has found her niche. Purses, jewelry and sandals were all it took to bring smiles to the faces of her adoring customers.
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Her family is critical to the success of her business. Her loving husband, Joe, is very supportive. She says that Ryan, her 14 year old son, is the muscle behind her home parties and "Warehouse Supervisor." Brendan, her 12-year-old son, is her expert loader and "Transportation Director." Her 10-year-old daughter, Lianna, is the fashion consultant and "Accessories Coordinator."
Her mother, Gigi, is the "Employee Of The Month" or "Inventory Control Supervisor." Brown says she would not be able to handle all the events that they participate in without the help of her mom who "keeps her grounded."
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Fancy Feet
Brown chooses all of the items in her inventory herself and only after careful inspection to ensure the highest quality product. The star of this season has to be the newest addition to her product line, the sandals. It is hard to walk around at any Orland Park event and not see someone wearing a pair of sandals from Inpurseinators.
According to Brown, "The sandals are absolutely beautiful and very comfortable, but the handbags are still a big hit with our customers. My husband laughs when ladies come up to us at restaurants or around town and show off their new sandals or handbag."
Here and There
In addition to the farmer's market here in town, you can also find Lisa and Gigi at the Tinley Park farmer's market on Saturday mornings. She says that "besides selling at the farmer's markets, we also do home parties, ladies' nights and fundraisers. We have a large selection of merchandise at Brady's Craft Mart in Orland Park, The Nail Retreat in Tinley Park and The Shopps at 2212 in Crest Hill."
Charitable Efforts
Selling accessories is not Brown's only passion. She is also actively involved in local charitable efforts. According to Brown, "It's one thing to put 5 free purses into someones closet for having a home party, but it's another to put hundreds, even thousands of dollars into the hands of a charity in need."
Brown takes part in organizing benefits at the Orland Park Civic Center that raise funds for the Orland Township Food Pantry, PAWS Animal Shelter and OPERATION: Mom's Cookies, which provides "Boxes of Home" for our military. This event is called SPAtastic SHOPPortunity and all of their events can be found on their website.
Whether hanging out with her family, being friendly at the farmer's market or supporting local charities and our military, we think Lisa is quite impressive.
So, stop by the IN.PURSEinators Traveling Boutique stand next Friday, because a girl can never have too many accessories.