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Business & Tech

Three's Company for Mokena Entrepreneur Kim McAuliffe

With three businesses up and running, Kim McAuliffe dreams of a fourth, all the while loving her nonstop work life.

With her mane of strawberry blonde hair pulled back in a headband, Kim McAuliffe simultaneously answers the phone, counts out pencils for Frankfort Chamber of Commerce golf outing goodie bags and conducts the interview. The owner of three Mokena businesses is like a leprechaun on steroids.

Originally in Crestwood for 10 years, McAuliffe moved her her full-service florist shop to Mokena after relocating to this area three years ago.

"After six months of looking, trying to find where to put my business, we drove down Front Street, and I told my husband, 'Stop here!'" McAuliffe said of the charming vintage frame house that now occupies.

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Two years later, with her floral business well established in Mokena, McAuliffe branched out into children's parties, using the adjoining space in her building to offer .

Madhatter Tea Parties followed a few months later.

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With an eye for color and a flair for decorating, McAuliffe and her son painted the party room with bright, bold shades, adding whimsical ceiling treatments and fanciful lighting that transport party guests into a magical world. During a Monster Mash party, children can choose their own plush monster to stuff. At a Madhatter Tea Party, guests make their own mad hats.

"I really wanted to do something where people can take something home with them," McAuliffe said of the parties, which also feature themed games and treats.

Between the two party programs and the flower shop, McAuliffe lives to work, but that’s okay with her.

"I work 16 hours a day, seven days a week, but I'm a happy girl. If you find what you love, it's not work,” McAuliffe said.

However, she has some advice for would-be entrepreneurs.

"I waited too long (to start a business). I listened to the naysayers. Now I tell people, 'Just do it.' If you fail, you learn from it and try again," she said.

It took McAuliffe five times to get An English Garden up and running, even though she knew from her very first florist shop job that working with flowers was what she wanted to do.

"When I was really, really young, I called this guy every day for two weeks," she said. "I knew I wanted to work in his flower shop. I bugged him for two weeks, and I finally got the job."

From that moment she was hooked, yet she keeps doing what she's doing not because of the flowers, but because of the people she meets.

McAuliffe views her customers as friends whose lives connect with hers over the years, through celebrations and sorrows. And a successful business owner is one who values those relationships, above the bottom line.

"Don't even go into business for yourself if it's just for the money," McAuliffe cautioned. "It won’t come to you."

But as busy as she is, she's not done dreaming. Professionally, her ultimate goal would be to open a garden center where people could buy plants for their yard, as well as arrangements for their home. She'd also like to see the downtown Mokena merchants sponsor some kind of arts-related festival geared toward families, which fits with her business philosophy.

"I always make them (the customers) feel like they're friends, like they’re family. They're not just a number to me," she said.

McAuliffe would like to welcome new members to her business family.

If you mention you saw this article on Mokena Patch and buy one gift item, McAuliffe will give you a second gift item for $1. Cash and carry only.

For more information, call at 708-389-2155 or stop by 11028 Front Street in Mokena.

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