Eleven years on from being named Merseyside Woman of the Year 2013, Louise Gillespie and daughter Jess are celebrating a very special milestone – 10 years of their mother-daughter owned business, Jessie & Co.
Prescot business owner Louise was celebrated at the 2013 awards for her leadership of the rapidly expanding jewellery brand, Jessie’s Jewels, which she established – while working full time as a practice manager at a law firm – to teach her then 15-year-old daughter Jess how to become financially self-sufficient.
Louise said: “We started out selling costume jewellery through house parties and having concessions in salons, spas and boutiques all over Merseyside growing to over 30 at one point. Once Jess had completed her ‘A’ levels she wasn’t sure what she wanted to do so decided to work in Jessie’s Jewels full time on an apprenticeship for 12 months and review it at six months.”
Jess working full time had a significant impact on the business, leading to the duo opening their own boutique on Leyland Street in Prescot in July 2014, a year after Louise was named MWOTY 2013.
Over the past decade Louise and Jess have overseen the growth and development of the brand from a jewellery brand to an independent ladies boutique – now named Jessie & Co – offering jewellery, clothing and, most recently, a footwear range.
Louise said: “Our vision is to offer something for all stylish and fashion conscious ladies that they will have in their wardrobe for years – something that can be worn now and still look good in five years time. We also don’t target a particular age range, we have granddaughters, mums and nans who all shop with us.”
Sustainability is also key for Jessie & Co and when sourcing their collections this plays a vital part in their decision making.
Louise added: “We are not fast fashion. The quality has to be right and the style and colour has to be timeless.”
The boutique marked its landmark 10-year anniversary in July 2024 with a celebration in-store for friends, family and customers new and old, with the milestone birthday giving Louise time to reflect on their journey and the challenges they have faced, from the covid-19 pandemic, which shut down high streets and accelerated the move towards online retail, and the cost of living crisis.
During the pandemic, Jessie & Co was able to pivot to online selling thanks to a new website and entrepreneurial spirit, offering both delivery and click and collect, but maintaining their high standard of customer service was more challenging.
Louise said: “We believe that dealing with customers face-to-face enables us to deliver the best in customer service. However, with covid and the growing e-commerce marketplace post-pandemic, we’ve had to develop ways to maintain that customer service even when we’re not seeing them in person. We do this with the extra little touches we add to our website orders, like including a bag of sweets and a positive affirmation card, signed off personally from whoever packed the order.
“We’ve also had to adapt our stock to reflect the change in people’s circumstances due to the cost of living crisis, adding some more affordable but still high-quality items to our collection.”
Challenges aside, Lousie attributes Jessie & Co’s success to treating their customers as they would like to be treated, working hard and keeping creative, particularly with social media, styling and window displays.
Congratulations from all of the MWOTY movement on this fantastic milestone for Jessie & Co – here’s to many more!
To find out more about Jessie & Co, visit jessieandco.co.uk, follow on Instagram @jessieandco or on Facebook JessieandCoOfficial
