Hello!
I'm Camille and I'm one of the founders of Original Family! For starters, thank you so much for visiting the page and wanting to get to know me more!
I've been in the customer service industry for a long time, bartending, serving, and working in retail. The past year or so when I wasn't at the restaurant I was currently bartending at, I was coming home and helping my boyfriend with his business, making music, and obviously, spending time with my family—my boyfriend, my two dogs, and my cat. While I don't have any kids of my own right now, the pets sure do act like children sometimes 😂
I've never started a business before and while I always thought about it and was interested in it, I never really believed it would happen and that was from fear I think.
I initially wanted to go into the medical field (which is still an interest). I went to school for Nursing, but changed my degree to Criminal Justice, and kept going back and forth from the two. I know, totally different things, right? 🤔
Anyway, I never graduated from college. I took breaks trying to figure out what I wanted to do, and I've come to figure out, taking all of those "breaks" was a waste of time for me when I could just pick a degree and/or do something that really has always been a real passion that I never knew I was passionate about.
After the restaurant I was working at laid off their employees due to COVID-19 this year, I decided it was the perfect time to really try going after what I was afraid I couldn't do. I started this business and the interest in starting a business is only part of why I made the decision to do it. I've also always had a love for helping others and giving back to the community. Opening up a store that could give people the chance to cheer up their friends and family through this pandemic and any other hardships seemed like a good way to do this.
I've also always loved holidays—decorating for them, seeing the smile on my boyfriend's face when he's nice and full from a Thanksgiving meal, and simply being with our families. The holidays that were coming up, like Mother's Day & Father's Day made me realize that people still needed to show their appreciation for their family members, especially through everything now when a lot of people can't be with their family.
This store isn't just for holidays though. It's simply for putting a smile on someone's face, whether that's for yourself or for someone else. I'm a big Parks & Rec fan so I'm all about just "treating yo'self" 🤪
I hope that through shopping from my store and even just reading this, you can remember to stay positive and show the ones in your life you care about how much you love them.
Thank you for reading & talk soon,