Background: Molli Botnick, 21, Fashion Merchandising Major and a sales associate at Cheeky Peach downtown.
Me: Hey Molli, I’m just going to ask you some questions about your involvement in Fashion and Cheeky Peach. What’s your fashion background and what are you up to now?
Molli: Umm so my parents own jeewelry stores in atlanta so I grew up in retail. When I was 4 my mom was a buyer for a store called nose for clothes.
Me: How do you spell that?
Molli: Nose, like the body part, and then clothes. They’ve closed now it was really sad. But my mom was a fashion merchandising major at Alabama. Fashion merchandising just seemed like the only thing that makes sense. I started spending a lot in college so my parents made me get a job.
Me: I feel that
Molli: So then I started at Cheeky Peach. I started as an intern and worked my butt off and got promoted to sales associate. Then in December I got promoted to key holder.
Me: Wow, I didn’t know that
Molli: Yea it has been an experience. But it has given me a place to call home and be around people who love clothes as much as I do.
Me: So has your passion or vision changed at all?
Molli: Well I wanted to own a boutique after college but now that brick and mortor stores are going out of business I have thought about moving to New York and working in the fashion department for magazines or something like that.
Me: That’s so different, what other goals do you have.
Molli: I would love to have a Birkin one day.. I will have a Birken. But seriously working under Katie, the owner of Cheeky Peach, has been so inspiring. She stresses how much she wants everyone to learn and thats what I have done. I was so sad to leave for the summer!
Me: how does working at cheeky peach and being a major how does that make you look at the Athens fashion culture.
Molli: Well Katie is friends with so many people, literally the housewives of Oconnee County, so I see people come in and spend thousands of dollars and it really pulls me out
Me: Move somewhere outside of Athens. Like a second location?
Molli: Yea, that is what seems like the logical choice. But Cheeky really does make you fall in love with Athens, we partner with Terrapin and Creature Comforts and Yourpie, and it makes you love everything about Athens. Sorry I ramble. But you get to see a lot more of Athens. Katie’s friends that come in are the VI Peaches (she laughs). There is just so much Athens pride in the store.
Me: That’s funny, I like that.
Molli: Yea she wants it to be Athens. A really clean and trendy Athens. Sorry, I talk a lot.
Me: No, it’s fine this is all interesting. So do you see yourself working at another place like Cheeky Peach in the future?
Molli: I love retail. I’m a retail nerd. I need the experience. The class that we took last year, getting the right vibe and feeling in the store is so important to me. It’s kind of like people who like books who love the feeling or smell of a good book. I love that feeling of a store. When I see people downtown who stop me and say that I helped them or dressed them it makes me happy. I wouldn’t want to do corporate, but I definitely love retail.
Me: Thanks for letting me interview you today! I really appreciate it.
Molli: Of course, hope all of my answers made sense.