What happens when a mom and her child share a passion for fashion? Well, in the case of Ravon Summers-Nowden and her 10-year-old daughter, Kyndal Nowden, they open a boutique to share that love with everyone else.
The Pink Papillon Mommy and Me Showroom — which held its grand opening last September — offers versatile apparel and accessories for women on the go as well as children (toddlers through preteens). A small selection of matching clothing for mothers and kids is available through the Mommy and Me collection.
“I want [our customers] to feel like beautiful young women and women,” Kyndal says. “I want them to feel great in their clothing. I want people to refer everybody they know to us so we can make them look beautiful.”
The Ferndale location was perfect in practically every way. “When we got there, the interior was already pink. I really didn’t have to do a lot,” says Ravon, who envisioned the shop with a pink, girly aesthetic. And if you’d like to get your hair done after shopping, you can head next door, to On Point Hair Designs, owned by Ravon and her mother.
Watching Kyndal “blossom from this caterpillar into this beautiful butterfly” was inspiration for the shop’s name, says Ravon; papillon in French means “butterfly.” In opening a boutique with Kyndal, Ravon wanted to expose her daughter to entrepreneurship at a young age, as her parents did for her at her mother’s hair salon.
Indeed, Kyndal is living up to her duties as The Pink Papillon’s co-owner; when she’s not at school or hanging out with friends, she is at the boutique assisting folks while they shop, keeping the space clean, filming promotional TikTok videos with her mom, and even ringing up guests at the register and inputting inventory. “My favorite part has been seeing the customers [aka the “ButterFLYs”] compliment our outfits as they look around,” Kyndal says. “And I love seeing the customers be happy as they see me doing what I do.”
What’s next for The Pink Papillon? This month, expect to see new Mommy and Me pieces available just in time for Mother’s Day. Long term, Ravon and Kyndal hope to create an in-house brand and expand The Pink Papillon to a mall location, selling only matching clothing for mothers and children, and have space to house On Point Hair Designs within the shop.
“Just reaching a broader audience and inspiring other mothers and daughters to venture out into entrepreneurship or follow whatever their dreams are,” Ravon says of her goals for their business. “It’s so fun to do it with your child.”
The Pink Papillon Mommy and Me Showroom, 624 Livernois Ave., Ferndale; thepinkpapillonshop.com
This story is from the May 2022 issue of Hour Detroit. Read more stories in our digital edition.
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