Meet Ashley Hymel | Boutique Owner & Designer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ashley Hymel and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ashley, what’s something about your industry that outsiders are probably unaware of?
Looking from the outside in, it is easy to see fun clothes and instagram pictures and think that owning a boutique is quite easy, always enjoyable, and essentially just shopping for clothes for a living. Even I was completely shocked when I jumped into Always Ashley and discovered that what others see on the outside is about 5% of what the business entails. Especially being a small business owner like myself, I take on every role in the company. In the morning I may be fulfilling orders and shipping packages out, later I could be answering emails for customer service and shopping for inventory, next I am both the model and photographer for new items (shoutout to the timer feature on the camera), and probably ending the day in quickbooks doing more financial work. Those truly just make up a few of the roles behind the scenes of daily Always Ashley tasks, and I think it is easy to look at a boutique and forget it is not just taking fun clothing pictures!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I started Always Ashley in the midst of the pandemic, so traveling to design my own clothes was out of the picture. At first, I was strictly going to wholesale market, picking out my favorite items, and selling them online. In the back of my mind though, it was always the goal to incorporate my own ideas and designs into my store. This past year, I have been lucky enough to turn that dream into a reality with the launch of my first ever design, the Men’s All In One Shorts, shortly followed by the Women’s ‘Rich Man’ sweatsuit. Designing your own clothing for others to love as much as you do is no easy task though, and took many trials and tribulations to get correct. I never would want to release something I am not 100% proud of and excited about, so it was a much longer process than anticipated. Constantly going back and forth with my clothing factory, and trying multiple samples out and sending them back to correct small things, we finally reached my first few final designs and I could not be more excited about them!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I absolutely love having friends from college come in and visit me in Houston so I have quite the list of activities for them to enjoy with me! All of my friends enjoy a good margarita and queso, so without a doubt every trip we are going to Lupe Tortilla for the most delicious Mexican food and margs! Keeping with the food trend, I am also obsessed with sushi and think that Aka Sushi House is the absolute best for a casual lunch or night with friends. For brunch, we would probably be heading to Toulouse in the River Oaks district followed by shopping around the area or going for a nice walk in Memorial Park. Basically food, shopping, walking, and repeat all week long! We also love M-K-T Heights and all of the stores, restaurants and bars there as well!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
There is no way I could even strive for success in my business if it were not for the love and support of my friends and family. Starting a company is a massive risk, which can be extremely mentally taxing to think about and stress out over. We want quick success, and instant gratification for the risks we decide to take, but honestly that is usually not the case. I am fortunate enough to have an amazing family who encourages me, and supports me on my endeavors. My friends are extremely supportive as well, whether they are purchasing from me themselves, sharing Always Ashley with others, or occasionally throwing on some clothes and hopping behind the camera for me. I would not have been able to pursue this passion of mine, or continue to pursue it, if it were not for the incredible people in my life and I am extremely thankful for each of them.

Website: https://alwaysashley.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alwaysashleyboutique/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alwaysashleyboutique