Meet Natalie Amendt | CEO Pretty N Pressed Boutique

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

Hi Natalie, what is the most important factor behind your success?
If I had one takeaway from this business consistency is the key! Consistently showing up for my clients, consistently responding to messages and phone calls, posting consistently, building a consistent community of women who support each other. Consistently going LIVE to show products at the same time every week for the last four years. Finding a way to consistently show up and let my clients know I will take care of them and only have the utmost happiness for them in mind!

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am a creative person by nature. I have two Interior Design degrees so I’m really passionate about the process side of things. I started Pretty N Pressed in 2020 during Covid. My daughter Kaylee and I would make and press shirts, post them online, and pack and ship our orders, I was working full time in Oil & Gas as a Quality Manager as well. I would leave work get home around 5, Kaylee would be home from school, we’d do dinner, homework, then work in the “shop” which was just a room in our house. Tragedy struck in December of 2020 when my then 14-year-old daughter was killed while with her dad visiting a friend’s house. To say we were devastated was an understatement. As we navigated this loss and unsurmountable grief, my job of 8 years let me go, without incident, or warning. I found myself feeling, broken, broke, scared, and just so upset. I had been wanting to push myself into the boutique full time because it was doing well but just was scared to take that leap and not leave my future in the hands of others. My husband encouraged me to make the leap do doing PNP full time. So, in January of 2021 is when I started taking it seriously. I was let go in July of 2021. I started really focusing on my brand and building a community of ladies that showed us love and support and wanted to see us succeed. Over the last four years the business has grown and changed so much. We expanded our offerings to more than tees, we now carry, denim, shoes, clothing, accessories, and home goods. As the economy has been so unstable the last few years retail has been a struggle. I was looking for something more but was unsure of the direction. I was contacted by a very large boutique in my area to be the “Retail Manager” for the store front and conduct Live Sales as well. I had the product knowledge, the talent and the drive to succeed. But one of the conditions of my employment is that I had to shut down PNP. So, with tears in my eyes, I announced to my girls, that we would be no more. We had an outpouring of support to try to reduce our inventory. 4 months into the new position and it was a rough go, i received no training for the new position, but was constantly told about the “training”. I had to beg for live sale opportunities which also limited my income. Though I agreed to a much lower salary than what I knew I was worth, I was led to believe that the “Live Sale” opportunities would more than make up for the lack of salary requested. After 70+ hours several weeks in a row and earning 1% on live sales I decided it was time to make a move. I had a position offered to me that I couldn’t refuse in my field of expertise. This would also allow me the time and energy to get back to PNP at some capacity and though I hadn’t figured out how I was coming back. So, I let my ladies know we were back and continued to figure out how I would pivot in this market. I decided drop shipping would be the best solution for my business. The products would ship directly from the vendors to the customers, helping cut shipping costs, my time, and allowing me to offer a wider selection of products. The downside, the pictures are now all stock instead of me, in every item. Though I can order samples the amount of time required to photograph, edit, and get everything in the system just isn’t time I have at the moment. We are navigating our new normal. My ladies are Live Sale ladies. They started with me Live Selling, which is a double edge sword. It handicaps you to the business, and we added an app hoping that would jump our sales when in reality it handicapped us in a way. With the arrival of our app in late 2021 PNPBOUTIQUE, the organic new growth we were getting from Facebook, was all but halted. As we move into the second qtr. of 2025. We are grateful for all of our past and future clients. If we haven’t met you yet, we are eager to meet you. If you have been with us since the start, we appreciate you so much.

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?
If my best friend was coming to town, I would take her to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, I feel like this is a totally Texas thing, that everyone should experience just once. BBQ is also a must! I feel like Discovery Green in the downtown area, or the parks and theaters in the Art District have so much to offer. The water wall in the Galleria area is also cool. If they weren’t a coastal liver, I would take them to Lake Conroe, for a boat day, or a fishing trip out of Galveston

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
This is actually a fourfold response. First and foremost, the creator for he has given me the talents and the know how to be great, and without it I would be no where! Secondly, my mom Sheila Webster who passed of AML Leukemia in 2012. She taught me through actions that there is no substitute for hard work. Hard work cannot be faked or passed by. Hard work will take you places that talent can’t reach. I stand by that, and would never be “outworked” it’s just who I am. I also feel that your work is a reflection of your character. It isn’t always easy to hustle all the time. But it is necessary. Thirdly my husband, for without a supportive partner, and best friend, none of this would be possible. He has worked alongside me after the loss of our daughter and has watched me hustle and make the business what it is today all from a little 10X 10 space in our home. Lastly, but certainly not least my friend Laurie Brossette. I stepped into her sales business in the summer of 1997 fresh out of high school and knowing making money quickly was the goal, I learned valuable lessons from her and her structure that follow me today. I worked for her in every position in the company for over 13 years. I learned people skills, public speaking, responsibility, work ethic, and what it takes to be held accountable for your own successes.

Website: https://www.prettynpressedboutique.com

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

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/websternatalie/

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