Today we’d like to introduce you to Tabitha Palmer.
Hi Tabitha, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I’ve always loved nature, wildlife, and our earth. As a kid, I loved being outside exploring our neighbor’s garden and the woods around our house, making mud pies, and climbing trees.
Growing up in the 80’s and 90’s I felt like we had the best childhood because it was consumed by being outside and being creative. Every chance I had I was outside with neighborhood friends playing games, building forts, or being run out of the garden because we were eating all the cherry tomatoes.
My parents loved the outdoors as well. We spent a good portion of every summer hiking, camping, and doing outdoorsy activities. Unfortunately both of my parents tragically passed away at young ages so my dad didn’t get to meet my husband and my mom didn’t get to meet our son. My dad was 46 when he passed away from a massive heart attack and my mom passed away after battling cancer at the age of 54. I’d always felt like they’d be around to share that love of the outdoors with my family when I got older and had one of my own.
Although my parents aren’t still with us, I’m trying to share those same values and love of nature with my own kiddo and with our community. The idea that time is precious and you never know how long you have on this planet is something that has really stuck with me. I want to make the most out of this life and do as much good as I can with the time I’m given.
That love of nature and our earth is part of what inspired me to launch Minimal Optimist. It started with the idea of sharing sustainable and eco-friendly products. In 2019 I started forming the idea of Minimal Optimist and I knew I wanted a business that offered sustainable options locally and could be a force for good.
Minimal Optimist is a way of minimizing your negative impact and working to do better. It’s a way of shopping more locally, supporting brands that are doing the right thing, and making small steps towards a more sustainable life so you can feel confident in a better future for you and for our planet. I like to say it’s simply confidence in a better future.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I launched MO to friends and family in March of 2020, one week before the nationwide shutdown. At that time I shared a commercial space for my skincare consulting business with several other local women business owners. We were not able to open to the public and I didn’t have a website for Minimal Optimist yet. So my best option was to stay home (along with the rest of the world) and learn how to build a website.
Between attempting to home-school our then 2nd grader and working around my husband who now worked full time from home, I was able to create and build my Shopify website from the ground up. Though that was a challenge, I learned a brand new skill and I now use that same website and platform nearly every single day.
The women I shared the space with and I decided not to renew our lease in September of 2020 and that left me trying to find a place to store my inventory. After moving everything to a temporary office for a few months, I decided to move it into our spare bedroom and started doing pop-up shops with local businesses.
Doing pop up shops was a great decision since it helped me learn about my ideal customer, build community and relationships, and network with other local makers and business owners. I met so many incredible people during those events. I am incredibly grateful to Hey Bear Cafe, Jack’s of Knoxville, and Oglewood Avenue for generously hosting MO for pop-up shops.
I really enjoyed the traffic that pop-up shops provided at local businesses, but packing up and hauling tons of inventory, several 6 ft tables, and a tailgate tent multiple days a week can get exhausting. I knew I wanted to have a permanent location at some point, but as with any business, the timing and the area had to be right.
That opportunity finally fell in place in the fall of 2021 when the Cedar Springs location opened up. We live out west and travel Kingston Pike frequently so this location ended up being a perfect fit for us. Contractors were seriously difficult to come by last fall, so with help of family and special friends, I was able to open Minimal Optimist in the Cedar Springs Shopping Center in December of 2021 just in time for the holidays.
As you know, we’re big fans of Minimal Optimist. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about the brand?
Minimal Optimist is a lifestyle boutique specializing in sustainable, eco-friendly, and nature-inspired goods and unique gifts. Our mission is to inspire confidence in a better future for you and for our planet.
One thing that makes us unique is that we love incorporating brands that are certified Benefit Corporations (B Corps). Certified B Corps are a new kind of business that balances purpose and profit. B Corps incorporate people and the planet in everything they do. Some B Corps we are proud to carry are Rumpl blankets, Stasher Bags, ChicoBag, TOGO-Ware, and Bee’s Wraps.
Alongside carrying many B Corp brands, we also carry many smaller brands that are sustainably made in the US, are fair trade, or are locally made right here in Knoxville. Our local artisans and makers give Minimal Optimist a downtown/ local vibe without having to travel far.
We are incredibly proud to support our local makers and artists. By carrying locally made goods we are helping support our community and cutting down on our carbon footprint by not having to have items shipped across the country or the world. Currently about 95% of our local makers are women.
Small changes in our daily lives can have big impacts and we love celebrating that progress! Our motto is always progress over perfection and we’re thrilled to serve our Knoxville community.
What were you like growing up?
As a kid, I loved being outdoors and was a bit of a tomboy. I despised bows and anything pink and only wore dresses to church or on school picture days. Nowadays, I like to dress up from time to time, but I’m still very much a t-shirt and jeans kind of girl and if I’m wearing a dress there’s still a good chance I’m wearing shorts underneath.
When I was in elementary school, I helped convince my parents that we needed to recycle. This was before the days of single-stream curbside recycling, so I’m still a little surprised I actually succeeded! We would save our aluminum soda cans and plastic bottles and then do a biweekly or monthly drop-off at our local Kroger drop-off recycling location. I was also the kid who cut every single plastic notch on soda rings to make sure to save the turtles. I actually still do this.
I attempted to start my own business in late elementary school cleaning up trash in our neighborhood. My mom didn’t like the idea much since I wanted to put fliers up with our phone number on them. In the meantime, my friend and I just cleaned up trash for free instead. So I guess you could say I’ve always wanted to be a business owner and entrepreneur. : )
Contact Info:
- Email: shopminimaloptimist@gmail.com
- Website: www.minimaloptimist.com
- Instagram: @shopminimaloptimist
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/minimaloptimist
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/minimal-optimist-no-title?osq=minimal+optimist
Image Credits
Jonathan Palmer and Corie Stabile
