The Mustard Seed Gifts owner Susan Southerland, fourth from left, celebrates her East Brainerd store’s grand opening.If you go
The Mustard Seed Gifts is open Wednesday-Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The store is located at 6465 East Brainerd Road.
During a successful grand opening on April 16, business owner Susan Southerland introduced East Brainerd to its newest boutique: The Mustard Seed Gifts.
“There’s a scripture in the Bible that says if you have the faith of a mustard seed, you can move a mountain,” said Southerland, referencing Matthew 17:20. “So we just took the name from that, trusting and believing and totally stepping out in faith for this new business.”
The vintage boutique, located on East Brainerd Road, offers an eclectic selection of items, each individually picked for the store. The selection includes home décor items viewers might find on HGTV’s home renovation show “Fixer Upper,” animal heads similar to those in the pages of Vogue Magazine, baby clothes that are 100 percent linen, hand-stitched blankets, leather-strapped cake boxes and much more.
“I’ve been in a lot of shops around Chattanooga,” Southerland said. “A lot of the things we carry I’ve not seen anywhere else.”
So far, The Mustard Seed’s top-selling item has been its unique mustard seed jewelry, she said. Southerland knew she wanted the seed-based jewelry among her collection, but when she couldn’t find any she liked, she collaborated with local artist Hannah Davidson to design the necklaces and bracelets sold exclusively at the store.
“Most mustard seed jewelry just has the one mustard seed in it,” said Southerland. “These have several in one medallion. It’s just special.”
She said the response from the community so far has been overwhelmingly positive, with several people attending the grand opening, purchasing merchandise and commenting on the store’s Facebook page. The support has been especially affirming, as opening the store has been Southerland’s long-time dream.
She had hoped to launch the business five years ago but was prevented from doing so by breast cancer.
“It was hard,” Southerland said. “Many times I wanted to give up, but I didn’t.”
Through a series of surgeries, chemotherapy treatments and the support of her husband, she was able to defeat the cancer, but she has not forgotten those who are still struggling. As soon she is financially able, Southerland hopes to donate a percentage of her profits to breast cancer research and other community projects, as well as get The Mustard Seed involved in fundraisers for the cause.
She is excited to continue to grow the business, and knows there is one person it would be impossible without.
“My husband, Mike Southerland. He truly has been a rock,” she said. “I come up with these ideas and he’s able to execute it. I couldn’t do it without him.”