Honey, I'm Home - A Home Goods Store That Helps You Find A Good Home
New local business owners Erin Sullivan and Riley Elliott opened Honey, I'm Home in mid-April on the corner of Mississippi and Beech, in the old Bishop’s space. Much more than a beautiful home goods store, it's a place for the community to learn about the home buying process in a warm and inviting environment.
We stopped by and asked Erin a few questions about her and the shop.
BNA: What do you love about the Boise neighborhood?
ES: Everyone is so welcoming and friendly! I love the hustle and bustle with so many people walking around here enjoying all the restaurants and unique shops. There's so much to see. Mississippi avenue embodies what Portland is all about; It's unique, artsy and there's always something new.
“We want people to feel comfortable here. It’s not just shopping, although we would love it if you do that too! It’s also a community space where we offer free home buying classes.”
BNA: What do you want people to know about your shop?
ES: We want people to know that it is a space for everyone and to feel comfortable here. It's not just shopping, although we would love it if you do that too! It's also a community space where we offer free home buying classes. My business partner, Riley Elliott ,and I are both realtors. We realized that many people feel that home ownership is unobtainable and out of the question. We want to help educate people to better understand the home buying process step by step so that purchasing a home is an achievable goal, whether it's tomorrow or years from now. Knowledge is power!
We also plan to offer classes for a fee to make fun things like bath bombs, candles, and terrariums.
We sell home goods that make your home feel more like your space. We wanted to help people cultivate their own space with beautiful, sustainable products. A lot of times you don't know where to start, so we wanted to provide really beautiful glassware and cute little mushroom butts, [laughs], that really make you feel at home. To make sure we had enough inventory I made many things like the beeswax wraps, the reusable sponges, and dryer balls. I just made some aprons from fabric I upcycled from a duvet. I also have a skincare line, Dowey Laugh. Sustainability has been very important to me for my skin care line and that has translated over to the shop.
Riley and I made the shelves and display tables from materials from the Rebuilding Center and leftover shelving from Bishops. The large display table top here is actually really special to me because it's a purposed door from the Rebuilding Center. It's like a home, and homes have doors, so it brings it all together.
“We sell homegoods that make your home feel more like your space. We wanted to help people cultivate their own space with beautiful, sustainable products.”
BNA: What's your origin story?
ES: I've also always wanted to open up a store. Originally, I wanted it to be my skin care line and like kitschy 80’s stuff that's hard to find now. But that was years ago, I've grown up a bit since then. [laughs] Then, Riley and I thought, why don't we do home goods; home + home goods go together really well. Riley came up with the name, Honey, I’m Home. That's the origin story. It spurred from my skincare and our real estate businesses combining all of our passions into one. So we opened a home goods store in a really welcoming environment that is also a home buying education center.
We found this space and fell in love immediately. We love the location, the community and especially the garage door that opens up. You could spend months and months thinking about opening a shop, or you can just do it! We took the leap and got a personal loan to open this store. The landlord took a chance on us as new business owners. He passed on bigger corporate businesses that wanted this spot because he wanted a locally owned shop here. We're so grateful.
Anyone is welcome to just chill here or shop. We have lemon water, coffee, a cozy couch and cute homegoods. Come stop by!
Interview edited for length and clarity. Photos by Zack Stack and Erin Sullivan.