There is only one shop in Plant City where colorful, flowing tunics, coffee mugs with mottos and stylish day-planners can all be found in the same place: RAOK Boutique. The new shop opened in The Village off James L. Redman Parkway Dec. 2.
The shop is owned by Hannah Benton and her mother, Brigitte Hodge. The primary items for sale are clothing and jewelry, but there are also gift items such as scented candles and paper goods. Two spacious, well-lit fitting rooms are available.
Benton left her previous job in July, after realizing that it was not the right fit for her. She explored different career options for the next step, but eventually decided to open a boutique. And Hodge was the perfect business partner.
“My mom’s a natural when it comes to this setting,” Benton said.
Benton and Hodge have shopkeeping friends who helped them get started. They went to an October market event in Atlanta, to browse 14 floors of vendors and choose which items they would sell.
The next step was to choose a name for the boutique. RAOK, pronounced “ray-oke,” stands for “Random Acts of Kindness.”
“We wanted a fun, positive name. We want this to be an uplifting environment,” Benton said. “We can do so much with it. We really want to be a partner in the community.”
One way that the shop will contribute to the community is by spotlighting a nonprofit organization one day each month. A significant portion of the day’s proceeds will go to that organization — up to 50%.
Benton and Hodge try to come up with other daily ways to go to the extra step in kindness, such as offering free gift wrap. Benton even hand-delivered an order to a customer in Tampa last week.
The items in the shop come from small businesses, and many were created by Florida designers.
“You can come in and find that one-of-a-kind signature piece, but we wanted all budgets to be able to find something,” Benton said.
Another unique feature of the boutique is that it is located next to two joint businesses that recently opened: Tani’s For Dessert and Buttercream Bake Shoppe.
“We’ve had whole families come in, and then they’ve walked down and had dessert,” Benton said.
From its beginning conceptual stages to its grand opening, RAOK has been a family project. Hodge and Benton said the support of their family and friends has been critical, and working together has been a blessing.
“I enjoy working with my daughter. She’s been out of state for a year after she got married, so it’s fun,” Hodge said.
RAOK BOUTIQUE
Address: 2804 James L. Redman Parkway
Phone: (813) 754-7265
Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday
Facebook: facebook.com/RAOKboutique
Future website: WearRAOK.com
Contact Catherine Sinclair at csinclair@plantcityobserver.com.
