Gift Buying is Blissful at Curated By Blis
Curated by Blis focuses on using local vendors and products made in North Carolina.
Choosing just the right gift for someone special can be stressful, but not if you visit Curated by Blis in Charlotte. The shop has something for everyone and the owners – mother and daughter Susan Young and Whitney Ferguson – give that personal touch that ensures your gift will be perfect.
Susan organized home shows back when Whitney was in high school. “It was really what we would call a pop-up now,” Whitney says, ‘and that’s when I caught the bug. I had always wanted to work for myself and had an entrepreneurial spirit.” After graduating from college, Whitney worked for a while in uptown Charlotte and quickly realized the shopping opportunities were limited. “I did some research and eventually found a location in uptown for a small store.”
The shop featured a variety of gifts that could be purchased singly or combined into a gift box or bag. “We crafted a business around the audience, which was men and women who worked in uptown,” Whitney says. “I’ve always had a passion for gifting and working with people. We created a lot of gifts for babies, showers, weddings, birthdays, and as needed, sympathy gifts. We offered complimentary gift wrapping to tie it all up with the perfect bow.”
Whitney and Susan were in their first location from 2004 until 2013 and then moved to a bigger spot until 2020. “We had endured the recession, which was quite a journey, but Covid hit us hard because no one was working uptown,” Whitney says. “We started a small operation out of my carport and garage. It was open-air, so it felt safer during those times when we were all being so careful.”
Blis customers continued to find Whitney and Susan through social media and also at pop-ups they did all over town. One of those customers was Cari Berger, TowneBank senior vice president and private banker. In September of 2021, Blis opened in a new permanent location at the Social Shop in Charlotte, co-founded with Lauren Fisher’s Little Red Shop, offering a wide variety of gifts, bags, and boxes.
Whitney and Susan are focused on using local vendors and products that are made in North Carolina. “In 2004 when we first opened, it was nearly impossible to find things made in North Carolina. Now we include products in our bags and boxes that are made right here.”
Mother and daughter team Susan Young (right) and Whitney Ferguson (left) created Curated by Blis providing a personal touch to gift giving.
Bear Foods is one popular brand out of Matthews, NC. Owner Mac Brydon played basketball for the Mercer University Bears in Macon, Georgia and launched Bear Foods during his senior year. They offer a variety of peanut products, including the popular dill pickle gourmet peanuts. A percentage of each sale goes to support Rainbow Express Ministries which helps young adults with disabilities through job training.
Other locally sourced products that Blis carries include Queen City Crunch, Piedmont Pennies, Poppy Popcorn, and Dewey's Bakery. “I love cultivating relationships with local vendors. We support them and cheer them on as we encourage everyone to shop local and shop small,” Whitney says.
Cari chose Blis to create custom gift bags and boxes for a variety of occasions. “I am so honored that she came to us for the gifting needs at TowneBank,” Whitney says. “We had been talking about changing banks after Covid. We were with a big bank and they were no help at all. We wanted a different partnership; someone we could talk to and bounce ideas off of. Cari is so supportive. It’s like the planets aligned to bring us to Towne, and we couldn’t be happier.”
If you are looking for the perfect gift, visit CuratedByBlis.com.