Among a group of stores with black and white signage in Merrillville’s Southlake Mall, a bright pink storefront stands out from the crowd: MJ’s Boutique.
Inside, customers find shimmery dresses and denim jumpsuits hanging next to colorful blouses and racks of knee-length boots. Bouquets of pink roses are sprinkled across the store, and rows of purses, hats, and jewelry accessories line the checkout desk.
Behind the counter, packaging orders and making handmade shirts, is MJ’s Boutique store owner and entrepreneur, Marsha Jones.
The store’s centerpiece, an arched flower wall, reads: “She believed she could, so she did.” Jones, 32, says this encapsulates her journey as an entrepreneur from Gary, making her dreams come true from humble beginnings.
“I was born and raised in Gary, on the east side, so it’s really big on me to just keep going hard and keep trusting God,” Jones said. “I came from nothing, watching my mom struggle and my grandma struggle, so it’s really big on me to continue my business not just for them, but to be the one in the family to be a legacy builder and generational curse breaker.”
After working several 9-to-5 jobs that didn’t quite fit, Jones opened her first fashion store online in 2016. She then started doing pop-up shops, and then graduated to small, in-person stores.
In December 2020, she opened her first storefront. At the time, many physical businesses were closing due to pandemic challenges. Jones said she acted on faith to keep moving forward with her dream.
“I was a little worried, opening with COVID, but for me, my biggest motto is just keeping God first, and I just believe in stepping out on faith and that’s what I did,” Jones said. “God has kept me this far, and he’s definitely going to take me farther.”
Jones’ latest location in the mall is her biggest brick-and-mortar operation yet. Being her own boss — running her business as a one-woman show — she wears many hats.
“Being the entrepreneur, you’re everything,” she said, while bedazzling a pair of shoes one gem at a time “You’re the opener, the closer, I package, I ship. It’s no days off.”
Even as a kid, Jones knew she was a fashionista. She credits her grandmother — who used to own a boutique in Gary and helped her compete in fashion shows — and her faith in God for her entrepreneurial journey.
The boutique is infused with Jones’ personality and flair, even down to the details of the pink themes and Eiffel Tower posters in the store — inspired by her favorite color and her dream destination of Paris. Jones’ floral, pink, and Parisian-themed boutique aims to be a “one-stop-shop” offering women an option for any occasion: a night out, casual streetwear, and urban glam.
While balancing the demands of her professional life, she also makes sure she tends to her family and faith.
“I start my day when I wake up. I read my Bible app. I pray. I take care of my grandmother, who’s 76 and has dementia. So I always make sure I get her together before I leave for work. Then I come here to open up.”
But before she opens her store to any customer, she prays over the store every day, and then again before she leaves at night.
In the time between, Jones enjoys interacting with customers and styling them for their events and special occasions.
Jones said she is proud of her expansion from pop-up shops to a larger mall location and wants to continue to focus on growing her business to more locations. In fact, she’d like to open another boutique in Orland Park, Illinois.
Jones knows there will be challenges along the way, but she is no stranger to taking risks to make her dreams come true.
“Being an entrepreneur is not easy. It takes a lot. The first five years are where you really have to go through the ups and downs. You have to be willing to risk it all,” Jones said. “You’re risking it all for a dream that no one sees but you. You have to be able to be patient and trust the process.”