N.C. businesswomen make ‘cool’ impressions

Several of the companies that are making the “coolest things” in North Carolina have women as their Chief Executive Officers (CEOs). Each business has its own fascinating story. 

Let’s start with Memory Lane Boutique in Cooleemee, located on the South Yadkin River in Davie County.

 

Owner Denise McDaniel spent many years working as a seamstress in the garment manufacturing industry, but one day she struck on the idea of producing hand-crafted memory bears and memory pillows “to help others turn their memories into keepsakes.”

 

It started out as a “side hustle,” she joked, but in January 2015, she was able to “focus full time on Memory Lane Boutique.” 

“Today, I stitch smiles,” she said. Miles of them.

 

Her customers send in their orders along with favorite clothing items of deceased loved ones. She can work with shirts, a batch of neckties, winning team jerseys, graduation or wedding gowns or service uniforms. 

McDaniel also specializes in sewing Christmas stockings and ornaments. Go to memorylaneboutique.com. 

Melissa Wallace is the owner SIPPIN SNAX Craft Beer and Wine Snacks, based in Greensboro.

 

On a quest to find the best “dive bar” red peanuts, Wallace was possessed in 2017 to launch her own brands – seasoned peanuts that are paired with “our favorite sips.” 

“Every beer and wine style was part of the experiment,” she said. “It was quite fun and even a bit tipsy at times,” Wallace quipped.

 

Several varieties of snack products are now available. Check the inventory at sippinsnax.com. 

A visit to the American Prohibition Museum in Savannah, Ga., in 2013, “motivated” Melissa Katrincic to become modern-day moonshiner and form the Durham Distillery. 

Both she and her husband, Lee, were well-situated in their separate careers within the pharmaceuticals industry, “but I knew playing it safe wasn’t me,” Melissa Katrincic said. “I wanted to pursue adventure.” 

Her mother reminded her: “We’ve always been a martini family.” Indeed.

 

“My grandfather made a very big production out of cocktail hour. On the weekends, when we would visit, my ‘Bop’ (as I called him) would always be sure to add at least five olives to his martinis because he knew I would inevitably sneak many of them. I loved the taste of gin-soaked olives at quite an early age,” Melissa Katrincic remembered. 

Once husband Lee, a chemistry wizard, came up with the precise formula for their gin, they named it “Conniption,” as a tribute to Melissa’s grandmother, who often admonished: “Well don’t have a conniption fit, Melissa.”

 

Durham Distillery opened its doors in 2015. Visit durhamdistillery.com. 

Mabelene Gwyn Harris was the matriarch of a family business that took root in State Road, a small community in Surry County (near Elkin). She and her husband, Ralph, were dedicated to serving the “horse riding sector,” by making saddles and other leather products – one at a time.

 

They formed the company that became Harris Leather and Silverworks “at her kitchen table.” Their sons, Phil and Eddie, joined the company after college. Phil specializes in making exquisite leather saddles; Eddie is a talented silversmith. 

 

The Harris family travels to several horse shows a year to sell their products to eager customers.

“The American quarter horse show industry is primarily our bread and butter,” Eddie said. “The show horse market is primarily driven by women.” Luxury, elegance and fashion are important in saddle making. 

Phil commented: “A horse and a girl are natural friends.” 

Learn more at harrisleather.com.

Mabelene died in 2021 at age 81. Her three grandchildren are now fully engaged in the business operation and are intent to carry on her legacy. 

This photograph of the Harris family was made in 2017 at a local chamber of commerce function in Elkin. At the far left are Ralph and Mabelene Harris. Next are: Mary Gwyn Harris and her father, Eddie Harris; Phil Harris and his sons, Stanton and Preston Harris. At the far right is Phyllis Harris, who is married to Phil.