“This was one of the hardest decisions I have had to make over the last four years but I know deep down it is time for us to grow and move forward.” That was part of the surprising message 20-year-old Victoria “Tori” Swann posted for her thousands of social media followers on July 29. She was announcing that Free Spirit Threads, her clothing store on Poplar Street in Downtown Cambridge, would be closing on August 25. The business will go online-only in September.
She tried to sound upbeat and optimistic about the future, stating that she is “excited to grow beyond Cambridge.” And she will be concentrating on changes in her personal life over the next year. But there are also other reasons for the closing of the business she started as a 16-year-old high-school senior, and they’re not all positive.
Swann began selling high-quality thrifted clothes online when she was 14. She was successful at it but decided she wanted to get into the new-clothing line. Her inspiration to open her own store was the perceived lack of local shopping options for teenagers. Using her savings, an inheritance from her late father, and money that would have paid for college, she opened her “modern boutique with vintage charm,” Free Spirit Threads, on October 17, 2020. Dorchester County Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon cutting on the 20th.
“The ribbon cutting, that was amazing,” said Swann. “That was great to meet a bunch of people.” She remembered that the store was busy all that day, selling more than 200 pieces of clothing.
The young owner has always handpicked every clothing item or accessory offered, many of which are significant brands such as Free People and Sun Bum. She credits her high-quality brands for the clientele she’s attracted from Talbot County. Free Spirit Threads has won area awards for Best Women’s Clothing Store.
Part of Swann’s success can be attributed to her marketing savvy, including her online ads featuring young women modeling the clothes. She called on her friends from school and dancing for help but also conducted social media outreach to bring in more models from places like Easton and St. Michael’s. Additionally she organized and participated in local events such as the Holiday Market that was cosponsored by Blue Ruin.
“We had several people, vendors last year at our event and the year before, and multiple of them made so much money,” said Swann.
In fact, 2023 was the best year of business for Free Spirit Threads. But 2024 has seen foot traffic decrease so much that sales are about half of what they were last year. Swann cites the economy, local crime, and the fact that it’s an election year for her store’s downturn. She also blames the negativity of Cambridge citizens and business owners on social media.
“I have multiple tourists that come in here and say things like, ‘Oh, I read about this on Facebook, and it’s really not as bad as it seems,’” she recalled. “But I mean, yeah, we have some issues and they could be fixed, but instead, like, everybody was worrying about arguing with each other on Facebook. So, that’s part of our issue. I really believe social media has really killed a lot of business down here.”
Swann also bemoans the lack of support from the community and the Cambridge Main Street group, which used to be very helpful. Beyond that, she has tried several times to organize community events like the Holiday Market.
“Just imagine what that would have been like if we could have gotten a street closure with vendors filling the streets,” said Swann. “But we could never do that because they just don’t want it.”
So, she is transitioning to an online-only business. It’s not that great a change, because many of her sales are online now anyway. She’ll be able to work out of the new house in Hurlock she’s moving into with her fiancé, Nathan, next month. And she won’t have to keep the racks full or pay a lot of overhead.
Will Swann every open another brick-and-mortar shop? “Maybe one day. I don’t know about here again, unless something seriously changed. We need a lot of help down here, and that’s not by building new stuff. It’s by fixing what’s already broken.”
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Such an enterprising young woman.
Need more young people like her.
Best of luck but I don’t think you will need it.
Sorry but I see what she means and I have read between the lines. After almost 9 years here I rarely give my business to locals. So much improvement needed. Even the farmers market has price collusion.
Any loss of a store-front business hurts the entire town. The loss of the large restaurants that were in town for a long time make the entire downtown area look depressed. At some point, it becomes hard to recover. It is seems too late for the town to keep enterprising young women like Ms. Swann committed to a brink and mortar shop. Hopefully she’ll do great online and the town won’t lose more business.
Well, it would help if places like North Star Village were actually open instead of hogging up half a block and then doing absolutely nothing with all that grant money. It’s like they want the rest of the businesses to go away for some reason.
I am so sorry to hear about the negative reactions this bright young entrepreneur has gotten. The town of Cambridge should be working with small downtown business owners to keep storefronts occupied. Best of luck to you Ms. Swan !