Business Spotlight: Initials Inc.

Diane Altonen was a stay-at-home mom looking for something to do. In 2009, after attending a workshop, Altonen opened up her own franchise business of Initials Inc. The national company was started in 2005 by two sisters, Brittney Vickery and Ivy Hall. Initials Inc. offers custom designed gifts that can be personalized in a variety of ways. I recently sat down with Diane to talk about her business.

Patch: What is the best aspect of owning a franchise of Initials Inc.?

Diane: I can set my own hours, I can still do stuff with my children and I can come out and have some fun while making some money. If I want to have lunch with my kids I can. I work my own schedule; nights, weekends, mornings or whenever the hostess wants to have a party.

Patch: What is the most challenging aspect of running your own business?

Diane: Meeting new people to hostess my parties. Getting the name out there is definitely challenging.

Patch: What makes Initials Inc. unique?

Diane: The style of the merchandise, the fact that there is free personalization and that my customers get to design their own bags. It's not like they're walking into a store and taking the products off of the shelves. They pick the item from the catalogue. They pick the font, the personalization, the style and what they want to put on it. So it's a specially personalized gift that they're giving to someone or a gift for themselves.

Patch: What makes the Lilburn community special?

Diane: It's where I've lived for the past 16 years. Lilburn is where my kids are growing up. We go to church here, school here and it's a nice community. I like to help the people of Lilburn and I've done some fundraisers around the area. It's a nice way to give back to the place that I live.

Diane can be booked for parties through www.myinitials-inc.com/dma or by calling 770-279-2075.