CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Michelle Taylor is the owner of Bonded Charlotte. She sells bracelets that can be worn permanently on the wrist.
“I do a little micro weld on the bracelet to close the little ring. That way the ring won’t open and the bracelet won’t fall off right away,” she says, welding the bracelet closed and making her own I said as I fit my daughter Maggie’s small wrists snugly against my body.
They were a military family and moved around a lot. After that ended, changes in Taylor and her husband’s careers led to further moves to California, Utah, Arizona, and now the East Coast. Her daughter Meiri is 11 years old and has moved 12 times, making it difficult to keep friends. But Taylor says Mayli always had a sister.
“They’re definitely best friends,” Taylor said. “And that’s what I wanted her to do, really, both of us, every day.” So whenever they feel lonely, frustrated, or scared, they have always been connected to each other. ”
Maggie switches places with her sister Meili in order to get her own bracelet. And just like that, with matching bracelets, they bond in more ways than one.
This weekend, Taylor hopes to extend that bond to Charlotte residents through Small Business Saturday.
“We want people to give gifts that are more of an experience than just something that they just get and then later throw away or forget,” Taylor said. “We hope that by making a small purchase here, you will receive something that will last a lifetime.”
This time of year determines how well she is doing as a business owner.
“As a business owner, it can be the difference between being able to pay for yourself or not,” she says.
Thanks to Small Business Saturday, even more help will be provided to businesses hit hard by Hurricane Helen. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, in conjunction with American Express, has pledged $5 million in grants to those still recovering from the storm. Funds raised through that pledge this Saturday will go towards additional grants.
