“I felt like I wasn’t the only one,” began Katie Voss, describing how she was trying to be more intentional about her purchases.
In 2020, the stay-at-home mom was on the hunt for quality crafted goods and home décor, intending to be careful about the things she was buying.
“I started to wonder what it would look like to fill an entire space with items that people could trust the sourcing on, and also bring everything I was finding online under one roof,” she said.
In November of 2020, Voss opened Timberbloom Home & Lifestyle in downtown Watertown to do just that.
Voss graduated from South Dakota State University in 2014 with a degree in architecture.
“From that grew an appreciation for intentional design in both spaces and product design,” she said.
This lens on intentionality, paired with the skills she had learned while helping with family businesses, prepared her well to begin her own endeavor.
“I am learning as I go with the retail game,” she said.
“When you shop with us, you’re supporting more than just our small business; you’re also supporting the makers who create the goods.” -Katie Voss
As described by Voss, Timberbloom is a curated shop with goods from makers all over the country. The store carries over 150 makers and brands, ranging from single person shops to well established brands.
Voss does all the buying for Timberbloom herself, saying she relies on multiple sources to help find products, with social media being one of those.
“When you follow a brand, they’ll tag their favorite people, and you can go down the rabbit trail that way,” she explained. “A lot of them have stories
and you can tell if they have pride in their product. When we find they’ve done the work on their end, it’s a product we want in our store.”
Voss says the maker movement is a fairly tight community filled with folks who are continually branching out, exploring their passions, and refining their crafts.
For Voss, the inventory hunt is fun.
“I don’t think I’ll ever pass the buying on to someone else,” she laughed. “That’s like the top part of the job—finding all those pieces and learning the stories behind how they got started.”
Inventory Check
+ Art Supplies
+ Baskets
+ Bath and Body
+ Beverages
+ Books
+ Candles
+ Cookbooks
+ Cutting Boards
+ Greeting Cards
+ Home Accessories
+ Journals
+ Kids Books
+ Kids Clothing
+ Kitchen Accessories
+ Linens
+ Men’s Cologne
+ Pillows
+ Planners
+ Plants
+ Purses
+ Puzzles
+ Sauces
+ Seasonings
+ Soups
+ Spreads
+ Sweets
+ Syrups
+ Table Décor
+ Throws
+ Toys
+ Wall Décor
+ Wallets
Voss says another favorite part of the job is opening a new box of inventory and seeing a thank-you note inside.
“It happens nearly every time, and it makes it so much more personal and helps us get to know the makers even just a little bit,” she said. “We’ve kept all of them, and it’s a constant encouragement and reminder of the movement we get to be a part of.”
A few years into the venture, Timberbloom had outgrown its 750 square feet in the downtown location. Voss began looking for a new space, intending to expand and engage with the community.
In May of 2023, Timberbloom found a new home in a Watertown development called Sinclair Square. With the extra space, Voss added a kids’ corner and a sitting area.
“I love seeing when the moms bring their kids in. The kids run over to the corner and the moms can just walk around in peace at their leisurely pace and take everything in,” she said.
“The gifts that mean the most to people are the ones that have the most thought behind them.” -Katie Voss
As a mother of three, Voss can relate, and her schedule varies every day.
“Some days it’s a mix of marketing and emails and freshening up the store, and other days it’s household tasks and going for walks and taking my kids to the park,” she revealed.
Always on the hunt for new products, Voss adds that she will search for merchandise during nap time and after the kids go to bed.
Sourcing well made items goes beyond just commerce for Voss.
“In the store we focus on the intentionality behind the products that are made, but when you’re intentional about other things in your life, it creates a much deeper and more meaningful life and strengthens the relationships around you,” she says.
“People can tell when you’re being authentic, and it deepens those relationships.” -Katie Voss
Corporate Gifting
Timberbloom works with businesses or organizations to create gifts for holidays, employee recognition, client appreciation, corporate events, retreats, and more. Delivery and mailing services are also available upon request.
With the holiday shopping season right around the corner, Voss notes that people can become preoccupied with purchasing the newest or greatest gifts.
Instead, she encourages shoppers to focus on the meaningfulness behind the gifts, just as she does when sourcing her goods.
Voss said, “Gifts have the ability to celebrate your loved ones and their story, and when you weave that with the story of how those gifts were created, I can’t think of anything more meaningful than that.”
