Parsons Gifts & Cards is a gift shop and ladies boutique located at 1500 Peachtree Industrial Boulevard in Suwanee. They sell quality items like jewelry and handbags from Pandora, Brighton, and Vera Bradley. Starting off as a general store in 1925, this corporation turned into a department store in the 80’s and became a gift boutique shortly after. It is the oldest business in Suwanee and was created back in 1925 due to a lack of general stores in the community.
The same woman has operated Parsons Gifts & Cards for the past 36 years. Patsy Odum, the current owner of the business, married into the family business after obtaining a degree at Valdosta State University. Her husband’s family asked her to step in and help out, and after a few years she was handed the keys to the business. She learned the skills needed for the job through working, and states the skills needed to own and operate Parsons Gift & Cards are “multitasking, marketing, and social skills”. After 36 years of running this business, she states that she has learned that many factors affect the business like the economy, gas prices, elections, and the housing market.
The culture for the staff at Parsons Gifts & Cards is small and closely knit, as the workers collaborate on jobs and tasks based on their individual skills. Odum states that her favorite job at Parsons Gifts & Cards is helping the customers find things, especially young children and men looking for gifts for their wives. Her best moment at Parsons Gifts & Cards was her best sales day last year. It was an unexpected 25% increase in sales and the whole staff was so excited to have such a rush in the store.
