The Queen Bee of Dogwood

Kelli Spector, Proprietor of Dogwood gift shop on Rainbow Row in Flat Rock.

When Kelli Spector’s daughter graduated from college, she informed her mom that she would not be moving back to the family home in St. Louis. She went on to suggest that her mom find a better place to live. As Kelli relates the conversation now with a laugh, “I had been dismissed. I was free to leave St. Louis!”

And St. Louis’s loss has been Flat Rock’s gain.

Kelli, the owner of Dogwood home, garden, and gift shop on Rainbow Row, took daughter Alison’s words to heart. She and her husband Jason started to consider options around the country for a new home. Kelli thought the Pacific Northwest would be ideal. Jason lobbied for a return to their childhood home in Florida. So they decided to compromise, and western North Carolina was picked as a place they could both be happy.  Kelli had attended Camp Eagles Nest in Brevard and Jason did his undergraduate work at Western Carolina.

The search for a new house brought Kelli and her husband to the Shadow Brook neighborhood of Flat Rock. They happily settled into their new home and Kelli continued her career in the printing, promotional products, and signage industry. “Our new home just checked a lot of boxes for us,” she says, “We wanted an outdoor lifestyle, a place we could garden and keep bees. We both love the mountains and hiking.”

As Kelli and Jason were settling into their new home, Starr Teel was happily creating another new business on Rainbow Row by setting up a small gift shop nestled between The Wrinkled Egg and what was soon to become Honey & Salt. Starr’s wife and Kelli had been in high school together, and he reached out to Kelli for professional help. “Starr asked for my help with branding and coming up with the logo and just helping create the feel for the store.”  The store opened in August 2017, with Starr and Kelli agreeing to be partners in the new venture, and the store was named for a beautiful dogwood that grows out of the patio next to the shop.  

Initially, Dogwood offered arts and crafts from local artists on consignment. That model proved to be a challenge with a supply chain that was subject to the ups and downs of small family-owned suppliers.  Kelli transitioned Dogwood’s offerings to include not only consignments from local artists but items from small businesses and Fair Trade goods as well. At the same time, Starr was embarking on another new venture and bowed out of their initial partnership to allow Kelli to become the sole proprietor of the shop. “The decision was sort of a wing and a prayer on my part. I did know that I wanted the store to be different from anything else in Flat Rock. We wanted to have a real earthy homey vibe.” 

Three years into the venture, Kelli, her husband, and a couple of part-time employees take turns manning the small shop. Kelli’s favorite part of being in the store is watching how people react to the products in the shop.  “I just love watching people laugh at our funny kitchen towels or our greeting cards.  I also enjoy it when men come in the store and they realize they don't hate it. Sometimes they get dragged along by their wives, but when they get here it doesn't feel like a girly store. I think they appreciate our products and our sense of humor.” 

The onset of the pandemic has been challenging but not insurmountable. “We're down compared to last year but it's definitely better than we thought it would be.”  When Dogwood was able to reopen on a limited basis, Kelli was heartened by the customers who showed up immediately.  “People came in and told us they missed us and Dogwood was the first place they went when they were able to leave their house. That was shocking to me.”  Kelli believes with that kind of community support, the little shop with the big personality will be able to weather the storm. “We are leaning pretty heavily on our local customers now and hoping for a good leaf and apple season later in the summer and fall.”

For now, Kelli is delighted to be part of Flat Rock’s iconic Rainbow Row. “It's awesome. We all support each other, and I can practically recite the menu of every restaurant,” she says with a laugh. She also really enjoys the other shops that some might consider competitors, but not so for Kelli. “Virginia at The Wrinkled Egg and I have a great rapport. And Firefly Gallery and The Gallery at Flat Rock are both amazing stores, and people can come to Flat Rock now and see a lot of shopping options. It's great.”

When not working for Harris Technologies or at Dogwood, Kelli is passionate about bees, gardening, and her philanthropic efforts.  “This is my fifth year as a beekeeper. The Henderson County Beekeepers Association has a great beekeeping program that I started.” She has had as many as seven hives at a time and currently has three working hives. She has names for the queen bees in the three hives - Faith, Hope, and Love.  Kelli also keeps a raised bed garden which has evolved into a pollinator garden. “I started planting a lot of milkweed and butterfly bushes all over the place and we have hummingbird feeders. We're in the pollinator pathway here.”

Kelli Spector, clearly a woman with a lot of energy, is also on the Board of St. Gerard House which serves all people touched by autism.  “We have autism in our family  One in 39 kids born in the state of North Carolina are on the spectrum today. The numbers are just really staggering and the work that St. Gerard House does is just absolutely incredible.”

Clearly, Kelli Spector is not a woman to spend her time in idle pursuits. A successful business career, a proprietor on Rainbow Row, and a community leader. You might say she is the Queen Bee of Dogwood and living a life full of faith, love, and hope.