"We'd like to thank the Academy..." September 17 2014

 We are now well into our second month of our Bourbon & Grits launch, and have been  very excited over all of the support we've received from friends and family who have  shared our information with their friends and family, who have in turn shared it with  their friends and family, etc. We now have people on three continents who are following  us on social media, and we have gotten orders in from the U.K. and all across the U.S. -  literally from coast to coast, and not just the southern states! And the feedback has been  incredible. We're so happy to hear that the styles we are picking are exactly what our  customers have been searching for. 

 And to think it all began with just two! But before we get too far into the fall season, I  wanted to stop for a minute to take you all behind the scenes, so you can meet some of  the other people who helped us make it happen. I hope that this doesn't sound too much  like an Oscars acceptance speech, but we didn't want to go another day without giving  these introductions and shout-outs:

 Hoyle Koontz (and Frogman Interactive) - Of course our list is in no particular order, but I put him first because he works for us DAILY. Hoyle is my husband, and one of our biggest cheerleaders. We have also 

seriously milked that man dry of every single talent that God gave him. He is an award-winning photographer, and in fact, masterminded our first photo shoot that is displayed all over our website.

He is also a partner in Frogman Interactive, who designed our brand (special shout-out to the amazing Tracy Sainte Marie for her design skills!). Hoyle's talents are still used every single day when I pick his brain for his extensive marketing experience. He also edits nearly all the shots that go on our website with his extremely discriminating eye.

 Kevin Durkin - Kevin is Missy's other half and a professional golfer, who is so proud to be a part of  the  Bourbon & Grits family that he even sports our brand on his golf bag for all the world to see. He  has also been  steaming and hanging clothes and schlepping them to and from storage to "studio" - a  thankless but most  helpful job. 

 He is also one of the sweetest guys you will ever meet, and has been a tremendous support for Missy  during  this crazy time. Fun fact - Missy and Kevin are extremely busy parents - a five-year-old  and very active 2 1/2-  year-old twins! Geesh!

Betsy Cobb - We hit the jackpot with Betsy. The beautiful Betsy Cobb isn't just a pretty  face... that lady has the brains to match!!! Betsy  is our CFO who keeps our money  organized and keeps us legal. She has extensive experience in the corporate world and  her advice has been invaluable. 

She is also so excited to be a part of the Bourbon & Grits team that she says SHE'S the lucky one. CRAZY!!! 


 MaryCatherine "M.C." Durkin - This southern girl happens to be married to Kevin's  brother, Brian. Thank you, Brian, for marrying this amazing woman! Her grace, beauty,  style and sweet southern smile are the reason why we can't get enough of her and have made her our  official Bourbon & Grits poster child.

 She has also been a huge cheerleader, single-handedly spreading the word about Bourbon & Grits across  the south, particularly in Mississippi. Go Rebels!


 Jordan Anderson, Jade Burgess, Margaret Cafasso, Clayborne Poindexter and Mary Beth Whitley - Jordan  (bottom right) is not only a family friend, but both Missy and I consider her and her mom, 

Cyndie, (who helped pick out some of the best styles at market!) our family. Jordan has nannied for both of us at separate times and I can honestly say our kids might love Jordan and Cyndie a little more than their own mothers. Jordan brought on board a few of her besties, Clayborne (bottom left) and Mary Beth (bottom middle), with whom we have also fallen in love. 

Then there's my sweet Margaret (top left)... if you can believe it, she was my 5-year-old flower girl at my wedding 16 years ago. I grew up with her equally beautiful mom, Jackie Wolf, so she is also definitely part of my family. Margaret brought with her the gorgeous Jade (top right) who also lent her talents and made some extremely impressive styling suggestions the day of our shoot. We hope to bring her on as a fashion marketing intern in the near future. All of these beautiful girls are featured throughout our website!

Tom Keith, Kasey Revis and Laura Long - I put out a Facebook post asking for help with our first photo shoot and got a call from former Forsyth County D.A. Tom Keith (thanks to his daughter and my high school friend, Jennifer Keith Schell!). Tom Keith and his soon-to-be-wife, Becky, have a beautiful historically significant farm on the outer edges of Winston-Salem. It was the perfect backdrop for our shoot and we felt very humbled and honored to be there.

Through Facebook we were also put in touch with Kasey Revis (thank you Shallowford Shorthairs!) We LOVE Kasey - such a GREAT guy!!! His truck is that beautiful blue truck we used in the photo shoot. Kasey is the owner of Speed Hound Dyno Service and restored the truck after inheriting it from his grandfather. Thanks Kasey, for your generosity!

 And I also have to thank my good friend, Laura. I made a last-minute  panicked call to her asking for help to stage the photo shoot. Laura has a  background in interior design and is so amazingly gifted! She dropped  everything and saved the day. She's in the picture with Missy (here to the  left) - a behind-the-scenes shot from the day of the photo shoot.

Dick Koontz - my 84-year-old father-in-law who (no exaggeration) risked his life climbing all over the roof of a dilapidated turn-of-the-century barn deep in the back woods of Stokes County, North Carolina to help me find the most perfectly weathered grey barn boards. He then utilized his wood-working talents and assembled our backdrop that we now use for all of our styles. Thank you, Dick, for your gift!

Of course there are many others who have helped us along the way - our families and other talented hires and generous volunteers. And really, we feel like everyone who has even visited our website is part of our Bourbon & Grits family - it's the reason behind why we work so hard at our customer service.

So thank you ALL, for loving us, or at the very least, our clothes!