Alexandra du Pont grew up in the Bay Area of California and attended Santa Clara University. She was the youngest of five children, which she says was great training for a future entrepreneur.

“When you are one of seven family members, you have to figure out how to work together with everyone else," she said. "Each member shines in their own way, while also learning from each other.”

After graduation, she worked for a marketing agency and later for several tech start-up companies doing their marketing. 

In 2002, she moved to Washington, D.C., to help take care of her grandfather and found a job in the hospitality business doing event planning. Not long afterward, a good friend of hers convinced Alex and her husband to buy a house in Rehoboth Beach, telling them it would change their lives. And indeed it has. 

Once they became homeowners, Alex thought owning a business in town was a natural next step. With her experience in the hospitality industry, starting a retail business seemed to capture the skill sets she had developed with respect to creativity, design and serving customers. It also tapped into her retail experiences as an “excellent shopper.” But it’s the customer interaction that truly excites Alex about her store, Lucky Poppy. When walking into her store, visitors are immediately greeted. Between that welcome, the colorful design and the layout of the store – and what she sells – one can quickly see and feel why it’s a happy place.

Alex sells clothes she describes as fun and pretty, but also carries perfumes, soaps, jewelry, accessories and some limited home furnishings. When asked how she decides what to buy given the extensive selection she offers, Alex has only one rule, “I have to like everything I sell in the store. I want to bring items to our customers that are unique, visually appealing and reach all age demographics.”  

As a first-time store owner, Alex knew if she wanted to create a happy environment, she had to find the right people to work there and make sure they reflected the culture she hoped to express. 

“I learned quickly as a store owner that I can’t do everything by myself, and hiring people who bring different skills to the business was important to me,” she said.

One of the things that drives Alex’s focus with her store is what she considers to be the unique personality of women. 

“Women tend to be overly critical of themselves and are harder on themselves than men," she said. "As women age, the pressure to keep up with how they look can accentuate that tendency. So for me, it is important that women who come into our store leave Lucky Poppy feeling good about themselves and what they have purchased."

Alex enjoys being a part of the business community in Rehoboth Beach. She believes the more wonderful stores and options that exist in town, the more successful everyone will be. She believes there is no end to the great shopping that exists in Rehoboth, with the plethora of creative and entrepreneurial business owners who work hard to bring customers to town. 

Alex has been pleasantly surprised by the number of shoppers who come to her store during the off-season.

“When I come into town in the morning, particularly in the summer, I see the parking spots filled with people going to the beach instead of heading out to do some shopping," she said. "So we all have to figure out how to be successful throughout the entire year, given that we live in one of the most popular summer beach destinations on the East Coast.” 

A challenge for Alex, as it is for so many retailers, is the availability of anything and everything online. But she also believes that people are craving more interaction with other people, which they get coming into her store. And maximizing that experience is what Alex and her staff hope to achieve with each customer.

If Alex could go back in time and give her 18-year-old-self some advice, it would be to cherish the relationships she has developed. No one could have predicted the significant impact the smartphone has had on society, she said. Being able to connect with other people will not only be important but also essential for overall health. And do that while being your authentic self, she said.

"You’re a unique person and you have that unique opportunity to influence the outside world, based upon who you are," she said.

People may come into Lucky Poppy looking for something specific to buy, but what they may not realize is awaiting them is a unique and fun experience that will leave them longing to return to that happy store on the corner, in one of our great little beach towns.