Women in Business: Making people smile is what business owners enjoy
Published 12:00 am Sunday, October 13, 2024
Angela and Doug Gaylord-Miles work on engraving an item at the Women in Business event. — Karen Kistler
Angela Gaylord-Miles prepares to work on a custom order. — Karen Kistler
Doug Gaylord-Miles works on a customers’ order. — Karen Kistler
Attendees browsed at the various vendors at the annual event. — Karen Kistler
F&M served as the settting for the Women in Business chamber event. — Karen Kistler
Kristen Reavis with Novant Health welcomed the crowd to the annual event. — Karen Kistler
Several took the opportunity danced to the music during the evening. — Karen Kistler
SALISBURY — It was an event for women and to celebrate women.
The annual Women in Business chamber event, which was sponsored by Novant Health, Greystone Salon and Spa and the Rowan Chamber of Commerce, featured an evening filled with shopping at the various vendors, salon services, women’s health education, food, fun and the celebration of three cancer survivors.
Twenty-two vendors plus several service lines from Novant Health, which included hospice, women and children, Carolina Women’s Health, the Wallace Cancer Institute, Salisbury Surgical, Imaging Center, breast center and heart and stroke team, participated in the Ladies Night Out event, held Oct. 10 at the F&M Trolley Barn in Salisbury.
Kristen Reavis with Novant Health and event organizer said they focus on vendors that cater to women, and the room was filled with women who came to shop, look and enjoy the evening and from the smiles and laughter, that is what they were doing.
Seeing people smile is one thing that Angela Gaylord-Miles, who owns 2 Nerds with her husband Doug, gave as a reason they got into their business of creating custom order engravings.
“I think when you customize things, people get really excited,” she said.
Angela said that they do custom engraving, “literally whatever people can imagine, we will create.”
She said that was part of the excitement of the business, “that people come up with things we’ve never heard of or seen before, we kind of put our two nerdy brains together and figure out what we can come up with.”
The process doesn’t take long, depending on the detail and size of the item. They calculated that it could be anywhere from one minute to 30 minutes.
In addition to the engraving, they also offer wood cuttings, 3-D printing and they have added screen printing.
“We are working on growing, and we are very excited to become members of the Rowan Chamber of Commerce,” Angela said.
Some of their engraved items are offered in local businesses including glasses, coasters, suncatchers and bookmarks.
“We’re really blessed to have so many Salisbury partners that are willing to put us in their stores,” she said.
Local residents also contact them to do some custom orders.
The two have been doing this work for about a year, Doug said, which they do along with their “normal jobs,” she added.
While at the Women in Business event, they made some customers orders on the spot, which they offer at various functions they attend, Angela said. People can also order by visiting their Facebook page 2nerdsllc, by calling 980-240-2244 or emailing them at twonerdsandtheirtoys@gmail.com.
In addition to showcasing their business, the event had another special meaning for Angela as she said her grandmother died from breast cancer; therefore, “celebrating women recovering from cancer is amazing,” she said.
The event took “a lot of planning,” said Reavis. “Thankfully I think Greystone, the chamber and Novant, we’ve got it down pat.”
This was the ninth annual event, she said, minus several years missed for COVID.
“It started small and it’s just evolved into a big event, highlighting our breast cancer survivors,” Reavis said, which is one of her favorite parts.
Sheila Igo, owner of Greystone Salon and Spa, who did makeovers for the survivors, said it was “an honor to be able to do this for these women, these survivors. We are so thankful to the chamber and to Novant to be able to bless these women.”
Attendees were encouraged to register for the many door prizes and enjoy the food provided by the catering team from Novant Health as they mingled and listened to the music.
Elaine Spalding, president of the Rowan Chamber of Commerce, expressed her appreciation for the sponsors of the Women in Business event and for Reavis and Igo, who she said, led the charge.
She also thanked all of the small businesses that were there and encouraged people to buy local.
Hearing the stories of the survivors, she said, “this is just one of the most meaningful events we do all year long,” Spalding said, and with that she also encouraged women to remember to get their mammograms if they haven’t done so yet.
