Amanda Mitchell & The Gift Shops That Keep On Giving

Ring, ring, ring.

The phone was barely heard over the bustle of excited customers on the sunny Mother’s Day in Junebug, Charlestown’s one-stop shop for all things gifts and florals.

Owner Amanda Mitchell grabbed the phone and saw that the caller ID read “ESPN.” Thinking it must be a mistake, she picked it up. It was a camera crew looking to come in and film a segment of Quest for the Cup, the mini-series being filmed throughout the 2019 Boston Bruins Playoffs run.

An hour or so later, Charlie McAvoy and Matt Grzelcyk were in the shop making bouquets for their moms.

Even though years have passed since that first Mother’s Day in the shop, this is still one of Mitchell’s favorite memories and major a-ha moments.

Before she was the owner of Junebug, she was a third-grade teacher yearning for a career change. (Catering to hockey moms and their floral needs wasn’t exactly on her bingo card, but it wasn’t far off.)

She noticed there was a need in the neighborhood for local shops and wanted to play a part in building up the community. To her, that meant filling a storefront with preppy, cheerful and delightful pieces to fill your home with, specifically tablescapes. When coming up with a name for her store, she went home, set her dining table and wrote down every word that came to mind while looking at it. After creating dozens of different combinations, the name Place & Gather stuck.

To her surprise, the transition from teacher to tabletop decor tycoon wasn’t as drastic as one would think.

“I realized the thing I loved most about teaching was building a classroom community,” Mitchell said. “That’s what I enjoy most about Place & Gather, the community aspect of things. That’s what translated from teaching to being a business owner.”

Just as Mitchell was getting her feet wet as Place & Gather’s first birthday came around, she was approached by the two gentlemen who owned Bunker Hill Florist. After 37 years, they were retiring and wanted her to take over so that a florist would remain in the neighborhood.

With one year of business under her belt and no floral background, she bought in.

“It was not something I ever thought I would do, but after owning Place & Gather for a year, I understood that for other stores and my store to be successful, we needed a vibrant business community in the neighborhood,” Mitchell said.

And so, Junebug was born.

When it came time to name this shop, no table setting was involved. In fact, Junebug was Mitchell’s childhood nickname. Although she was embarrassed of it as a kid, as an adult and new owner of a floral business, it fit just right.

Suddenly, she was a business mom to two-under-2. While she didn’t plan on adding any more stores to her family, she eventually added her favorite employee to the mix, her 3-year-old daughter!

Mitchell says that balancing it all isn’t always easy and is grateful for all the help and support she receives. If you were trying to find her on any given day, your best bet would be in the back of Junebug, where she has a desk and takes most of her vendor meetings.

As for the criteria for a vendor’s item to be sold in either store? It has to be “delightful!” Both stores carry cheery and colorful items, earrings, and accessories aplenty. But, if you’re looking for self-care and bath products specifically, go to Junebug. If you’re looking for a host gift or new tableware, Place & Gather is your place. Better yet, go to both!

If you are in need of some light ~influencing~, Mitchell’s current favorite products are the “Blooming in Charlestown” candle by local vendor Feather + Finn at Place & Gather and the peperomia plants at Junebug. (Don’t worry, she says they are easy to take care of!)

Although she’s great at curating amazing product for her customers, Mitchell has done so much more than that over these last 7 years.

She helped form the Charlestown Business Alliance which serves as a networking group for the local business owners. The group has created traditions such as the Holiday Night Out shopping stroll in December and the May Day celebration of Charlestown. Mitchell also makes sure to give back to the community by hosting field trips from local schools and using her social media pages to bring awareness to neighborhood organizations and other community events.

Her customers weren’t the only ones who recognized Mitchell’s work she does for the community. Last year, Mayor Wu and the City of Boston named her one of 2023’s

EXTRAordinary Women! To her, winning that award made her feel like she was doing the right thing.

At the end of the day, Mitchell’s end goal is for Charlestown to be a thriving, small business-booming neighborhood.

One of Mitchell’s biggest accomplishments since opening her stores has been seeing other boutiques open up down the road. Together, they are all creating a space where folks can come spend a day and shop. (Plus, she’s happy because now she has other stores to shop in aside from her own!)

Sure, she loves candles and fun napkins and funky earrings like the rest of us. And of course, she loved teaching. But she loves what those candles, napkins and earrings are doing for the community more.

“I never understood that I could make a community impact with these stores, the way I feel like I’ve been able to,” Mitchell said. “I feel fulfilled in a different way because I can impact a wider net of people.”

Coming up, Place & Gather is turning 7 in June! Be sure to follow the store on Instagram for information regarding a birthday giveaway!

But until then…Shop at Junebug Tuesday-Friday from 10-6, Saturday from 10-5 and Sunday from 11-3 at 211 Main Street. Shop at Place & Gather during those same times at 26 Common Street.

Follow Junebug on Instagram too!