ARTICLE REPRINTED FROM 1999 ENTREPRENEUR ILLUSTRATED

Online Boutique Offers a Simple
Way to Buy Elegant Gifts

by Bridget McCrea

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - The days when the average person had the time to leisurely stroll through the shopping mall in search of the perfect gift are long gone. And while spare time is getting harder to come by, the good news is that the Internet offers a solution for harried consumers.

In 1999, online retailing revenues are expected to top $36 billion (Boston Consulting Group/ Shop.org). Among the retailers taking advantage of this new sales channel is Dianne Mayfield, president of Netique Ltd. (netique.com), a 4-year-old, Internet-based boutique offering cybershoppers unique, elegant gifts in 75 different categories.

Mayfield, a lawyer by trade, says she started Netique.com when looking for an alternative to practicing law. Armed with the desire to do something "positive," she came up with the idea of a mail order gift company. "Helping people be nice to each other by sending beautiful gifts personally satisfies me more than helping them fight legal battles against each other," explains Mayfield, 52.

But a mail order business can be costly to start up, so the pioneering Mayfield turned instead to the Internet. For two years she grew her company from scratch - even handling the design and update of her Web site on her own. By September 1997, the sales were rolling in.

Netique caters to people who enjoy unique gifts, but who lack the time to leisurely browse boutiques looking for the perfect gift for a family member, client or employee. With over 400 different gift items in stock for immediate shipment, Netique also offers a custom collection of products that can be special-ordered.

Products range in price from $28 for the chocolate Monet Japanese bridge or a brush-brass business card case, to over $300 for artistic or handcrafted items like desk accessories accented with Austrian crystals. Shipping costs are based on the total price of the products ordered. According to Mayfield, Netique customers are pampered throughout the entire gift-purchasing process. Her firm offers suggestions, gift wraps, includes personalized gift enclosures, handles the packaging and shipping, and even customizes gift pages for corporate customers.

"I like the suggestions that Netique offers for different occasions," says Silvi Steigerwald of Fort Collins, Colorado. "The gifts are high quality, and the site it very easy to use. I feel like I can look at a lot more in a shorter period of time, instead of having to browse through an entire mall to find what I want."

"We take the work out of gift giving," says Mayfield, co-author of the award-winning book, The Entrepreneur's Road Map to Business Success. "All you have to do is point and click."

In the future, Mayfield plans to expand Netique's product line, while also nurturing and growing her client base. The company employs four to six persons, depending on the season. Since September 1997, Netique has seen a monthly growth averaging 275 percent over the same month during the year prior.

In order to expand her firm's Internet presence, Mayfield says she's currently forming affiliations with other Internet companies. Netique has already been featured on Microsoft's MSN.com, IBM's shopping network and About.com, among others.

As an Internet retailer, Mayfield says her original business challenge was convincing an uncertain public to shop online. With that hurdle overcome by the sheer numbers of consumers flocking online, she says coping with the flow of a "rapidly-changing industry" has become a continuous challenge. "Every day, something happens on the Internet to completely shift its direction," she explains. "The real challenge lies in staying on top of those changes and being able to adjust my business to go with the flow of the change."