Good Neighbor Podcast South Charlotte
Bringing Together Local Businesses and Neighbors of South Charlotte.
Good Neighbor Podcast South Charlotte
Little Pumpkin Decorators-Fall Decorating Reimagined: The Little Pumpkin Decorators Story
What happens when two entrepreneurial moms combine their creative talents with their love for fall? Christine Davis and Ashley Bunn answer this question with Little Pumpkin Decorators, their South Charlotte business transforming ordinary porches into spectacular seasonal displays.
The magic begins when clients select from four thoughtfully designed packages—ranging from the modest Mini to the show-stopping Grand Pumpkin—along with three distinct color palettes that complement different architectural styles. While many clients initially focus on pumpkin quantities, Christine and Ashley emphasize that the true transformation comes from understanding the overall aesthetic. Their expert combinations of heirloom pumpkins, traditional orange gourds, strategically placed hay bales for dimension, and vibrant mums create displays that repeatedly inspire spontaneous entertaining.
"You just changed my whole holiday!" exclaimed one client who immediately planned a Friendsgiving after seeing her completed porch. This reaction exemplifies why these decorators find their work so rewarding—they're not just arranging pumpkins; they're creating gathering spaces that foster family connections and community. With sustainability built into their model (all pumpkins eventually become treats for animals at local farms), Little Pumpkin Decorators has established a business that aligns perfectly with their values as mothers and entrepreneurs.
Ready to transform your entryway this fall? Whether you're looking to enhance your home, business storefront, or even create a stunning backdrop for a fall wedding, visit littlepumpkindecorators.com or call 704-840-3017 to discuss your vision with Christine and Ashley today.
Little Pumpkin Decorators
Christine Davies & Ashley Bunn
Charlotte, NC
(704) 840-3017
decorators@littlepumpkindecorators.com
littlepumpkindecorators.com
Hi everyone, and welcome to part two of our podcast series with the owners of Little Pumpkin Decorators, based in South Charlotte. We have with us Christine Davis and Ashley Bunn, the co-founders and co owners. Welcome, ladies, thank you for having us, absolutely.
Speaker 1:So in the first one we talked about kind of your journey to this and your why, and I love everything. You guys, you know you put so much genuine thought into your model as moms, as people that are still ambitious and have a creative outlet, so I love all that. So let's today, you know, looking at your website and I'd love for you to really walk us through your business model. Can you walk us through what a typical project looks like from beginning to end? Ashley, you want to share that, sure?
Speaker 3:um, so typically the client will book the package and there are typically some questions they ask because they're not really sure. Um, so we get some pictures of their house and then we kind of decide what would look best. And then, um, our kids help us pick the pumpkins. So we'll kind of guide them, like we need 20 white or 30 yellow or whatever, and they help pick. And then we load up the truck and there may be a child with us and we go to the house and we start decorating.
Speaker 3:We've already have a plan as to where we're gonna put the pumpkins and how we're gonna decorate them. But once we get there it does change a little bit because the house is different than you see in a picture. Maybe the stairs are a little wider, maybe, you know, the Sun's coming from a certain way or whatever different, very variable. So we kind of assess all that and then we just kind of start, you know, putting the, the display out. Um, then we let the client know we're done and then they come out and they are just like oh my god, yeah, like they're always so big reveal yes, and I'm always like, oh, go ahead, hope they like it.
Speaker 3:And then they're like, oh, this is amazing, and they're just so much more excited, which I think you know, christine and I both love that so much and you know, like the husband's like it and the kids like it and you know it's I don't know it just brings a lot of joy and and it seems to kind of create more like family connection, um.
Speaker 3:So so that's our favorite or that's my favorite part. And then I just check it, we check in with them like every so often, just make sure everything's good, and then if they decide to have us pick up the pumpkins, we'll go back and pick them up at the end of the season and there are weeks that we do that, so they would pick that time and then we load them up and we take them to a two local farms in Charlotte and then we load them up and we take them to a to local farms in Charlotte and then the pumpkins are treats for the animals.
Speaker 3:So Wow yeah, mm-hmm the kids love that the customers love that just kind of full circle so, christine, just right the process.
Speaker 1:Okay, I'm interested in what you guys have to offer. What do I do now?
Speaker 2:so this year where, um, we put a lot of processes and systems in place, that's kind of like where I um, where my expertise comes in Ashley's like the designer, and really focused on the art and I've kind of put into the process and support the business. So we have a website this year, which is awesome. We put together four different packages in terms of sizes. So we've got our mini package all the way up to the grand pumpkin. So think you know a little, yeah, so if you have, like you know, three, three or four steps and kind of they're kind of narrow, you're probably going to want the mini Um. But if you've got a nice large landing, um, even like just a couple steps on the landing and you can really do a nice display of like with hay bales and different heights, you're going to want the grand pumpkin. And then we've got a couple in between. We've got the spice and the patch. So we've got, you know, a range in sizes for everybody's budget and everybody's desired outcome. And then we've also got three palettes. So when they go onto our website they choose the size that they like and then the palettes.
Speaker 2:So we've got the vintage, which is kind of those muted fall colors, heirloom pumpkins, primarily a few little. Maybe we'll use the white pie pumpkins and things like that and that really we find that that palette really goes well with a white house. It could be on any house, but you know that looks particularly nice. We've got the vibrant, which is those big colors of fall. So we, you know those yellows and greens and orange and you know all the colors that you kind of think of, from pumpkins to gourds. We'll use big gourds and small gourds and big pumpkins, small pumpkins. And then we've got our classic, which is that orange, green and white, and so those really give the ability for you to kind of customize what works best for you and your family and what you desire.
Speaker 2:And then we've got some add-ons as well. So we have three of our packages come with hay bales because they're larger, so we would want to have like opportunity to have some height on some of those pumpkins. And then you can add on mums, and mums really completes the look. I have to tell you that that is, if you don't go with mums, you might, you know, regret it because it really, like you'll notice, from our gallery we've got some that have mums, some that don't, but in my opinion, it just really you know, moms really speak to fall. So we've got that as an option to add on to your package. And then we've also got where we're offering that grand prize pumpkin, which is that huge one. If you like to go big, this is the big trust me, it's very big.
Speaker 2:And then we've got also, depending on how your yard is and you know how your display desires are. You know, if you have like an island kind of space and you're landscaping, we offer a harvest fall, harvest add-on where we'll put an additional display in one of your like maybe it's by a tree that kind of sits off of your driveway. There's different options there. So we've got like a lot of ways for you to customize your look. So even if your neighbor books with us and you book with us, you won't get the same display.
Speaker 2:So we've yeah, we've really tried to think through of ways that we can make our, make our clients feel like they have control over the design process and then they can always reach out to us if they don't, if they don't know what would look good, and we'll be confirming the bookings the week prior. So we're going to do, we'll Google their address, get a street view If we notice like, hey, you might have booked something too big, believe it or not, that can happen, right. So we show up and it's a very small porch but they're like, oh no, I need the grand pumpkin. So we want to make sure that they realize like, hey, this might you know you might be having to trip over pumpkins to get to your front door. Or you know, like you know we want to make sure we you know we're transparent, right, so we might.
Speaker 2:Or if we notice like, hey, you've got this massive porch but you only booked the mini, you might regret not upgrading because it will. You know the pumpkins will basically be hidden, or you know it won't look like much, so we'll we'll want to confirm that with our client. So just so they know.
Speaker 1:What comes to mind with me right now is oh my gosh, now I got to have a party because my front door looks so good.
Speaker 3:Yes, yes, this happened last year, yes, which which we loved because again it was like more like the connection and the family and the community the friends, so they have this awesome portion. Like we gotta have a party. Like, yes, have a party and you know they'd say, oh, we haven't had a party in you know five years or since you know whatever. So it's nice to just inspire that, yeah, yeah they um, that particular client.
Speaker 2:They were going away, I think, think to Dallas or something, for Thanksgiving, but she was like, oh no, we have to have a friendsgiving, because this is too good. I need pictures of all of my girlfriends around this display on by my front door. So it was, it was really awesome. But she was that way. She walked outside and she's like, oh my gosh, you just like changed my whole holiday.
Speaker 1:Well, I love that. So what are some of the misconceptions you guys run into? And I don't know which one of you should answer this, but you've got this new client you've talked about. You know they might think too small or too big. So what are these misconceptions, ashley, you take that.
Speaker 3:I think when they understand how many pumpkins each package includes, they kind of stick to that number and they'll think, oh, 40 pumpkins, like that's too much. So I think staying away from the number of the pumpkins and looking at the look on the website, so kind of deciding what look they like and going with that and forgetting about the number of pumpkins, and then something too is like the hay really adds so much dimension. I mean you can create such a like really cozy or luxurious vibe with adding the hay, because you can stack the pumpkins in different ways and you can kind of shape them and just create. I mean it's just kind of crazy what we've been able to make with pumpkins and hay, um, and then like, um, like christine was saying, the mums, they really do just make it pop and they make it more cozy and comfortable. So it kind of goes back to what, what you're looking for, the kind of look you want. But mums are great and the hay is great for dimension. It really can create a grand look.
Speaker 1:Christine, you mentioned before, you guys can do businesses, commercial and event.
Speaker 2:Talk to us a little bit about that. Oh yes, so we, you know it's not limited to just residential, obviously, that's where you know our focus is. But we would love to bring pumpkin displays to a business storefront, especially if you're doing like a fall special or or if you're like a photographer and want to do a fall like fall mini session. We would love to style that for you and I hope somebody books us for a fall wedding this year. I would love to do a fall wedding and really make that custom for their colors.
Speaker 2:You know there's a lot we can do with. Like just the greens and the whites just do pink and black pumpkins. I mean you, it's really. I had no idea the pumpkin world until last year and just learning all the different color palettes, all the different shades and the things that we can really do with, you know, stacking them and making big. You know it's. I really hope that we get one this year because I would love to see that as an entrance to a church or an entrance to their reception. You know, I think it would be just fabulous.
Speaker 1:So so what areas of Charlotte do you guys serve currently Ashley?
Speaker 3:So the majority of the clients are in the Myers Park, eastover area, um, and then we do mostly South Charlotte, um, if you think of like Charlotte as a circle, kind of like that bottom triangle is where we've really focused on. Um, we can deliver outside of that area. There's just a an additional fee gotcha.
Speaker 1:So uh the so South, so South Charlotte, like Valentine Waxhaw. Marvin, do you have anything you want to add, either one of you?
Speaker 2:If you have questions about what porch or what display would be right for you, you can email us. We're open to getting on the phone. You can send us a picture of your porch and say what would be good, um, or you know, just you know, take that leap, get on our gallery. Um, have have a look. Um, yeah, we're always available for questions.
Speaker 1:Yeah, your website's beautiful and you have the gallery. What is? Tell us what your website is?
Speaker 3:Um. The link is www. littlepumpkindecorators. com very good and phone number 704-840-3017 thank you, ladies.
Speaker 1:I'm so excited this you just I can see you by the smiles on your face. You, you love, love, what you do. I just have visions of this being just such a big success. Thank you.