July 19, 2023
Veronica Beard Store Opening in Charlotte
We had the pleasure of going to Charlotte, North Carolina for a couple of days to be a part of the Veronica Beard store opening. The Cleveland Clinic worked in conjunction with Maria Shriver's Women's Alzheimer's Movement (WAM) and teamed up with Veronica Beard Gives Back program. On May 11th, 10% of all sales was donated to WAM and I was so thrilled to be part of such a wonderful event.
My Mom and I traveled to Charlotte a couple days before the event. We spent the first night visiting our family friend's home and going out to dinner with their family. It was delightful to see their home and they gave us a great welcome tour of Charlotte. We haven't been there since I was in grade school so I was eager to explore and see the city.
We stayed at The Ritz Carlton which is Uptown and a great location. After working in the morning, we drove around Uptown. The city is very accessible and clean. We had lunch at Cafe Monte French Bakery and & Bistro and it was delicious. Our next stop was Phillips Place mall to check out the location of the new Veronica Beard store.
I needed shoes for the event the next day and Nordstrom was down the road from Phillips Place. The mall is beautiful and we were able to find some gifts we needed and cross items off our shopping list. A large part of my job is finding pieces I like to share with all of you and it was a lovely mall to do "research".
We spent the rest of the afternoon driving around Charlotte and exploring various neighborhoods. Queen Road West has beautiful homes. Charlotte is an easy city to navigate. Before dinner back at the hotel, we stopped for a drink and pretty skyline views of the city at Fahrenheit. The owner and chef also has a restaurant in Cleveland and we wanted to check out his Charlotte spot.
Claire flew in the next morning and met us at the hotel. We were each gifted a Veronica Beard piece of clothing to wear to a luncheon celebrating the opening of the store. The three of us changed and headed to The Duke Mansion. The weather was absolutely lovely - a perfect spring day! The Duke Mansion was gorgeous. It is a bed and breakfast as well as a venue for events. We enjoyed appetizers and refreshing lemonade on the patio while we met so many lovely women from Charlotte. The lunch was hosted by the owner of Peachy the Magazine and it was so nice that the three of us were included.
Veronica Beard is owned and run by two sister-in-laws, each named Veronica Beard. Veronica Miele Beard attended the luncheon with her daughter and it was special to have the opportunity to meet Veronica and have lunch with her.
The long gorgeous table was set under on a side porch of the mansion. We were in heaven admiring the creative and charming tablescape. Each seat had a different plant with a printed name card. My plant was a topiary in a pretty pot. Claire and my Mom each had maiden fern plants.
Before we ate, Blair, the hostess said a few welcoming words and then Veronica spoke. It was fun to see everyone around the table in Veronica Beard pieces celebrating such a good cause.
The meal began with a little cup of tomato soup and a mini grilled cheese sandwich followed by a watermelon and shrimp salad. The dessert was a variety of bite sized treats served on pretty gold tiered trays. The three of us had great conversations and met a variety of interesting women.
Claire, my Mom and I relaxed a bit at the hotel before we changed for the Veronica Beard store opening event.
We arrived early and met the lovely store manager and employees. The store had just been completed that day and it is really pretty. For the event, there were servers offering beverages and appetizers were passed throughout the evening.
Veronica arrived and the store quickly became crowded. We had a ball! So many wonderful followers came to see the store and to say hello. Claire, my Mom and I loved talking to everyone, getting our photos taken and spending time meeting new people. I was so grateful people took the time to come to the event and say hello. Each and every one was a so kind!
We spent time talking to Veronica and taking photos. The evening was really a memorable night for a great cause and our family was happy to be a part of the day.
The next morning, the three of us checked out and headed to the South End neighborhood in Charlotte. The area is full of great restaurants, housing, art galleries and boutique shopping. We ate a late breakfast at Not Just Coffee and walked around, right into Society Social. Society Social is a design company with a store in Charlotte. They are the company that has decorated and furnished the redo at The Colony in Palm Beach. Before heading to the airport, we drove around the South End area.
Charlotte is a great town and our visit was fantastic!