Jackie Wilkin opened Rooted Boutique in August 2020 – right in the middle of the pandemic and the week a derecho knocked out power across Fulton.

“I had to push my opening out a week,” Wilkin said. “We put our masks on, and we’ve got a nice big space… so people didn’t feel squished or threatened. When people started coming in, they realized we have good products and quality name brands. And now, I’ve got my loyal customers. They’re like, ‘I don’t even go to the Quad-Cities anymore, because I can get all I need here.’”

Wilkin said she has “always loved retail,” starting with a job at Maurices in college. After moving back to Fulton with her husband, she worked full time in marketing before staying home for nine years to raise their four children, picking up occasional side jobs.

“I worked over at Dandelion Wishes… one day a week, it was my little outlet. And then I worked at Heirloom Marketing Café in Thomson. Before they shut their doors, I managed their market,” Wilkin said. “I was able to be the buyer for the first time. And I was like, ‘OK, I love this.’ They gave me full autonomy to do all the buying and set up all the displays and everything. So that was the trigger to wanting my own store someday.”

After her fourth child was old enough for preschool, she decided it was the right time. In February 2020, Wilkin and her sister-in-law, Kayla, began selling inventory from Wilkin’s basement, offering shipping or doorstep pickup during COVID-19 shutdowns.

“We literally went to market in January 2020, bought all of our inventory, and then the world shut down in March,” Wilkin said. “And our plan originally was to do it out of my basement, sell online, try to get some revenue and then be able to move to a storefront.”

Her prayers were answered when a longtime Christian bookstore in downtown Fulton closed.

“There was one rack of clothing just out of place, and the shirt on it said ‘Rooted in Christ,’ and it had this tree with roots, and I had already had this logo designed,” Wilkin said. “My husband said, ‘Jackie, if you want more of God to tell you this is what you should do, here you go.’”

Today, the boutique carries mostly women’s clothing — “anything from dressy to casual to athletic wear” — as well as shoes, soaps, lotions, Capri Blue volcano candles, Copper Pearl baby accessories, Warmies stuffed animals, jewelry and purses.

Rooted Boutique is located at 1021 Fourth St. It is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Customers can shop in person, online at therootedboutique.com, on Instagram under Get Rooted Boutique, or through the store’s free mobile app, which offers 20% off a first purchase and free shipping.