Shannon Maldonado decided to leave her fashion design job to open a home goods store in 2015, writes Shannon Eblen for The New York Times.

Maldonado, who had spent a decade on design teams for several major brands in New York, such as Tommy Hilfiger and Ralph Lauren, moved back to her native Philadelphia and opted to open a modern gift shop. She named it Yowie.

After spending years in a tiny store in the Queen Village neighborhood, she has recently moved her shop into a much bigger space.

The new location is on the ground floor of a new Yowie hotel at 226 South Street, which was designed and is co-owned by Maldonado. The hotel is slated to open its doors this summer.

“My dream was to be connected to a hotel,” she said. “I didn’t know that would be my hotel.”

The 13-room Yowie hotel will also have a cafe and its decor will be for sale. Guests who like a cup in their room or a table the cup sits on will be able to buy those items either from the Yowie store or directly from a maker.

Read more about Yowie in The New York Times.

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