NAICS Code 4531

Location 626 3rd St , Wausau, WI 54403

Nearby Businesses Jeannie’s Coffee on 3rd, Rillings’s Window Boutique, Downtown Grocery, Bridal & Formal Salon, Black Purl

Owner/Manager Lisa Macco and Randy Verhasselt

Special Store Activities n/a

Year Opened 1998

Website http://www.evolutionsindesign.com

Phone 715-849-2586

E-mail info@evolutionsindesign.com

Community Profile Wausau is located in North Central Wisconsin, and is the largest city in Marathon County. The population of Wausau proper is 38,500, with 80,000 people living within a 10 mile radius. Wausau is known for its mining of red granite, and visitors to this city can also experience the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, the Granite Peak Ski Area and a world-class kayak course. The economy of Wausau is driven by paper manufacturing, insurance, home manufacturing, tourism and a growing health-care industry. Downtown Wausau is experiencing renewed growth with the addition of new office space and a boutique hotel.

Products Sold & Niche Developed

The pillar of Evolutions in Design is their full service floral business. Evolutions in Design provides a wide variety of fresh flowers, ranging from a single flower to arrangements for weddings and funerals. They also have five staff designers who can help a customer craft their own unique arrangement. Along with their floral offerings, Evolutions in Design also has a large retail aspect to their store, where shoppers can buy anything from assorted jewelry and gifts to furniture and artwork by local artists. Evolutions in Design has carved out a niche in downtown Wausau as a store that is constantly changing and adapting. The name “Evolutions” not only applies to their eclectic merchandise, but also because this business works hard to change merchandise and how the store is decorated. As a result, customers will visit Evolutions in Design not necessarily to buy something, but just to see what is new in the store.

Market Segments Served

The typical Evolutions in Design customer is an affluent female who is looking for home décor products. Nevertheless, the variety of styles and prices offered at Evolutions in Design make it accessible to men and women alike, who are looking for a single carnation to an arrangement for an anniversary. The majority of shoppers at this store come from the downtown Wausau area but it is also a destination point for visitors to the city. In addition, Evolutions in Design will provide floral arrangements for businesses outside of the Wausau area.

Contributions to the Business Community

This business was one of the original downtown innovators in Wausau—they renovated a historic building to house their business. Evolutions in Design helps to draw people who are just doing some leisure shopping to the business district, whether they are locals or tourists. Also, Evolutions in Design will refer their customers to other businesses in their area for food or coffee. Finally, some of the businesses around Evolutions in Design adjust their hours to match Evolution’s because of the flow of customers generated by this store.