Daniel Island Move Sparks Big Dreams

Kim Goides is a proud mom, devoted wife and owner of Karsen’s Kloset, a recycled couture and upscale décor consignment shop and party venue for little girls, teens and ladies located at the Publix shopping center on Daniel Island. Here, she shares her story of how she came to Daniel Island, and how her move led her to fulfill her lifelong dream of owning her own business.

I moved to Charleston two and a half years ago due to my husband’s job. I could barely see through my tears as we pulled out of the driveway of our home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. To say I really did not want to move is putting it mildly. I kept thinking, “I can’t do it. I can’t possibly move away from my home.”

Once we arrived I dried my tears and the world didn’t come to an end. I delved back in to what I knew best: Spending my time being the best mom and wife I could be.

We found Daniel Island thanks to a friend I met in our hometown just prior to learning about our relocation to Charleston. She had just moved from Charleston and talked with great emotion about her love of the city and the Lowcountry. Later, when I talked with her about our move to Charleston, she told us to be sure to take I-526 to Daniel Island when we arrived to experience Charleston’s “Island Town.” I remember that first drive through town on a Sunday morning. Church bells were ringing, people were out laughing and walking, the sun was shining bright and everything looked so wonderful. We immediately knew that we had found our new home, and now, two and half years later, I love Charleston and Daniel Island and would cry my eyes out if we had to move.

But life is funny, and sometimes, just when we have everything we want, we feel compelled to reach out for more. That’s what happened to me.

My mother tells me I have always talked about owning my own business. And I have always been drawn to consignment stores – the love of the hunt seems to be in my blood. But I never could quite figure out how to turn that passion into a business. The move to Charleston must have been my wake up call: One day I just woke up and told myself “do it.”  This wonderful island town, the compassionate people, the grand idea of having a business with the added bonus of it being within walking distance from my home was just to good to pass up.

Friends, family and business people were quick to share their opinions on opening a new business in 2009. I was scared and fear almost stopped me, but for some reason, Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s famous phrase, “The only thing to fear is fear itself,” kept running through my head until one day I marched into a bank, asked for a loan, and promptly fell on the floor when they said yes. I lost eight pounds from the stress of it all. And although I gained it all back, I also gained something else: A belief that I can do it. I can move away from the only home I have known and build a new and surprising life in a town filled with amazing people and great opportunities

I am so thankful that we live in this beautiful and gracious town that has helped me to dare to dream big and follow through.  I can’t be sure where this story will go but I feel braver and able to slay a dragon or two of my own as my family and I continue to build our new life together on Daniel Island.

Some photos from Karsen’s Kloset:

Karsen’s Kloset is a proud Business Partner of the Daniel Island School PTA and currently involved in a fund raiser for the Education Outreach Program. Please stop by the store for details or contact Kim Goides at (843) 408-8010 or karsens@homesc.com.