Since the beginning of the pandemic, Amelia Freeman-Lynde has had to pivot her business in ways she didn’t expect.

Like many other small-business owners, Freeman-Lynde has grappled with inflation and supply chain issues and has had trouble finding staff for her crafts store in Durham, North Carolina.

But things are looking up for her and her business.

“Over the course of 2022, we really brought in some great new people and have had a really great staff,” she said. “So that really feels like the biggest difference.”

Freeman-Lynde celebrated her shop’s five-year anniversary in November.

“Which is a big milestone,” she added. “And we had a really awesome party.”

Although Freeman-Lynde said she feels like she’s on steadier ground, she also feels like she’s run a different business every year since the doors opened in 2017.

“Not only is it year over year been a really different business, but every month,” she said. “I feel like I’m still kind of guessing at how to run this.”

Still, she expressed gratitude for her supportive community and said she’s “not planning to go anywhere.”