Lino Bella started as a specialty bedding store in Modesto’s McHenry Village but has since blossomed into a local boutique.
By NORA HESTON TARTE
Business Journal writer
MODESTO — Lino Bella, a home décor store with two locations in Modesto and Stockton, started as a passion project for Leila Bibi, born not out of a necessity to work but a desire to run her own business and use her business degree.
Lino Bella started as a specialty bedding store in Modesto’s McHenry Village but has since blossomed into a local boutique that carries home décor items, personal care products and gifts.
Bibi said the shop’s unique finishings can’t be found at other stores in the area because she travels to snag pieces more often sold in large markets such as New York and San Francisco. Bringing the unusual but trendy items to her hometown is one of the most important components of her business.
“It‘s probably the most beautiful shop we have in Modesto. It really rivals a San Francisco store of its kind,” said Modesto resident and long time customer Teresa Pitts. “The selection is unparalleled.”
Bibi takes customer service very seriously.
“Whatever the customer needs, we do,” Bibi said.
“She helped my daughter decorate her place in San Francisco. Leila has great taste,” said customer Avi Nijjar. “You get such good stuff, and it’s affordable and unique, so I really like going there,” Nijjar said.
Bibi said she got into the niche bedding market before spending a lot of money on bedding was a trend. In fact, in 1996, when Lino Bella opened, people simply went to Macy’s to pick out what they needed, she said.
However, as people became more preoccupied with the look and feel of their bedrooms, the need for a specialty bedding store developed.
“People started wanting to cocoon,” Bibi said, noting the average person spends at least eight to 10 hours in their bedroom each day.
Her insightful eye helped her grow a successful business in Modesto and she also opened two more stores, one at Lincoln Center in Stockton and one in Fresno. The Stockton storefront, opened 10 years ago, Bibi said, but Fresno’s location, opened five years ago, closed after three years.
Bibi believes the hometown touch is what makes her Modesto location such a hit.
“I live in Modesto, and I know a lot of my customers,” she admitted.
Despite owning a thriving business, Bibi said it hasn’t always been easy being a store owner.
“It wasn’t really as easy as you think … that you just open and people will come,” she said.
While her schooling at the American University of Beirut in Lebanon gave her insight into how to run the business, and her design classes at Modesto Junior College as well as her eye for beautiful pieces helped it survive, Bibi needed help. In her first year she hired someone to help guide her on the right path, offering financial guidance and teaching her the ins and outs. Today, she is “totally self sufficient.”
Bibi said the financial advice proved invaluable for her small business. When the economic crash came in 2007, Lino Bella survived while many small stores folded.
In order to remain profitable during one of the toughest economic downturns in the United States, Bibi got serious and quickly made sacrifices. Instead of paying staff to do much of the work, Bibi became more of an employee herself, even cleaning floors in order to keep Lino Bella’s doors open. She also cut down on inventory to meet the reduced demand her business faced as people began saving instead of spending.
“You really sacrifice your time,” Bibi said of the experience.
While Bibi admitted to seeing her fair share of hardships as a business owner, she does not feel that any of them come from being a woman in the business world. She noted the majority of retail business owners she meets are female.
While her experience at Lino Bella has undoubtedly taught Bibi all about running a business, that isn’t the only takeaway she’s gained.
“I used to be very shy,” Bibi said. “The business taught me to be more social.”
Bibi also said she learned how to stand on her own two feet and overcome challenges on a daily basis, a lesson she hopes she has passed on to her daughters.
“I think that was a great example for them,” Bibi said of opening her shop. In fact, both of her daughters would like to follow in her footsteps and open their own businesses.
So what’s her advice for other female entrepreneurs? “Go for it.” It’s the same advice she said she gave her daughters. However, she warned that support is crucial. Bibi said she couldn’t have done it without her husband’s help.
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