Print
Retail

Realtor Opens My Sister's Cottage At Mayfaire Town Center

By Cece Nunn, posted Oct 27, 2020
Britteny Bellinger opened My Sister's Cottage at Mayfaire Town Center earlier this month. (Photo by Cece Nunn)
For Britteny Bellinger, the name of her store at Mayfaire Town Center has multiple meanings.

"My Sister's Cottage" comes from the fact that she and her sister, who lived next door to each other in Nebraska, started the business together online about a year-and-a-half ago.

It also refers to safe houses for victims of sex trafficking, a cause the business supports.

My Sister's Cottage offers clothing, accessories, jewelry, home decor, furniture and gifts at 6863 Main St. at Mayfaire, in space formerly occupied by Massage Envy.

In addition to merchandise picked and purchased by Bellinger, the store is a co-op with items for sale from eight vendors.

"The reason why we started My Sister's Cottage was primarily to give back," Bellinger said. "So 10% of all of our purchases help us rescue and support women who are coming out of sex trafficking or human trafficking. What we primarily focus on is providing them with a safe home and their needs."

Bellinger, who moved to the Port City in October of last year for health reasons, is also a Realtor and broker with eXp Realty in Wilmington. Bellinger has Mast Cell Activation Syndrome, which among other problems causes intense migraines because of an overabundance of mast cells, a type of white blood cell.

She said her doctors felt moving to Wilmington would be a better environment climate-wise.

"I still get them [the migraines] and I still have really bad days, but it's a lot better," Bellinger said.

Her mom, Suzanne Keen, who worked alongside Bellinger in the store on Tuesday, said, "She always felt better when she was near the ocean."

Helping sex and human trafficking victims came about from a campaign of Bellinger's church in Omaha. But after her health problems surface, she worried about the future of My Sister's Cottage.

'I really thought this business was going to just close," Bellinger said. "And then, you know, [God] kind of just put it on my heart to open it and to start it and to still do real estate, but really make this my main mission."

The store opened earlier this month, and a Christmas season open house is scheduled for Nov. 2 from 4 to 8 p.m. with hot cocoa and cookies.
Ico insights

INSIGHTS

SPONSORS' CONTENT
Mcwhorter 0005

The Coastal Corridor is Helping Wilmington Startups With Connected Devices for Life Sciences Industry

Heather McWhorter - UNCW Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Burrus rob headshot 300x300

Spreading Wings for Flight: 2nd Annual Trade Show Highlights the Ingenuity of UNCW Business Students

Robert Burrus - Cameron School of Business - UNC-Wilmington
Jane

The Childcare Cost Dilemma

Jane Morrow - Smart Start of New Hanover County

Trending News

New Hotel Proposed Along Market Street In Ogden

Emma Dill - Mar 15, 2024

Businesses Reopen A Week After Grace Street Facade Collapse

Emma Dill - Mar 15, 2024

Tech Upskilling Cohort To Host First Wilmington Class

Audrey Elsberry - Mar 15, 2024

In The Current Issue

Topsail-area Realtors Share Updates

Pender County Realtors recently shared updates about the coastal market at an event hosted by the Wilmington-Cape Fear Home Builders Associa...


Expanding Tastes On Castle Street

As John Willse and Beth Guertin, owners of Wilmington Wine bottle shop and now the recently opened Creative Tastings restaurant on Castle St...


Park Progress

The planning for Pender Commerce Park began in the early 2000s when the county wanted to create an economic driver on its largely rural west...

Book On Business

The 2024 WilmingtonBiz: Book on Business is an annual publication showcasing the Wilmington region as a center of business.

Order Your Copy Today!


Galleries

Videos

2023 Power Breakfast: Major Developments