SISTERS SCOOBY AND KISSIE SHARE THEIR STORY
Meet Kissie Mesquita and Scooby Daughtry, sisters who adore fashion and “as organic as it gets” coffee. Owners and operators of Hippie Kids and Café de Coco, these ladies make designing clothes and inventing lattes while raising families look easy. They brought their talent and passion to Acworth in 2020, and it has been groovier ever since.
Hippie Kids is such a big hit in Acworth. Was owning a clothing store always a plan for you?
“Yes. When I was younger, I wanted to be a soccer star and have my own clothing line,” said Scooby. “Kissie was always interested in fashion and photography, so she took photos of the clothing we designed.”
Through the years, both sisters gained a variety of skills and experiences to become the successful business owners they are today.
“Kissie and I also worked at the Apparel Mart,” said Scooby. “That’s kind of where we realized oh, we could open our own boutique.”
Scooby landed several fashion internships in the Atlanta area, where she got to learn the ins-and-outs of manufacturing, design, sales, and how to locally and ethically source merchandise.
“We also did a lot of P.R. for different companies that had unique pieces,” said Kissie.
Years before opening their online shop, Kissie promoted merchandise for several different companies on her Instagram account called “Hippie Kids” that had around 300k followers.
“We realized we could branch off of that platform and get started on our own little thing,” said Kissie. “We started with designing swimwear and took our first collection to Hawaii to capture there.”
Hippie Kids online storefront was established in 2014.
Something here just feels different than other boutiques; what do you believe sets Hippie Kids apart?
“Well, we design our own clothing, jewelry, and swimwear, so it’s actually completely different because we carry one-of-a-kind pieces,” said Scooby.
“T-shirts, hats and sweatshirts too,” said Kissie. “I think what also sets us apart is the aesthetic of the store. We get so many people here that say, oh I feel like I’m back at the beach!”
Did you have a clear idea of the “Be Groovy” aesthetic? Where does that come from?
“We had a Bob Dylan quote we really loved that said, be groovy or leave, man,” said Scooby. “That was a shirt design we did that a lot of people loved.”
Scooby and Kissie’s goal for their store and brand is to be “a positive and loving atmosphere” where every customer feels better after visiting. The slogan for Hippie Kids is “threading love into the world”.
We asked to hear the story of how Hippie Kids came to be in its Mill District location.
The storefront was previously a drive-thru dry-cleaning business that Scooby passed during her daily commute through Downtown Acworth.
“We wanted to open a store and were looking around for a while,” said Scooby. “This building always stood out to us because it had these crazy-cool plants in the big windows. I would always say to myself; if one day it becomes available, we’ve got to get that.”
When that day finally came around in 2020, Scooby and Kissie took the opportunity.
“It took us a year and a half to build out because it was just us,” said Scooby.
Because the sisters renovated the building, there are many details in the space that are unique to their personal styles and tastes. For example, the hand-poured blocks on Cafe de Coco’s front counter.
“The details are fun to add, and we plan to do more in the future,” said Scooby.
Was Café de Coco always in the works? How did the idea of a coffee shop within a clothing store come into the mix?
Scooby mentioned that a coffee shop was something Kissie always wanted to do.
“When we were kids, myself, Scooby, and our neighborhood friends came up with an idea to open our own little cafe business in Scooby’s room,” Kissie said. “It was called The Sweet Shop, with cupcakes and milkshakes, and one of the neighbors kept coming back for the Oreo milkshake, which is now kind of recreated into our Oreo Latte.”
Scooby added that Kissie makes her lattes out of the best ingredients possible, shying away from preservatives and leaning into organic options. Most syrups are made in-house by Kissie and her husband, Andres, and their signature coconut flavor is specially shipped from Hawaii.
Do customers ask where the best spots are in Downtown Acworth? What do you recommend?
Yes, they do! Especially when we are here at the store, and if they’re not from around here. We pretty much hype up all our downtown shops and restaurants. We’ll send them to Red Top for a great beer, Fusco’s for pizza, 1885 for dinner, and sometimes I even write them little lists, so they don’t forget.
How do people usually respond during their first experience at Hippie Kids?
“I think they love it,” Scooby says. “Everyone is always like, I’ve never seen anything like this, and it’s been fun because we’ve heard stories of customers driving from Tennessee and Florida to come visit.”
Because of their strong social media and online storefront following, Scooby and Kissie have seen a great reaction to their brick and mortar, which has been one of the highlights of Hippie Kids and Cafe de Coco’s growth.
“Seeing the community come together makes our day and encourages us to continue making cool stuff for them,” said Scooby.