NEW GLARUS — For Brenda Siegenthaler, going to work each day has never really felt like a job. She’s spent her life in retail. As the owner of Brenda’s Blumenladen and Kinderladen in downtown New Glarus, she revels in the fact that no day is the same, and although she isn’t sure what her future brings, she knows she’s not slowing down. 

She was born in Milwaukee, but her father, Andy Anderson, had jobs which kept the family moving often. Almost every one to two years, Siegenthaler found herself in a new home and at a new school. Despite that, she said she made friends easily. She hadn’t known any different. 

As the oldest of three children with a brother and a sister, she said she found entertainment with them in unorganized fun. She could be found romping through the woods, exploring, swinging on vines, riding her bike or pitching a tent in the backyard. 

One thing she did enjoy a lot of was decorating and gardening. She loved flowers and watching things grow. 

“I think my hands were always in the dirt,” Siegenthaler said. “And I always liked to decorate.” 

She said even as a teenager, she enjoyed house plants, and isn’t quite sure where it came from — but likely could have been from watching her mother decorate their many homes as they moved. 

“To this day I still love to decorate my house,” she said. “I get just as much joy in my garden watching things grow.”

By the middle of Siegenthaler’s junior high school year, her father’s longtime dream had come to fruition. He purchased the Ben Franklin store in New Glarus. She said it was the first time the family settled, and she enjoyed the small town and liked being close to her extended family in Madison. 

It was her senior year that Siegenthaler overheard a group of classmates talking about memories from kindergarten and realized she was raised differently by moving so often. But the frequent change of address never affected her, she said.

Her father would run the store in New Glarus for 25 years. Siegenthaler worked alongside him. The store sold a little bit of everything, and Siegenthaler took charge of a plethora of duties. From ordering, office work, merchandise and customer service; she had a hand in all of it. 

Her favorite time of year was the spring when they would sell bedding plants. Later, they would add silk flowers as well. Siegenthaler felt comfort. 

“I learned quickly and I loved doing floral arrangements,” Siegenthaler said.

School wasn’t a big part of her life because of the changes in district every few years. When she graduated from New Glarus High School in 1977, Siegenthaler stayed at home for a while to keep working for her father. 

Though she loved working alongside her father for years, she said her young ideas didn’t always mesh with his. She was always full of suggestions.

“He said to me that I needed to work for someone else,” she said and smiled. “I’m continuously filled with ideas. I probably drove him nuts.”

Siegenthaler said she began working for JC Penney in Madison at the mall and she loved it. She spent three years in the new world of retail and knew it was how she would spend her days. 

“It’s all I’ve ever done,” she said.

Siegenthaler got married and had her first child. She then decided she wanted to work with her father again. Their time apart seemed to bring them closer together and the respect they gleaned a positive respect from each other. 

“All of the sudden, I thought he was brilliant and he liked all of my ideas,” she said. 

Through the years, Siegenthaler has taken courses for accounting, marketing and general business, but most of her knowledge was learned in a practical way. She learned both on the job and from her father, and said she still attends any speakers or courses offered. Siegenthaler said she takes any opportunity to learn something new.

“I’m always eager to keep getting better,” she said.

Around 1996, Seigenthaler said she saw a store on New Glarus’ downtown and her wheels began turning. She envisioned a garden center when she would drive by that windowfront, but wasn’t sure she wanted the work of running her own place. She knew what it entailed from watching her father’s commitment. Despite her hesitance, she took the plunge.

Siegenthaler and her husband purchased the building and she said her intention was to finally sell the things she enjoyed. Her father was there to help her get started. He purchased the merchandise the first two years while she kicked off the business. 

He never actually worked at the store with her, she said, but her father served her through his advice and encouragement. She’s still grateful. 

“He was just great to bounce things off of,” she said. “I’m not afraid to work — I can do anything I put my mind to. I just like to be busy and productive.”

Part of the building was rented for a while, but after just a few years they needed the space. She said the store that started with silk flowers, baskets and bedding plants blossomed quickly into gifts, nursery stock and coolers with fresh flowers. 

A green house was added, along with garden gifts. The store was beginning to feel crowded as they welcomed the chance to sell scarves and jewelry. 

After two decades of success, Siegenthaler found herself at a crossroads. She was in the middle of a seminar, she said, when they encouraged business owners to better utilize the space they had instead of moving to another location. 

So, she took the back lot and added a building to serve as a boutique portion. They kept the main store for home decor. 

“It’s bigger, but in many ways it’s easier because we have more space to do what we do well,” she said.

Her husband, Duane, whom she met while working at her father’s Ben Franklin store, isn’t involved in the day-to-day operations of Brenda’s Blumenladen. However, he is her biggest supporter. She said he has always been a great listener and sounding board. 

In addition to the store, the building space has offices and a lounge for more than 25 employees.

About five years ago, Siegenthaler once again saw an empty store front that drove her crazy. Her affinity for wanting a complete downtown made her purchase it to put something that “made sense” there. A toy store was a no-brainer. Kinderladen was born. 

She said she feels lucky as a business owner to be able to take some time and space when needed because of the employees helping her. 

“All of my employees here treat everything like it’s their own and take pride,” she said. “They act like owners.”

Siegenthaler said the seeds to her success have been constant change and keeping things fresh at all times. She feels constantly filled with ideas, and loves to go to shows to see the latest products.

“We don’t order from catalogs,” she said. “We find things at shows and we look for the newest and the best — we touch and feel things.”

She also said their customer service goes beyond that of other places; they know people by their first names, help them load things, carry children and more. 

Siegenthaler said she finds solace still at home, in her garden. She has been known to not even walk in the house on certain days and instead grabs her gardening boots and gloves and heads out to a place that helps clear her head. 

“It’s my stress relief,” she said. “In the garden I think about nothing but being outdoors.”

She and her husband enjoy do-it-yourself projects together. They also enjoy spending time with their three children and four grandchildren. 

She and Duane enjoy traveling and were thrilled with a recent trip to Switzerland after being among “America’s Little Switzerland” for so long.

She isn’t exactly sure what the future will bring for her and her store, but said she still loves each day coming to a place where she enjoys the people and the work. 

“I love what I do — I have friends who are ready to retire, slow down, get smaller homes — I’m just not there yet,” Siegenthaler said. “Every morning when I get up I can’t wait to get to work.”

She’s a walking example of how finding your passion can make you happy in life. 

“The money comes if you love what you do — and then it’s not really work,” she said. 

And she heeds her own advice, loving each day she spends in her store because no two days are alike.

New Glarus has been home for the longest time for her. She’s glad it’s where her family landed.

“I love the fact that it’s a strong, complete downtown,” she said. “People take pride in their businesses and festivals and activities. I feel so safe here. I love the cleanliness and the people.” 

Something Siegenthaler often says to her employees wraps up how she encompasses so much under the umbrella that’s hers. She said together, they often call the store their “happy place” because of the passion among everyone who works there. And when they look to her for direction — she never hesitates to assure them: “We got this.”