Spotlight On Jan Boydstun – Owner Of Kitchen Kitchen

I graduated from high school in 1978 and started Long Beach State that same year. I drove right from Palos Verdes to my dorm and then lived in Long Beach/Seal Beach from 1978 to 1989, when I came out here. I thought it would be a four-month thing to help my parents as they transitioned to a new location in Indian Wells and phased out their Rancho Mirage store. They had four months of two leases overlapping right in the prime of the season. So, I put my stuff in storage, left the restaurant I was managing in Seal Beach and headed here.

Just two weeks shy of my four-month stint, a guy walked into the store selling gift cards to Gold’s Gym. I bought one, but when I got to the gym, it ended up being bogus. The guy at the counter was very nice, though, and let me work out anyway. Semi-defeated, I got on a Lifecycle and it wasn’t long before I noticed this cute blonde boy running around with a lot of energy. He had a great personality, I could just tell. I heard him talking about tennis and I had played on the tennis team at PV High. So I walked up to him and challenged him to a match. And he said yes. We played tennis the very next night and just hit it off. And I immediately knew he was the one.

In the meantime, the Rancho Mirage store continued to be busy and I finally told my parents, “So many people have come in and said, ‘You can’t close this store! We won’t drive all the way to your other store.’ Whether I stay or not, you guys need to think about keeping this location.” But they couldn’t do it without my help. So I figured, “I kind of like it here. And I really like this boy. I’m almost 30, I’m not married. I’m going to just go ahead and give it a go!”

For the next ten years, we had two stores. I ran the Rancho Mirage one. And it was great! My dad was very competitive and we would have contests every day of who could sell more. Each night, we’d compare and sometimes it was uncanny! We’d be just pennies apart. Sometimes, I’d cream him. Those 10 years were just the best. And I eventually married the tennis player from Gold’s and we had three boys. 

My dad decided to retire. So we asked both landlords what kind of deal they could give us and our Indian Wells landlord made the better offer. We closed the Rancho Mirage store in 2000. Flashing forward, my dad passed away in ‘06, and my mom passed away in ‘09. 

Prior to that, my parents had really wanted to do cooking classes, but they just never got it off the ground. After they passed away, I found a notebook filled with names of people interested in taking classes. We were located in a smaller storefront in this same center at the time. And one morning, I saw that my current space was going out of business and I thought it would be the perfect spot to relocate and build a kitchen. I immediately called my husband, Gary, and he was on board. So we made the deal and officially opened the new store in 2009. We’ve been doing cooking classes ever since. 

So the kitchen is kind of a tribute to my mom and dad. I had a mural painted on the main wall 35 years ago with them standing in the doorway. It’s like they’re always there. 

And I can constantly hear my mom saying, “Janet Ellen, you’re burning the candle at all three ends again!” They would get mad at me because I had three kids and was running the store. But I love every part of my life. Over the years, all three sons have worked here. My oldest son, Ryan, worked here for a year before heading to Cal State Monterey Bay. My middle son, Evan, started working here during the shutdown and stayed for three years. And my youngest son, Troy, has been here for over two years now. My husband has been absolutely instrumental in running the shop, too.

Never. Never. When we hit 25 years in 2004, I decided to have a big party to honor that achievement. I brought in manufacturer reps, vendors and inventors and had little tables out front where people could show off their wares and demonstrate products. And that was the beginning of our anniversary party. Every year since we have had a celebration on the second Saturday of November. This year was the big one! 45 years! We had 20 tables with vendors. Chefs every hour on the hour in the kitchen cooking something up. We had lines to the back of the store all day. More than 700 people attended. Every year, it keeps growing and growing. The vendors always ask me when the next party is. They’ll clear their calendar to come and fly in from all over. [Pictured – the 25th anniversary party with Jan, her husband, sons, dad (Phil Carter), mom (Charlotte), and brother (Joel).] 

The people, the customers. We’re a family business, going on three generations and so many of our customers knew my parents. They love coming in and seeing the owner’s daughter and grandsons running a business they’ve been going to for decades. When I do speaking presentations, I always ask for a show of hands of people who used to shop in our Rancho Mirage store and there’s always more than a handful. The loyalty behind that is just incredible. The customers are really what keep you going. I love hearing their stories.

The second thing I love about this business is when I get to go to the buying shows because I get to play the customer – walking the aisles, meeting the inventors, sampling the new gadgets and figuring out what I can bring into my store. It’s overwhelming and energizing at the same time.

When I go to these big housewares shows, I spot the vendors attracting the biggest group of buyers and then just keep walking! I look for the little booths at the end caps. Because those are the brand new inventors. And I’ll ask them about their products, how they came up with the idea, how they created it.

Not that I don’t order things that the big guys are ordering because, of course, I have to have a lot of that, too. But I really try to source the most unique, hard-to-find items.

The Zyliss chopper (pictured). It’s always going to be a favorite. And the newest thing that my people are going crazy for is the Dreamfarm Fluicer. It’s a flat juicer. All my chefs use it in our cooking classes. It’ll squeeze out a lemon, lime, orange, or grapefruit, but because it’s a two-handed product, you can get 25% more juice! And because it’s flat, it fits in your drawer a lot better than most juicers. Dreamfarm has become one of my new favorite companies. They are based out of Australia and they just build the better mousetrap.

ScanPan cookware. It’s made in Denmark and is such a joy to cook with! We’ve carried it for 45 years and use it in every cooking class. All my chefs love it. They’ve all purchased it for themselves to use at home. I have a customer who is from New Zealand. Some people will have pictures of their dogs or their grandkids on their phones, but she has pictures of what she’s cooked in her ScanPan. She’ll show the photos during classes. She has pulled up so many pictures of what she’s cooked in her ScanPan.

Food items. We carry really wonderful oils, vinegar, pesto sauces and pasta. A lot of people came in to order gift bags or gift baskets. They make great hostess gifts.

On Christmas Eve, it’s typically all men coming in for the free gift wrap. The complimentary gift wrap was my mom and dad’s idea back in ’79. We take great joy in wrapping each product with love and creating that special Kitchen Kitchen feeling for the person opening it.

It wasn’t really a surprise, but it’s such a joy to live here. I came from the beach and thought I would never leave. But I love the desert. I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. I love the mountains. I love the serenity. I love our weather. I don’t mind the hot summers. Because with that comes less crowds. My business doesn’t love fewer crowds, but personally, I love it.

When I started working here 36 years ago, my perception of the store was that mom and dad were just sipping coffee and schmoozing with their customers. That’s what I thought owning a business was. You can come and go whenever you want. But that is the furthest thing from the truth. You are tied to your store. And even though I have great employees (I have Anthony, who is amazing!) and I can leave and know everything is in good hands, I really can’t go far. People rely on having the face of the store here. Especially because I’ve been here so long. Sometimes, a customer will come in and say, “I need to speak with the owner. I need to talk to Jan.” And then their question will be, “Where are your garlic presses?” It’s a happy/sad thing. It’s so nice customers want to connect with me, but I want people to know that my employees are really great, too.

When people ask my opinion about opening a business, I tell them to think long and hard! At night when I go to bed, the store’s all I think about. When I wake up, too. I’m attached at the hip to this place, but I love 99% of it. You really have to love what you do. I know that everyone says that, but you do. 

I worked a lot of jobs before Kitchen Kitchen. I was a tour guide on the Queen Mary. I was a pearl diver at Marineland. I was a lead service agent at Amtrak. I went up and down the rails. I managed restaurants. And owning a business is that times 100. So you better make sure you love it, because you will be at it seven days a week. But it’s also incredibly rewarding. I know it’s so cliche, but I sincerely love my business. I walk around here at night sometimes after we close up and think, ‘I just love it here.’

Sitting in the morning having a cup of coffee with my husband and my three dogs at my feet on my patio overlooking the mountains. It’s my very favorite thing about this desert.

The best meal is at Kitchen Kitchen with my chefs in our cooking classes (pictured). Second best is Copley’s. Copley’s is where I go for my birthday. Andrew Copley and I go way back. I love Jillian’s. Jay, the owner also shops at my store and I’ve known him for years. Lavender Bistro because again, I love the owners there, and the food and patio are amazing. I’d recommend those three spots for a special meal.

For more casual dining, I love Fisherman’s Market for salmon, The Grill on Main for their incredible salads, and El Ranchito for Mexican food. The Blushing Peony and Chúla Artisan Eatery are also great.

La Provence Patisserie & Cafe (pictured) for coffee and Serena’s Resort Wear in our own center for clothing. I also really like just walking around El Paseo. It’s a nice way to spend time.