The bejeweled, life-size cheetah statue in the front window of Sweet Home Montana Designs draws customers to Krista Denning’s new shop. Located at 49487 U.S. Hwy. 93 in Polson, the light-filled store has clothing, home decor, small furniture, gifts and Montana items.

Denning says she moved her shop from 105 Main Street to her current location, “kicking and screaming. It took a month to pull together.”

Now Denning is hopeful that her new location will provide increased visibility, noting that people can see her store from Hwy. 93, and she gets walk-in traffic from the Lake City Bakery.

Denning shares the space with her mother, who operates No Doubt Real Estate. And some days, she also shares her shop with her Bengal cat, a cross between a house cat and an Asian leopard cat, who’s playful and verbal.

Decent quality and price and hard-to-find items are her criteria for stocking her shelves. Denning goes on buying trips and also uses online wholesale sites to globally source items for her business.

“I order products from all over the country and world such as England and Ireland,” she said.

Denning’s busiest times are summer and the six weeks before Christmas. Summer visitors like t-shirts and Montana goods. She also offers some fun cherry-themed items.

Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, she stocks up on Ugg blankets and slippers – warm things for the locals on cold nights.

Denning loves being her own boss, but retail is a new thing for her. In some of her other lives, she worked in the oil fields for 10 years, gave banking a try, and managed a mechanic shop.

Asked about her favorite aspect of her new occupation, she replied with a smile, “I like to sell art.”