Couple Who Was ‘Barely Able’ to Pay the Bills Liquidates $200K from Home, 401K to Open Discount Clothing Store Years Later (Exclusive)

“It’s incredible what following your dream can do,” Kayla Stewart tells PEOPLE

NEED TO KNOW

• Kayla Stewart went from struggling young mother to business owner after being inspired by a secondhand children’s store hours away from her home in Spanish Fort, Ala.
• Despite giving up nursing school and facing financial setbacks, she and her husband risked everything to open a Kid to Kid in their community
• She liquidated $200,000 from her home and 401K to open the store, which now serves her community’s needs

At 21 years old, Kayla Stewart’s life changed in an instant. She had just moved into an apartment with her husband, Austin Stewart, when she found out she was pregnant in April 2015.

At the time, Kayla tells PEOPLE she was working as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), making $9 an hour, while Austin earned $11 an hour as a deckhand. Money was already tight, and the reality of raising a child under those circumstances felt overwhelming.

“Having a baby and barely being able to pay your bills was extremely hard,” Kayla tells PEOPLE exclusively. Still, the couple did whatever it took to get by, even if it meant sacrificing comfort, rest and the small joys most young couples take for granted.

“We lived off of peanut butter sandwiches and butter rice to make sure we had the money to keep a roof over our baby's head,” Kayla recalls.

Both of them worked constantly, often pushing into overtime just to stay afloat. There were no nights out or spontaneous treats, “unless it was a special treat from our parents who paid for it.”

Instead, their world shrank to simple routines: board games, movies and long walks when they could manage the time. “Sometimes being stuck in the apartment, not being able to do much, would get us discouraged and even depressed,” Kayla admits.

It wasn’t until Kayla’s mother-in-law introduced her to a secondhand children’s store three hours away from her home in Spanish Fort, Ala., that she found an ounce of relief.

“Walking in the store and seeing baby onesies for $1.50 or 20 for $10 changed my life,” she says. For the first time, she could afford what her baby needed without fear. Even more life-changing was the store’s buyback system.

“Austin and I would travel back with my in-laws and bring those same clothes we purchased just three weeks prior — that the baby had already grown out of — and get cash for it,” Kayla explains. “That cash would sometimes buy the baby new clothes or pay our power bill or water bill — any little bit helped.”

What began as a necessity became a lifeline, even allowing them to give their child “a Christmas we never thought we would have.”

But while Kayla and her husband were finding small ways to survive, they were also forced to make a difficult choice about their future.

“We had to make the decision to either allow Austin to go through sea school and become a tugboat captain or let me finish nursing school,” Kayla says. In the end, finances dictated their path forward. “It ended up being cheaper for him to become a tugboat captain, so we went that route.”

Letting go of her dream, however, wasn’t easy. “It was hard to let go of becoming something more of myself,” she admits. “I just knew nursing was my calling.” Still, Kayla held onto a quiet belief that there was something more in store for her. “I just did not know what yet,” she tells PEOPLE.

As Austin pursued his career — often away for a month at a time — Kayla kept working as a CNA and leaned on a strong support system that included friends and family. It was that support that helped her push through the most demanding season of her life.

Seven years later —after Austin had successfully become a tugboat captain —a moment waiting in line with other struggling parents changed everything.

“I was standing out in line with several other parents that were traveling over two hours, if not more, like I was, just to get affordable clothes,” Kayla recalls, when an idea clicked in her head.

The need she had once felt so deeply wasn’t unique — it was shared by countless families in her community. It was then that she decided she wanted to bring that same opportunity closer to home. The road to opening her own store, however, was anything but simple. When she first reached out about franchising, Kayla was dismissed multiple times.

“They only cared about how much capital I had,” she shares. Still, Kayla tried everything — calling investors, asking family for help, even pitching to others to buy in and let her run the store. “I exhausted all hope,” she says. “Several people even laughed at me.”

Nevertheless, Kayla refused to quit. “I knew this was what my community needed,” she emphasizes.

Still, passion alone wasn’t enough to secure the business. She and her husband spent months trying to make the numbers work. Eventually, with the help of a broker, they found a bank willing to take a chance — but only after making an enormous personal sacrifice.

“We liquidated $200,000 between our 401K and our home,” she reveals, noting that they "even took a second mortgage out on our home to just get the down payment for the loan we needed to start this business."

It was a risk that put everything they had on the line, which, according to the IRS, can come with heavy tax penalties for people like Kayla, who are under the age of 59½, but still, she felt it was the only way forward.

Finally, in late 2023, Kayla landed an opportunity to speak to Kid to Kid’s parent company, Basecamp Franchising. Unlike her previous attempts, this time someone was willing to listen.

“I submitted an application and spoke to Allison with Basecamp Franchising the next day,” she shares. From the very first conversation, Kayla made her mission clear.

“I explained to [Allison] on the phone my story and how my town needed this so much… I told her that people from my community are driving hours away to shop at a store just like [Kid to Kid], and it would do so much good for our community,” Kayla recalls saying.

Despite knowing she wasn’t the strongest financial candidate, Kayla didn’t hold anything back. “I told [Allison] I would give up my house, my children’s savings, anything I own, to have a store in our area,” she tells PEOPLE. “I explained to her that I knew financially we were not the best candidates, but I promised in my heart this is what I needed to do."

In the end, Kayla says she won them over, “not because I had money I could throw at them, but because of my drive and want for this store in my community."

On Oct. 2, 2025, Kayla’s determination became reality.

“I remember the day I walked into my store and saw the fixtures up, the flooring in, and the sign that hangs above my building. I cried happy tears,” she recalls. Even now, that feeling hasn’t faded. “I still to this day drive up to it and sit in my car and tear up at the fact that I can tell people that I own it.”

Now a 32-year-old mother of two working full-time at her own store, Kayla sees a very different future than the one she once imagined — and one she’s especially proud of. “When I look back at my 21-year-old self, I would let her know not to ever doubt yourself,” she tells PEOPLE. “Do not beat yourself up for not becoming that nurse you wanted to be.”

And for anyone standing where she once stood, uncertain and overwhelmed, Kayla’s message is simple and unwavering: “People will knock you down, doubt you and laugh at your ideas or dreams. It will be okay because you will push through it and make a mark on your community.”

Read the full article here