Fifteen years ago Liz Broussard said she was a single, stay-at-home mom who, on a whim, started a business in what she saw as an untapped market in the jewelry industry. Today she said she is known as the Charm Lady and distributes her stock of more than 40,000 charms and beads worldwide through two websites and her Classic Charms storefront at 301 Brushy Creek Road in Cedar Park. "I've found that there are bead customers and charm customers, but it's pretty much the same thing, and absolutely everything has a meaning behind it," Broussard said. "When you start a charm bracelet it tells a story in your life, and when you have a bead bracelet it's similar. It's not just a pretty piece of jewelry." In 2000, Broussard first started charm website, www.classic-charms.com, in which she sells both charms and bracelets, and customers can shop by occasion or theme. "If you go to the mall and go to any of the big-name jewelry stores they're going to have a tiny display of charms if they have any at all," she said. "We have customers who are just starting out and customers who have had charm bracelets for years and years, and they're just looking for a special occasion to add to it." About six years ago Broussard said she saw consumer interest cultivating around a new accessory and decided to branch out by starting her bead website, www.classic-beads.com. "When the industry changed to beads I put a few on the website, and they just flew out of here," she said. Since starting the businesses in 2000, Broussard said she has caught the attention of people throughout the world, some of whom invited her to the Emmy Awards last August, she said. "We were asked to present our products at the Emmy Awards this past year," she said. "A company contacted us—they do a gifting event for the celebrities to walk through and see new products and we had a table out there." She carries 18,000 different beads on her website and 25,000 charms that she orders from leading manufacturers, such as Rembrandt, or finds at trade shows. "It's a gut feeling of what's going to sell," she said. "When I hook up with a new vendor, I don't put everything that they offer on my website. I pick and choose. Its very area-driven what might do well in California might not do well here. It just depends, but the beauty of it is that we sell to everywhere." Beads can cost as little as $7 for a retired item from a manufacturer, and Broussard said they can get as pricey as $75 for items such as the Chamilla brand bead that includes a Swarovski crystal. Broussard said charms are priced the same way as beads and a customer can buy one charm for $10 in silver or the same charm in 14 karat gold for $600. "If your budget is, I can only spend $50 on this, I can find you something for $50," she said. "Thats a big thing. A lot of people like what we do because we appeal to all different budgets." The business is in the process of restocking after completing Christmas orders, and customers can expect new products, such as a mens line of university-themed cufflinks and key chains, in store and online soon. Broussard said she and her son, who was in kindergarten when she started the business, have gotten something unexpected out of the jewelry business. "I taught him a lesson I wasn't even intending on teaching, which is you can really do anything you set your mind to," she said. "Now Ive been in business for 15 years, and well have to see what the next 15 years hold."