Shelley Prael opens ‘le Nest’ in same building her father built

Shelley Prael is excited to be back home.

Prael has opened a new store in Canby, a community she knows quite well, and plans a ribbon-cutting event for le Nest on June 18 from 4 to 6 p.m.

le Nest, located at 151 NW 3rd Ave., will carry home furnishings and gifts and fulfils Prael’s dream of having her own store.

To this venture, she brings more than 30 years of experience in the retail world, “encompassing visual merchandising, window presentations, store design, branding and marketing,” she said. “I worked for incredible companies along the way including Williams Sonoma, Meier & Frank, Columbia Sportswear and Pendleton Woolen Mills.”

She launched her business, le Nest Design, eight years ago and will run her interior design services from the store. Though there’s a new store opened in Canby, Prael’s experience with business in Canby goes back a long way.

“My father, Rudy Prael, owned his printing business in Canby for 27 years. It was first named Copy-Rite Printing, then later changed to Graphics Plus,” she explained. “Today, my store is located in my father’s building, which is very special to me. He built the building 30 years ago. It was his fourth location as his business continued to grow and needed larger spaces along the way to do so. I worked alongside him while growing up helping with a variety of bindery projects and manning the front desk.”

Now the daughter is ready to follow in the father’s footsteps as a business owner in Canby. le Nest had a soft opening on April 26, with plans to make it official with the ribbon-cutting in June.