Hey Turkeys

Hey Turkeys,

Hope yall are well and enjoying your Thanksgiving weekend. It’s 6am on Sunday as I write this, quiet and still dark outside. We’re gonna have a day at home—decorate our tree, chili in the crockpot, some neighbors might come over, and probably watch Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. A cozy little Sunday.

It's much needed cause this weekend can be a hectic and stressful one when you own a small business. In the days leading up to Black Friday, we often find ourselves worrying that we haven’t done enough-- the discounts aren’t big enough, there isn’t enough brand-new stuff, no one is going to show up... If it can be worried, we’ve worried it! And then there’s Small Business Saturday, which is supposed to be about celebrating small businesses, but it’s also turned into another pressurized thing--to top last year, to grow, grow, growwww. And this year, more than ever, we’re both just kind of over it. We want to focus on the celebrating as much as we can.

Like us, you’re probably real sick of people trying to sell you things everywhere you look. All the retail noise has us thinking about why we chose to do this in the first place. It wasn't just to sell things. We just like making things and sharing those things with other people. If we could give it all away for free we would.(And believe me, Dan has tried. Haha) And while we do have to sell things, to keep it going, it’s also always been important for us that the shop is a place where people feel welcome, and that hopefully it gives a little joy or inspiration, just like other small businesses and artists have done for us over the years. Places and things that make you feel less alone, and as a result maybe where a little hope can be found when things are dark.

We felt some joy on Small Business Saturday yesterday. We chose not to stress (as much) and just enjoyed it. We can’t thank everyone enough for all the support and love. We know everyone has a lot going on, so to see so many folks come out, in such good spirits, it really floored us. Joy was felt. THANK YOU. And tons of thanks to those that couldn't make it to the shop, but visited us online. We know there are limitless options out there, so thank you for spending yr hard earned dollars with us.

And since I'm on the subject, I'm thinking about some Charleston small businesses that have meant a lot to me over the years and thought it might be fun to write about a few of them. (There are many more, but this is long enough already!) In no particular order:

Mid 90s. After school, riding to Charleston from Sissonville in my best friend Kim’s Volvo, with a stick of incense burning on the console. (why??) I never had any money, so Kim probably bought my drink and food. (Thanks, Kim!) We'd sit in the window seats and it felt like we were really doing something. I'd read as many music magazines as I could--it was pre-internet times. Found a book about starting a zine, which led me to starting a magazine that Taylor Books later carried.

This place was open for over 50 years, closing in 2024. It was a place that encouraged weirdos of all types. One year my Dad got some kind of retirement check from a job he’d had years before. I don't remember the details exactly, but I think it was like $2000 and that day we were rich. He handed me and my brother $100 each to pick out our own Christmas presents and told us to drop him off at Hooters while we shopped. He swore he just really loved the chicken. I still have the CDs I bought that day. Two all time faves.

I don’t think I ever actually bought anything here.(I was going through a phase of wearing old men's clothes. Come to think of it, maybe that wasn't just a phase.) Even though it wasn't necessarily my thing, I loved going to Cornucopia. I didn’t care about beads, but I loved looking at the bead counter. I didn't wear hippie skirts, but I liked looking at the all the different fabrics. The owners had a vision and pulled it off. And bonus, it always smelled good. A Charleston classic.

When we lived in Louisville, coming home for the holidays meant popping into Collage. It was kind of like walking into your family’s living room. Jamie would often be sitting in the floor, surrounded by all sorts of trinkets, trying to just give you all the things you wanted to buy. There was always laughing, gossip, shenanigans, and SO much to look at.