especially at Christmas. Having owned and managed a retail gift shop for about 9 years, I do NOT, repeat do NOT miss having a retail store. ESPECIALLY at Christmas time.
When you own a retail gift shop, your Christmas shopping begins in about June of the year. You have to decide at the June market, what you want to carry for Christmas that year. Alot of the vendors have to get an idea what to prepare for so the earlier you get your Christmas orders in the better chance you have of getting the inventory you want. Bad thing is, the cash isn't always there in June to pay for December shipping but you wing it. You start having Christmas in July sales. Yes, I have actually sold snow men in June and July. The public..go figure.
I enjoyed my shop, don't get me wrong. But didn't enjoy the late hours during the Christmas season, not getting my tree up at home or all the decor out because I did up the shop, so home had to wait. Good thing is, I always had stuff for the women on my list. One stop shopping. I could even run down to my store when it was closed and pick out a present, wrap it and find the perfect card to go with it, 5 minutes before I needed the gift. Miss that.
But the week before Christmas, and the day before, when the men would come in and look for something their wife told them about they wanted, and then trying to help them find it. Fortunately, the wife would say specifically what she wanted, but you know they didn't listen, so alot of customers would just say "just anything from Country Blessings" and you know I rarely had returns. Rarely.
My help wouldn't understand that at that point in the game, I would be very comfortable hiding in the back room waiting for them to pass me gifts to wrap, enjoying my Christmas music, I would wrap gifts and dedicate time to make sure they looked just perfect. Years of doing that though, has made me now taking sharpies on my own home gifts and hand writing the names on the wrapping paper. Forget the bows and the cute little name tags. Can't read them when it is time to hand them out anyway, unless I have my glasses. This year at least I have wrapped all the grandkids stuff in novelty paper, you know Cars theme, Penguins, stuff like that.
I dont' miss making 30 pounds of fudge at a time either. Usually I made it at 10pm so it could be fresh the next day. I felt like the Dunkin Donuts Dude on the commercial when he met himself coming and going mumbling "I made the donuts". One year I got so tired of smelling chocolate, I bought myself some Vanilla Musk perfume, just to counter it.
Yes, I get asked on occassion if I miss the gift shop because people around here do and I hear it alot. It goes in one ear and out the other though. Ok, I will admit, about September of every year I look around and think I should really open up a gift shop again. But then I smack myself and I am back to clear thinking again.
I love real estate.
Mary Welch, Broker-Owner Preferred Choice Realty, Harper, Ks. In that cute little bldg my gift shop use to be in.