All the photos I have from the beginning are real paper photos-and not that many. I suppose was having a 9 month old and 9 year old along with everything in life that meant taking photos of my first store wasn’t high on the priority list.
I spent from 1989-1994 in that first store and I’ll be honest, I learned a ton. The lessons that I earned from trial and error still influence the decisions I make today. For instance, I learned that having consignors can be both a blessing and a curse.
As a shopkeeper, I have so many stories I could tell (not all cheery!) of customers and renters but I’d rather talk about my travels and the stories of the objects I pick up along the way.
Even more, I love the story of when I struck it lucky and was able to purchase my dream building!
If you ask my girls, they’ll laugh and say all they really remember is the night that our local realtor came knocking on the door, bursting to tell me that the property I’d fallen in love with the moment we drove into town years earlier, was for sale.
I knew immediately I had to have it and would move heaven and earth to make it happen. And it did!
I became the first woman to own the historic “Kings” Mill (oh the name is a story in itself!) in its 200+ year history and when it’s time for me to move on, I’ll be entrusting it to it’s second woman to own it so she can build her legacy and dreams.
