A side street in Webster has one standout shop after another
By Diana Losciale
Photography by Frank Di Piazza
“Whattoget? Whattoget? Whattoget?” is the mad mantra of the shopper looking for the perfect gift in a not-so-perfect consumer world of parking lots, football field–sized stores and bland stock. The gift shopper hurries, already worrying about the gift wrap, the tape, the ribbon, heaving a huge, non-yogic sigh.
Go to Gore. Visit the herein dubbed three amigos of perfect giving—Empty Nest, The Initial Design and VIVA!—where gift wrap is complimentary, service is real and each shop is tellingly different from its neighbor. Walk through their doors and shopping stress dissipates.
Former giftware rep Lynn Robichaux, owner of the two-and-a-half-year-old Empty Nest, was encouraged by her grown children to “get a life.” As it turned out, she got a store. The first room of her shop, wide and wonderful with color, is full of not only small gift items such as twig-like sugar spoons ($12) and mini manicure sets ($6.50) but also tables, an armoire and a huge four-poster bed draped in more and more marvelous stuff. The high-end concept Empty Nest brims with merchandise priced from $3 (a charming vari-colored bracelet) to $3,000 (a gorgeous painted armoire). There’s something for teachers, friends, hostesses, girlfriends, brides, babies, wives, mothers, best friends and acquaintances. Look sharp; shoppers will not see everything on the first visit. Robichaux is expanding her children’s clothing lines to incorporate more things that are timeless, not funky, and there’s always something on sale, except during the last two months of the year (as in ... now). Log on and look at www.shoptheemptynest.com but visit the shop for the real deal.
Leave the Nest and wander next door to The Initial Design for a warm welcome to the world of monograms and initials. Owned by a trio of local Grovers—Kathy Reimelt, Sue Davis and Mittie Bond—the shop comprises all the charm of a treasure chest chock full of things we do and don’t need, with the added fun, tradition, class and pizzazz of personalization. “We’re kind of like the Cheers of monogram stores,” Reimelt says. “Our customers are happy to see us and we’re happy to see them.” Everything in the shop is monogram-able or engrave-able. There are cute little mules that come with interchangeable ribbons, ready for initialing. There are dog dishes, leashes, collars and canine cookie jars. Look for everyday things like notepads, stationery, rugs, throws, belts and totes. And there is something about those Eliza B flip-flops—initialed or not, they are “gotta-haves.”
These owners are color savvy and idea-avant; they glide through the narrow stacked shelves and walls with aplomb, greeting and helping customers with their gifting. Think gifts for bridesmaids, christenings and birthdays. Honestly, who can go wrong with a monogrammed pashmina? “Service is the key to our whole business,” Reimelt says. Generally, a monogram order can be turned around in a week’s time and the service is included in the item’s price. How about a $12 monogrammed handkerchief for a bride or a $15 initialed cosmetic bag for a graduate? Impatient? There’s no need to wait for the dear packs of initialed tissues ($1.50) or the initialed luggage tags ($8).
The VIVA! tagline explains the store’s purpose: “unique jewelry, gifts and home décor.” Just inside the door, the scent, the light and the nearly inaudible music beckons you in. The walls wink with color and art, frames, clocks, kitsch and artful crafts. Owners Sherry McDonald and Robert Churchill have made particular efforts to cull fine American crafts for their store (as in, no cutesy ducks and ribboned geese allowed). The shop’s rooms are neatly, minimally arranged and include handcrafted artisan jewelry, created by up-and-comers like Tabra and Lilly Barrack. McDonald visits craft shows on both coasts and is committed to finding quality American-made objects, such as frames, mirrors, sculptures, clocks, business card holders, wall whimsy, handmade soaps and full bar set-ups, including glasses and Mariposa serveware.
McDonald shops to insure the store invents trends. “People who don’t know about the world of American arts and crafts say ‘Wow, did you guys make all this stuff?’ But what we’re really seeing is people who have never been exposed to this before. They love it.”
where is it?
Empty Nest
21 N. Gore
314-961-3900
Initial Design
25 N. Gore
314-968-8300
VIVA!
29 N. Gore
314-968-8482
