Yard sale woes? Try AC/DC
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This is a world which I never enter because my yard sale philosophy is if I have a bunch of junk I no longer want, dragging it out to my driveway isn?t going to make anyone else want it. Unfortunately, Cupcake doesn?t share this belief and, bless her heart, she suffered through a miserable yard sale last weekend.
How bad was it? Try $17 in total sales. I guess it doesn?t pay to have a yard sale when Fairview is having its Fourth of July celebration.
But one of the things I love about Cupcake is her determination. She is determined to have a successful yard sale and is already talking about coordinating a monster yard sale in the spring.
So I?ve decided to give her a hand and help her promote this thing. What immediately comes to mind is the need for live music. And when I say live music I don?t mean Just Passing Through. I?m talking about AC/DC.
And to really draw a crowd, I?m planning door prizes and cash giveaways every hour. I might even raffle off a new car.
Throw in some Prater?s BBQ and we?ve really got ourselves a party. It might even be like a little Bonnaroo (without the drugs and naked people of course). Chances are if you?re poking down the road on a Saturday morning and you see AC/DC in my front yard you are going to stop. But would you buy my old sweat socks while you?re there?
As for news of the odd, strange and curious nature, the hot new trend in some British churches is to incorporate karaoke into the services. Apparently churches are trying desperately to gain the attention of the younger generation and karaoke is one of the things they?re trying. There?s even an upbeat disco version of ?Amazing Grace.?
I have to ask what?s next, drum solos and guitar smashing? Folks, this is simply ridiculous. Karaoke belongs at a birthday party ? not at a church.
Of course people are free to worship as they please. The new fad might even spark its own rock-n-roll religion that?s similar to my yard sale.
And since it?s the time of year to go vacationing, you might want to incorporate a trip to Port Aransas, Texas in your travels. That?s where a 31-pound cat named Chester has become a tourist attraction.
The tubby tabby was recently featured on a regional TV travel show, and that opened the proverbial floodgates. Since the show aired, people have swarmed the downtown shop where Chester lives. Shop owner Cassandra Clark has apparently taken offense to all the attention and wants it known that while her cat is fat, he does not have high cholesterol.
No decision yet from Roses headquarters
Since I mentioned the possibility of Roses coming to Three Star Mall several weeks ago, I?ve fielded questions about the status of that deal. So I got on my horse (speaking figuratively of course) and I finally tracked down the right person to talk to at Roses headquarters in Henderson, N.C.
Phil Pope is with the company?s real estate development department and he told me Roses might just pull the trigger (again, speaking figuratively) and return to McMinnville.
?We have been provided the opportunity to locate a Roses store in McMinnville but have not made a decision on the site,? Phil told me. There is no timetable as to when a decision might be made.
That statement reinforces what Roses district manager Ron O?Connell told me last month. Ron was the Roses representative who toured the old Kmart spot at Three Star Mall and gave a glowing recommendation to corporate headquarters.
Whether Roses ultimately returns to town will all come down to dollars and cents, like all business deals. If the mall doesn?t demand an exorbitant lease agreement, I believe Roses will return. And that would be a tremendous boost for the mall.
La Cazona needs more room
There?s been some interesting business talk at Northgate Shopping Center where La Cazona wants to expand and its next-door neighbor, Factory Connections, wants to move to the old Blockbuster site. Those two desires could result in some moving and shaking in the business world.
At La Cazona, business has been good ? really good. Owner Manuel Ochoa says he desperately needs to expand and the most logical choice is to knock out a wall and move into the spot occupied by Factory Connections.
?We have plans to get that space,? said Manuel, who has already talked to shopping center owner Harold Martin. ?We need to make the restaurant bigger. We need room for banquets and private parties. Sometimes we get very busy. We need more room in the kitchen and in the dining room. Our space is too small for the business we have.?
Manuel said there are plans to bring back the popular Tuesday night mariachi band, but one problem is space limitations. Bringing in a band means taking away table space.
La Cazona?s need to expand is music to the ears of Factory Connections, which has been looking for a new location. Factory Connections currently has 4,000 square feet of space but it does a pretty mean business too and would like to find an even bigger location.
The spot next to Bi-Lo where Blockbuster used to be seems like a nice fit. However, I understand from one of my super secret Business Pulse sources the old Blockbuster location has received significant interest. And Blockbuster just went out of business June 30.
SW Manufacturing eyes Smith County for expansion
If you recall, it was about two months ago I relied on information from the Cumberland Business Journal to tell you SW Manufacturing was considering Warren County for a 100-job expansion. That turned out to be shaky information so I only hope the Business Journal?s top story for this month is more accurate.
According to the news organization, Smithville-based SW Manufacturing has decided on a 126,000-square-foot facility in Gordonsville that is expected to be operational by next year. SW says the expansion could ultimately lead to 200 jobs.
I apologize for all the folks who got their hopes up for SW locating here. Apparently a deal was never that close. My mistake was relying on another person?s reporting and not my own Business Pulse sources.
Main Street gets a new Attitude
Nedra Davenport has spent the last two years building up her business called Attitudes in Northgate Shopping Center. Now that she?s up and running, she?s moved to where she wanted to be all along ? Main Street.
?I wanted to be down here initially but I knew I would never survive construction,? said Nedra. ?It?s great to be here because I really love the downtown atmosphere. When I go to places like Franklin and Murfreesboro, it?s neat to walk downtown and shop all the stores. If more businesses keep coming downtown, we can get that here.?
Nedra says she?s been impressed with her Main Street welcome. Since she opened last Saturday, she?s enjoyed a steady flow of customers. And she says her downtown neighbors have been great, even helping her move in.
?Being on Main Street is a whole different feel,? said Nedra. ?There are people poking their heads in curious about what we?ve done.?
When it comes to merchandise, Nedra has the hottest item on the market, croc shoes. Crocs are expected to reach $200 million in sales this year and Nedra says she?s the only store in town where you can buy the name brand.
Nedra said she can sell out a shipment of crocs in a matter of days. She says the main problem is buying the shoes since the company has experienced such tremendous growth it is struggling to meet the demand.
Attitudes also offers women?s clothing, Polo clothing, an expanded baby line, candles, gourmet foods, hand-painted China and other items. The store is located at 123 East Main Street and can be reached by calling 507-1080.
D&D Custom Exhaust gets its motor running
Don Fults knows a thing or two about mufflers. He built Sparta Street Muffler from the ground up before selling his share of the business around five years ago.
Now Don is starting another business from scratch, D&D Custom Exhaust, which is located behind Underwood True Value Hardware on Beersheba Street. It gets its name as D&D because Don and his son, Donnie, are operating the store.
?We guarantee everything for a year and that includes the muffler and the exhaust work,? said Don. ?I figure if it won?t last a year, it?s not worth buying.?
D&D, which has been open about two weeks, offers muffler, brakes and custom exhaust work. Don says the key is to offer quality work at reasonable prices.
?You have to make a living,? said Don. ?But you don?t have to kill people doing it. My prices are pretty much the same as they were five or six years ago.?
Don hopes upcoming construction on the Beersheba Street Bridge doesn?t hurt his business. According to state officials, the current plans are to leave the bridge open during construction, but traffic will be limited to one lane.
Between Don and Donnie, they have 25 years experience in the exhaust business. D&D is open Monday thru Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon. The phone number is 474-2546.
Mobile spa to serve clients in Warren County
In today?s fast-paced, high-stress society, there?s not much free time available. In fact that free time is so limited, it?s hard for some folks to make it to a day spa to relax and allow some of their stress to escape.
For those people, Tonya Dailey-Parton has just the business for you. Tonya has just recently received her certification as an independent consultant with BeautiControl. What that means for local residents is she is now available to come to your home or business to offer head-to-toe pampering with her beauty and relaxation products.
?You can feel the stress coming out of people when they start to relax,? said Tonya. ?For people like teachers or nurses who can?t leave their place of business this is great because they don?t have to travel. This is a big hit with bridal parties and mother and daughters wanting to do a day spa together.?
Tonya was working at Goody?s on Friday giving employees on their lunch break her express spa treatment. That lasts for 30 minutes so people with a one-hour lunch break still have time to grab a bite to eat.
?It gives them time to be pampered and rejuvenated and get back to work,? said Tonya.
Her complete spa escape is a 90-minute session that allows for optimum relaxation. The session includes product treatments for lips, eyes, hands and skin. Tonya plays relaxing music and lights candles to further enhance the atmosphere.
I had never heard of BeautiControl, but apparently I just wasn?t in the loop. It turns out the company, headquartered in Carrollton, Texas, has more than 100,000 independent consultants like Tonya. It?s the first company to launch the at-home spa experience.
Tonya works a full-time job in addition to BeautiControl so she is normally available after 4 p.m. and on weekends. She can be reached at 473-8536 (home) or (931) 510-6351 (cell).
That?s all folks
Give me a call with all your business tips at 473-2191. And I would like to take this time to thank you in advance for your yard sale support.