So, this chapter of our blog is going to center around a sort of cosmic roadmap...the influences of karma. I'm a firm believer that sometimes, one just needs to be patient, still, and listen to your internal "GPS" when deciding next steps. And though it's tough to always tell where your path will lead, do good and good will find you eventually.
How does all this affect our retail journey? Well, the past three months have been a trip in the fast lane, for certain. For Karen, her stint at Bitterman's certainly benefited from her time at Hallmark, and she learned a great deal about comprehensively building and managing product assortments: from designing the product and packaging, to creating the marketing materials, to managing BFC's largest corporate account and training salespeople. Working with the employees at Bitterman's was and will always be one of Karen's most valued and treasured experiences. But Karen encountered another "fork in the road" in her career journey - one that has felt like winning the lottery from the moment she accepted this new job: working as Senior Product Manager for K&Company, a paper-crafting company owned by EK Success/Wilton Crafts. With almost four weeks under her belt, Karen is loving every minute of this new assignment.
Most of you that know Rick can recognize and appreciate his love of theatre - both on a conventional stage, and within a retail environment. He is at his happiest when he's shopping in a fabulous store, pontificating about a particular film or stage show, or planning his next big "event" at our house. At the center of it all, though - Rick is a merchant, and one of the best in creating and executing product assortments and merchandising displays. And when you have retail in your blood, it's tough to leave it completely. So we'd occasionally laugh - "in OUR store, we'd carry this and that, and we'd have an event every month" or "Why can't we find any cool ____________ at retail" (fill in the blank - we have many times). When Karen's new job came on the horizon, Rick started thinking about retail again in earnest - with some very specific requirements: "It has to be about 2500 square feet, and I'd want it next to a great restaurant or other great retail...," and "I'd want to open in fourth quarter, right when everybody's looking for a great place to shop." Lots of rules, and not easy to find...but we did.
So it gives us great pleasure to announce that we're opening another retail venture: Uncle Ricky's - Smilin' since 1958. Located on Liberty's Historic Square, it's next to The JEM Restaurant - which is fabulous, by the way - you owe it to yourself to visit soon, and often. We'll have many of our favorites from our days in American Homestead - lots of seasonal decor, gourmet food, accessories, and gifts. All three of the McKernan's are contributing to the buying process - Katie's helping to expand our accessory assortment: purses, jewelry, etc. And customers will always find us celebrating holidays and special occasions in style. Opening day is Friday, Sept. 23 during the Liberty Fall Festival - so it's right around the corner. Once again, Rick's going down a familiar path - one he never really left.
When we closed American Homestead, it was for all the right reasons: we had the luxury of time in the evenings and weekends to fully participate in Katie's high school activities. Being a part of Katie and her friends' lives during the "teenage years" proved to be rich beyond measure, and growing close to the kids and families at Kearney High was a gift. Now it's time for Katie to "fly the coop" as it were - she's moving into the dorm at UMKC next weekend, and has a glorious road ahead of her as a Honors student pursuing a Theatre degree. She's planning on coming home some weekends to work in the store - you see, retail's in her blood, too. And while none of the three of us knew where we're be heading earlier this year, the "fork in the road" has us on track for some pretty exciting journeys ahead. Karma...gotta love it.
