We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Alana Menzel a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alana, appreciate you joining us today. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?

I opened my shoppe in the “old” part of Clearwater. Everything used to be in the “old” area and then moved to the “uptown” area of Clearwater. The new area lacks the feel good vibes of small town shopping so I wanted to have a name that has a nostalgic feeling.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I was a stay at home mom with a small soap business, my daughters were growing up and they were both about to start school and I wanted out of the house! I also needed the flexibility of having my hours and days work for me and to also work for my kids as my husband works away. I despised having strangers come to my home to pick up their orders while I was home with my kids and I knew this was also a struggle for a lot of my mom friends with small businesses. Then came the light bulb moment of having a shoppe where all the local artisans could have a space outside of their homes to showcase their work, a place where I could bring my kids to works when I needed to, the flexibility of making my own schedule and being able to offer our little town something fun and different! Over the years its adapted to offer more to our town. Fresh flowers, giftware, arts and crafts, and of course beautifully handcrafted locally made items.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

Our community! We are a tiny and magical little town that is the home to Wells Gray Park! The highway runs right through our town and we always have people coming to visit the waterfalls! Being a small town every business always sends tourists and travelers to the next business.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Covid…Covid shut me down 3 months after I had opened the doors. That changed everything. I was able to offer private shopping here and there for those who ventured out but even once the doors opened months later people were not quick to jump back into shopping. Things were ordered online and delivered to your house instead of in person shopping. That was also the year my youngest should have been starting kindergarten and my oldest was going into grade 5. We opted to homeschool them for the year which was interesting to say the least but….having my own business meant my kids could come to work with me when they needed to and homeschooling could be done from the shoppe!

Contact Info:

• Facebook: @oldtowngiftshoppe