We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Lynn Chronsiter. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Lynn below.
Lynn, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.
If you would have told me 20 years ago that I was going to own and operate a vintage shop in downtown Gettysburg, I would have called you crazy. I have always been an admirer and collector of pieces of history but at that time my career path was in the culinary arts. After graduating culinary school I worked in various restaurants for over a decade. I enjoyed my time in the kitchen but it is not an easy industry. My love for it started to dwindle as the demands and stresses of the job increased. Eventually I burned out. I knew it was time for something new. I had to let go of the dream of one day owning my own bakery or cafe. Not ready to completely give up on the idea of my owning business, I turned to my second passion, vintage.
The frustration of having to travel out of town to shop for vintage was a problem that I was focused on solving. Gettysburg was experiencing a turn over of shop owners who were retiring and young entrepreneurs bringing fresh new ideas to fruition. It was the perfect time to open a cool vintage shop as vintage was really starting take off and trend. This town has the perfect blend of locals, tourists, and college students so I knew that we wouldn’t be lacking on customers. In October of 2014, I started writing a business plan to open a boutique style vintage shop. I sourced a ton of inventory and toured available store fronts. By May of 2015 we were open and ready for business.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
22(9) Vintage Wares started from the need to preserve history. The need to keep the stories alive and out of the landfills. Each piece of vintage in our shop has had a previous life but still has plenty more to give.
Our inclusive collection features clothing, accessories, jewelry, and housewares. Having a large storefront allows us to curate vintage from 1920’s through the early 2000’s for all sizes, ages, and genders. We like to think of our shop as having something for everyone.
Quite often we get to hear lovely stories of days gone by from our customers. We get to learn about Aunt Betty using a certain patterned Pyrex dish at Thanksgiving or “oh I had a pair of bell bottoms like these when I was young and loved them.” We’re more than just a shop filled with old stuff, we let people reminisce and bring back happy memories of the past.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
In early 2020 we decided to relocate the business to a larger storefront. We were growing fast and needed to expand. A store front that we had always dreamed of became available. We jumped at the opportunity and signed a lease. After weeks of remodeling and painting, packing and unpacking we were ready for our grand re-opening. The first week of March we threw a big party to celebrate this new chapter. Little did we know then that only days later the world would stop. Covid-19 mandates forced us to close our business doors for an unknown amount of time. It was a time of great uncertainty but I was determined to keep the shop prosperous. Before the shut down our business was predominately in shop/in person sales. With the mandates forcing people to stay home to remain safe, we had to change our business.
I spent nearly every day of the closure in the locked shop endlessly taking photos to post on our social media. We engaged with our followers as much as we could promoting and featuring our vintage items. We offered curbside pick up, shipping, and even doorstep delivery for locals. I drove all over the county and made good friends with the post office staff. I am forever grateful to our wonderful and loyal customers who supported us during that scary time.
Those 66 days of closure forced us to rethink the way we ran the business. Social media and our website were always secondary to the in person shopping shopping experience. We learned the value and reach of online sales. After the closure we hired someone to run our social media and website.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
I went into the idea of opening a vintage shop with the vision of creating a welcoming atmosphere. Maintaining a well organized and inviting space is important to keeping happy customers. But it takes more than just a clean storefront, friendliness and honesty go a long way. We strive to give everyone who walks through our doors the best vintage shopping experience that we can.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.229vintagewares.com
- Instagram: @229vintagewares