We have been getting the nicest emails and comments during the sale from all of you! It awes us to hear how we have inspired you and to find out how much we will be missed!! We put out sheets of paper and asked folks to write their favorite
SHR story, or about their favorite item purchased from us, or whatever they wanted to tell us! We will be sharing them with you throughout the next months - along with lots of photos of favorite things, customers, dealers and some of our own favorite stories - so we hope you keep "tuned in" to the blog. I am also asking you to email me your stories, photos or whatever you have - we want to get all of you on the blog - so keep those cards and letters coming folks!!
The first story that I want to share with you is mine. It is kind of long and
rambly cuz I am rather emotional about
SHR in general and especially now! So here goes.............
I got started in this business
cuz I had a mini nervous breakdown - well, not really a nervous breakdown just a mess in my life. I was a single parent and working at a very demanding job. All of my energies went to being "mom of the year" and "administrative assistant of the year". There was very little time left for me. I took a 3 week leave of absence from work to try to get my life in order and was spending quite a bit of time with a counselor. She told me that I needed to get a hobby or do something that was all about me. I thought and thought and then I called Barb.
Barb and I worked together at the same office and on weekends we would sometimes grab my son and go to flea markets or antiquing
cuz we both loved that kind of thing so much. So since we loved stuff like that so much I asked Barb if she wanted to get a booth at an antique shop. She said "Okay!". Bear in mind that we had no clue what we are doing. We got a small spot at a shop in Buffalo (it is long since gone) and the first month we made $63.00!!! We were so excited - we had made our rent and had a little extra!!! Soon we were doing better and better and expanded our spot and then expanded it again.
We went shopping at the Buffalo Nickel one day and noticed a bunch of our stuff!!! Other dealers were buying it and re-selling it. This is a common practice - but then we didn't know that! We were excited
cuz "they liked our stuff"! Then we went to Rose's one day. Now we had been there before and we LOVED LOVED LOVED the place. It was in the old house and much smaller with only a few dealers back then - but it just spoke to us. We thought it was such a creative store and so unique. And lo and behold we found some of our things at Rose's!!! Now that got us really excited
cuz we LOVED LOVED LOVED the place! Then we dared to start dreaming - if we could only EVER be good enough to sell there ourselves!
Finally one day we discovered that Rose had been asking about us at the antique store - but they wouldn't give out names. So we got really, really brave and approached her. She didn't have any openings at the time - but would keep us in mind. We were so disappointed! A few months went by and we got a call from SECOND HAND ROSE!!!! We anxiously agreed to meet with Rose - we were shaking in our boots. We were pretty sure she was the
God of Good Stuff and when we met and she asked us to be a part of the
SHR family - we were pretty darn sure we had died and gone to heaven!!!! That was somewhere about 11 years ago - and here we still are!! The longest dealers other than Bonnie and Rose herself!
We were so green and so scared when we started - and she took us under her wing and taught us so much - scared us to death - made us laugh - made us cry - hurt our feelings - and made us feel like we could do anything. She taught us paint techniques, sales techniques, the importance of humor in what we do and that we were not in this just for a hobby - it was work, it was a job, it was a vocation and it was a passion.
When I met and married Mike she brought him in as well - encouraged him, taught him and made him a member of the family. She even let us be married at her home!
We owe her so much - and we owe all of you so much! To be a part of the
SHR family for so many years has been a privilege, a blessing, sometimes a hardship, on occasion a nightmare - and we wouldn't have missed one second of it!!!
On occasion we have heard that us
SHR people act snooty or act like we are better than everyone else. We never, ever mean to be snooty or snobby - but our goal has ALWAYS been to be BETTER, BEST, and
BESTEST! If Rose had not stressed how important that was I don't imagine we would all still be with her or that she would still be in business.
So our thanks to Rose for her support, praise, love, encouragement, fights, tears, bad moments, good moments and so very much laughter. And our thanks to all of you for continually coming back and making us do BETTER, BEST, and
BESTEST too - you always expect the best from us and that always makes us want to give that back.
I hope you join us for our last three sales - We want to see you all again and laugh and reminisce and enjoy ourselves! We are all so determined to make these sales the BEST EVER - with the
bestest stuff - the most fun - the silliest - and with surprises for you guys! And email me, write me, snail mail me - we want to share all of your stories too!
With many thanks to all of you - and with lots of love to Rose and our entire
SHR family,
Kris and Mike Hart
This is our friend Ann - she is always here on Thursday mornings! I love her stories of how she has used her treasures in her home - I think I gotta get pictures!!
And here we have Nancy (in the black jacket) and Margaret - another pair of our Thursday regulars! They always have a smile and a kind word!
A note from Cynthia - "I had just moved to Minnesota from New Jersey in July of 2001. I saw an article in Victoria magazine and was thrilled that Second Hand Rose in Buffalo wasn't too far from Eden Prairie. My friend from St. Paul and I got here at 9am on a Thursday morning and we were shocked and amazed - and pleased - to see that there was a line of at least 50 shoppers waiting to get into your tiny shop! We happily joined the line and bought tons of unique items! Visiting SHR become a monthly joy. Thank you for opening my eyes to your creative ways of decorating!"
