Responding to an upcoming article about how The Cotton Company has spawned new businesses in Historic Downtown Wake Forest:
QUESTION:
Elizabeth,
I am working on an article for the newsletter about the Downtown as an incubator. The focus will be on how Ginger was at the Cotton Company and now she is opening her new studio. Would you be willing to answer a couple of questions? There are great examples how you and the Cotton Company have led to success in other areas of downtown! Below are the questions. Please let me know if you have any questions.
1. Several vendors from the Cotton Company have opened their own stores. When opening the Cotton Company, was a goal to become an incubator?
2. If it was not a direct goal, how do you feel about it now?
3. I have heard that ‘such and such” was also a vendor at one time. Can you please confirm that?
4. Any other thoughts on the Cotton Company as an incubator.
Thanks for all your help!!
Maggie
ANSWER:
“It was not conceived as a goal at the time, but we very quickly realized our potential in that respect. So far we have spun off jeweler Janie Eagle Roberts, retailer Michael Beecham of the Red Door Interiors, Jeanine Beckstrom of Haven at North Hills and now Ginger Meek Allen who is preparing to open her Lede Studio. I think also Laura Cashwell and her antique store but ask her to confirm.
We are thrilled to be able to help small businesses test and tweak their concepts before going out on their own. Many Cotton Company vendors start in retail with little to no experience and by starting in a venue like The Cotton Company can learn the business with a much smaller investment and less risk. We work with vendors closely to help them reach their maximum potential. We already have an established customer base and traffic and they know very quickly if the product is desirable to the customer or not. Because of the smaller investment they can make changes more easily whereas if they had started in a storefront they may not be in a position to react due to being financially strapped. We like to say that our vendors get voted on at The Cotton Company by the customers who come every day and vote with their wallets as to whether or not they want a vendor to stay.
The Cotton Company also helped spur downtown development of other retail businesses by being the first real retail anchor the street has had in many, many years. Our existence gave others the confidence to open their won retail store front and we were able to lease to a much better mix of unique, niche retailers after the opening of The Cotton Company that were afraid to make the leap prior to our opening.
On the flip side we also are home to many small business owners who have had their own store fronts and now prefer to let us do the managerial aspect and they can concentrate on the parts they like best, buying and merchandising product. Currently Mary White of Creative Gifts, Debbi Capps of House Warming’s and Jean Skinner of Indulgences are vendors who at one time had their own storefront and now prefer a less hectic lifestyle of being at The Cotton Company.
Hope that helps!”
Elizabeth
