Luther’s Main Street made room for a new shop over the weekend, Urban 66. Quietly on Saturday, Tami DeLozier and Angela Baustert opened up their gift shop at 107 S Main, between Alan Booher’s CPA office and the soon-to-be-opened Boydston-Bailey funeral home.
The brown paper was peeled back from their display windows, red bricks held the door open on the breezy pre-Spring day, and finally we saw what was going on in there! A brand new shop and a brand new reason to hang in L-town.
[supsystic-gallery id=20 position=center]Tami is Angela’s mom. When Angela and her husband built a home north of Luther, Tami and her husband would drive through Main Street from their home in the city to Angela’s place. They would marvel at the cuteness of Luther … and the potential … only if. If there was more businesses. If there was parking. If there was support for the business community. Is there support for the business community? It’s what many folks see and say when they drive through Main Street, more so after the turnpike gate opened out here a couple of years ago. More traffic. More opportunity.
Mother and daughter bypassed a few of those “ifs” and focused on adding to the Luther business community.
Tami recently retired from her position at Putnam City Schools and immediately put all of her energies into opening the store. Angela completed her education as a nurse practitioner, making her a tiny bit less busy as a working mom! But who could resist a joint-venture to open a new store in their new town? Soon, they had leased the building, then the heat and air was installed. They selected a computer system and credit card reader, acquired the fixtures, purchased the stock and established vendor relationships. All steps on the road to becoming retailers. Angela and Tami’s husbands and their friends built custom features like the sliding “barn” door separating the retail space from the storage area. And soon their flair for styling and decorative touches filled the space.
As the customers wandered in Saturday, some from the high school track-meet at Wilson Field, there were “oohs” and “ahhs” at the displays of fun, affordable, classic and on-trend home-decor items, jewelry, Oklahoma-themed tshirts and even a whimsical “poo-pourri” display.
Elsewhere on Main Street, shoppers filed into Rustic Farm with fresh displays and new vendors. Pam’s “Rustic Farm” (in the old Engels store) features booths that give local artisans and retailers space to sell antiques, treasures and creations.
For food, Saturday’s scene in Luther had Girls Scouts selling cookies in front of the hardware store, the regulars and the visitors at Josephine’s Cafe, and the bicyclists, families and friends gathering at The 116 Farmstead, Market and Table for breakfast. DJ’s BBQ, The Chicken Shack and Sonic shared in the lunch and dinner crowds. (Apologies for forgetting anyone! Add in the comments).
Parking was tight. But the people, they came. Our town has the potential, and looks like it has some momentum. There are some obstacles and planning to overcome, such as that parking situation, water issues, and some blighted areas. We look to town leadership to … well, take the lead, and tackle those issues.
Check out Urban 66 as soon as you can. It’s open Tuesday – Saturday during the day.
#lutherlocal.
