|
 Those
who were celebrating included Collins Roofing at 106 S.W. First,
Cranked Garage also at 106, Rural Roots at 104, Vicky’s Boutique at
108, Sherman Curiosity Shop at 110, and Artful Market at 122. The
Sherman and Artful Market buildings are owned by John and Mark
Sherman, and the other addresses are owned by Josh and Ashley
Collins.
Many folks will remember that for years, the bulk of the properties
on S.W. First belonged to Harry Sherman, and he operated a large
store that featured collectibles, novelty items, and antiques. When
Harry passed, the property went to his sons Mark and John. The
Sherman brothers sold the bulk of the properties to Collins, who had
intentions of refurbishing the properties and turning them into
viable space for retail and service businesses in Atlanta.
Josh explained that the properties were purchased then work had to
be put on hold. Eight years ago, he and Ashley finished up work on
the 104 address and moved their business from their home to a store
front in Atlanta. Collins said that they stopped there for a while,
then as they were making plans to start again Covid came along and
once again they were slowed down from doing what they had hoped to
do.
However, after Covid they began working on the
properties. While working on these properties, they were also
growing their business and were finding that it was difficult to
move forward with work, family, and refurbishing the properties, but
they continued to work as they could.
In late 2023 Justine Geary was running her hair salon in a rental
space in McLean. Out of the blue, she learned that her property had
been sold and her lease was not going to be renewed. She had heard
that the Collins were working on the properties and reached out to
see if they might have a space for her.
Vicky Shaffer was also running her business Vicky’s Boutique in the
same property as Geary and also learned that she was going to be
losing her store space. She too, was hopeful that the Collins’ would
have a space for her.
According to Shaffer, Collins had one property that was move-in
ready at that time, and it was the property they were occupying
themselves. In order to accommodate Geary and Shaffer, the Collins’
moved out of their office space and went to work at getting 104 and
108 ready for new tenants. Shaffer commented that while Josh and
Ashley don’t make a big deal of it, for herself and Geary it was a
very big deal, as by November they both had new locations in Atlanta
and were able to continue making an income and growing their
businesses.
In addition to owning Collins Roofing, Josh was also involved with
the ownership of Cranked Garage along with Jeremy Hereford and
Andrew Sims. Their strong suit is restoration and repair of classic
cars. For more than six years, they had been doing the work at their
homes, but the back half of 106/108 was an ideal location for a
garage. Andrew and Jeremy remember the building when they saw it
first. They said there were holes in the ceiling and roof, bad
floors and in general the place was a wreck. While the guys say they
didn’t need anything fancy for a garage, they did need something
that was structurally sound and safe. Collins had put time into the
structural issues of the building and by September of 2023 Cranked
Garage was able to move into its new home.
With 104 and 108 occupied, the Collins looked to 106
as their new home office for Collins Roofing. Ashley said the
building was rough, but they put in the walls and repaired and
painted and soon they had a good place to call their company
headquarters. She said one thing that made her and Josh both very
happy was the fact that they were able to save the original tin
ceiling in the building. She noted that the ceiling is part of the
history of the building and she’s happy that it worked out that way.
Ashley also noted that along the way they had some good help in the
form of Bill Thomas. Responsible for economic development in the
area, Thomas had assisted the Collins with registering as part of
the Atlanta TIF district, which entitled them to some important tax
breaks on materials for the restoration of all the building.
The Collins’ also noted that the buildings they have
restored are designated as an Atlanta Landmark by the Atlanta
Historic Commission.
While Sherman’s Curiosity Shop was gone in its original form, the
business does live on in son Mark who opened a smaller version of
his father’s store at 112. Again, the property was fixed up and he
was able to move into it with the knowledge that he was maintaining
his dad’s legacy and keeping Harry Sherman on the block and in the
memory of the community.
Down the street at 122, Debbie Armstrong and Kelly
Byrd were looking for a place to operate a “locally made” craft
market. The ladies said when they started looking, they talked with
Mark and John Sherman about taking up the corner space. They said
that John had done a lot to help get the building ready for them,
and they were both grateful and excited about being a part of the
restoration of S.W. First Street.
Artful Market is a unique business that focuses on local crafters
and selling their wares. The ladies said that they have crafters
supplying them that have reached their 90s and they also have some
very young talent supplying items for the store.
They focus first on immediate local crafters then move out to made
in Illinois vendors. Between all of them, they have some great
products and an assortment they believe will reach all ages.
The shop sells cemetery arrangements, t-shirts,
jewelry, travel mugs purses, candies, stuffed animals and more.
They also pointed out a table of items that are made
using a three-dimensional printer. They said what they find
remarkable about these items is that they twist and move, yet they
were made using modern technology, all in one piece with no assembly
required after the fact.
Back at the other end of the block Justine Geary is
excited about the new location for her salon and spa. Rural Roots is
located at 104 and she loves her new space. She said since moving to
Atlanta she has grown her business and is enjoying having an
ever-increasing clientele.
She has a team working with her that includes two
more stylists and an esthetician and massage therapist. She also
sells a selection of personal care products.
At 108, Vicky Shaffer is running Vicky’s Boutique
which is a ‘something for everyone” style store. Vicky shared her
interesting history saying that 28 years ago she started making
earrings and other jewelry for another seller. She said that seller
told her that for every piece she made for him, she should make a
piece for herself and set it back because he was going to predict
that some day she would have her own business.
She took that advice to heart and was soon doing her
own vendor markets and she even had a pop-up bus for a time.
Now that she has a brick-and-mortar location in
Atlanta she is expanding her offerings and has everything for home
décor to jewelry to toddler clothing and toys and lovely clothing
for ladies and women.
[to top of second column] |
She said that her niche has become her offering of
plus size clothing that is cute and comfortable for the larger woman
who finds it challenging to purchase clothing.
She noted that a lot of the younger generation is
buying online, and that’s okay for most of them, but sometimes a
woman needs to try on a piece of clothing, to see it, feel it, and
not just imagine herself in it, but know that she looks good, and it
fits well.
Shaffer said it is the best part of her day when someone comes in
and she is able to help them not just with a clothing choice but
also with the accessories to go with it.
She also offers an $8 rack and says that she sells a
lot from it. The rack includes clothing in all sizes and styles, and
offers bargain hunters a satisfying experience when shopping at
Vicky’s
She loves what she does, and she loves where she is doing it. She
said that the Collins’ have really done something remarkable in
restoring the properties and making them a viable part of the
community.
Though the address is listed as 106, Cranked garage
is located on the back half of Vicky’s Boutique and there is a door
from the boutique into the garage. The business is otherwise
accessible from the ally that runs behind the buildings.
Jeremy Hereford and Andrew Sims say they are
delighted with the building they have. There is plenty of room for
them to work; and work they do. The pair says they stay busy working
on the classics that they have become known for. As an example on
the day of the LDN visit, they had two cars in the bays, a third one
on the concrete driveway and others waiting in the wings for their
turn with the two mechanics.
As an example of their versatility, they were working
on a 1958 Chevrolet BelAir, an MG and a Corvette.
On Tuesday, there was a large group of guests who
came out to show their support at the ribbon cutting event for the
six businesses.
With everyone lined up in direct relationship to the
location on the block. The guests speakers began with Mark Sherman.
Sherman has been experiencing some health issues and
was not going to be able to stay for very long. He didn’t have a
great deal to say, but gave everyone a wonder smile and wave and
thanked them for coming.
Next were his tenants Kelly Byrd and Debbie
Armstrong. Byrd introduced herself and Armstrong and talked a little
about Artful Market and what they offer. She offered praise to John
and Mark Sherman for the work they had done to make the Artful
Market location very nice and quite comfortable for the new
business.
The line up of speakers then went to Josh Collins who
was joined by Ashley and their children Julia and Connor. Josh
talked about the acquisition of the property, the time invested in
the work and how pleased they were with the outcome. He said he was
happy to have been able to help revive a part of the city and noted
that there are still a few properties on the block and who knows
what the future might hold.
The guys from Cranked Garage were next on the line-up
and they too expressed their satisfaction with where they are and
said they were happy to be a part of this particular revitalization
in the town.
Justine Geary was the next business owner to address
the crowd. She said that she was excited about being in Atlanta. She
gave kudos to her team at Rural Roots and said they have become an
integral part of the overall success of her business.
The last business owner to speak was Vicky Shaffer.
She noted that she had been doing her jewelry for 28 years, and said
she was living a dream in being able to offer her experience while
growing her business in new areas that she could not have grown it
without a great location.
Representing the city of Atlanta was alderman Gary
Franz. He addressed the group saying that as a representative of the
city but also a near life long resident of the town, he wanted to
thank all those involved in bringing these new businesses to
Atlanta. He said it was good for the community and he genuinely
respects what they have done in bringing new business and in
improving the town of Atlanta.
With the speeches concluded it was time to snip the ribbon.
The entire Collins family grabbed hold of the scissor
for the posed picture, then with help from the spectators the
countdown from three, two, one snip took place and on perfect cue
the Collins’ snipped the ribbon on behalf of all the businesses in
the 100 block of S.W. First Street in Atlanta.
After the ribbon cut, guests were invited to enjoy donuts inside
Collins’ office and do some shopping and visiting with all the other
businesses along the strip.
Artful Market is open from noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and
on Sundays. Hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday’s and closed on
Monday.
Collins Roofing is open five days a week, Monday through Friday from
8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Cranked Garage is open Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Rural Roots is open Tuesday through Friday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. seeing
clients by appointment only.
Sherman’s Curiosity Shop for the time being is open by appointment
only.
Vicky’s Boutique is open Wednesday and Thursday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.,
Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, Monday, and
Tuesday by appointment only.
[Nila Smith]
 |
