January 2, 2023, I'm celebrating the 5th anniversary of the Village Sock Shop. I can't believe it. Being a nerd for statistics, I had to see how I stack up. Can you believe 45% of businesses in the USA don't make it to 5 years? It makes me so proud to think of the journey that has gotten me here today.
Bob (Yes, my husband's name is Bob) and I moved to Mendocino in October 2017 and I didn't have a job. If you need to know anything about Mendocino, it's that this is a small town with approximately 820 full-time residents. I consider myself an intelligent, "get things done" kind of gal, so I was confident I would find work in the area. First things first, I needed to get moved into our house and organized. As we settled in we found ourselves with moving boxes we didn't need. I don't like to waste things, so I tried to find a way to donate the boxes. I soon discovered that Mendocino has a community email listserv that people use to post Want Ads. We listed our moving boxes and had a response within a day. When the couple came to pick up the boxes, we got to chatting (as anyone who has ever met me will attest to, I love to chat). The couple told us that they were moving to the East Coast and selling their business. I couldn't help but ask, "What do you own?". Well, you probably see where this is going...it was the sock shop! Bob and I were customers of the shop when we visited here before our move, so we were familiar with the business. Up until that day I never imagined myself buying a business and working for myself. What an interesting change in life, what a new challenge, what a different future. In essence, it is what moving to Mendocino felt like for us. That day the entrepreneur in me was born. On January 2, 2018, I opened the doors of the Village Sock Shop.
As the store in Mendocino has grown, so has our ever-changing world. Part of my sock store business plan was to include selling from a website. As many of you know, I launched my own website where I sell socks directly from the walls of my shop to the entire world. My team and I walk every shipment to the post office and send them on to you.
Living in this remote village, perched high on a cliff over the Pacific Ocean is not easy. We depend on a volunteer fire department, are at risk for wildfires and earthquakes, and our internet goes out more times in a week than I can sometimes stomach. But, the compassion of the people of this community, their resilience, and their care for our environment fills me up. I value the relationships with my community, employees, and customers, without whom I wouldn't be here celebrating 5 years of socks. I am proud of the human connections and positive impact my store creates both online and in-person.
I hope 2023 brings you love, light, and the opportunity to connect. Never forget your sock shop team is always here for you!
Our Values
We believe in history; of people, of buildings, of heirlooms, and of communities.
We believe in customer service; at the Village Sock Shop we LOVE helping customers and turning it into a fun experience.
We believe in QUALITY.
We believe in the power of Nature; to heal, to nurture, to enlighten.
We believe in supporting other small businesses, and the fearless people who run them.
We believe in hard work; in business, in relationships, in family.
We believe in Mendocino and the people who call small towns home.
We believe in exclamation points, and use them way too much!
I am proud of my team of amazing people and I hope you enjoy the products we sell.
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