The Magic Just Keeps On
By Renee Fisher
About 8 years ago, while camping my way across the country in search of a new home, I made a brief stop in Asheville. Somewhere, I had read something that mentioned The Laughing Seed restaurant and cute little Wall Street. Intrigued, I pulled off I240 just long enough to find a parking space and walk down Wall Street. I didn't go anywhere else in town. But, it didn't matter...Asheville had already started doing it's magic on me. My traveling money had all but run out, and as I headed back towards my home in Dallas, I started to cry. I had no idea why I was crying, but I couldn't stop. I can only say now that it felt like something deep inside me had made some kind of connection and did not want to leave this place.
Back in safe, familiar Dallas, I dug into a job at a small neighborhood garden store. This job would turn out to be an incredible opportunity to learn all aspects of operating this type of business. The couple who owned the store quickly promoted me to General Manager and Buyer for all three of their stores. Within a year, they sent me to Europe with a Eurail pass for three weeks, and told me to go anywhere I wanted...just come home with a good feel for how Europeans garden so I could make their stores have that same feeling. What a gift!
So, for the next 5 years that's what I did. Those stores became very successful and I learned so much. Over time, I began to want my own business. I knew I didn't want to live in Dallas any longer, so I took a leave from work and started looking for a smaller town to open a store. I had never been able to forget how I had felt when I traveled through Asheville and decided to check it out again...and, once again, the magic did it's work on me. I came for 4 days, talked to everyone I ran into, and heard the same thing over and over. Each person had their own "magical" story of how they were drawn here. And, I was amazed at how many people knew someone else I had just met. There just seemed to be something special going on here and it was calling me to be part of it.
Back in Dallas again, I started searching for a job in Asheville over the internet. The Grove Corner Market at the Grove Arcade was hiring, so I made another trip out for the interview. I told the owner of my dream to have my own garden store someday. She said she'd love to hire me, but felt compelled to tell me that the Grove Arcade was holding a space open for a garden store and that I should talk to them...uh oh, more magic coming! I quickly made up a concept for my store and pretended to have a business plan in place when I met with the leasing agent. He said I was exactly what they were looking for, and I went back to Dallas in hope of finding money to make this dream come true. Some of my ex-employees from the garden stores threw a party for me, and one of them asked how much I needed to get started. I told her that just to finish out the space at the Grove Arcade I would need $20,000. She promptly pulled out her checkbook and wrote a check for that amount!! Yikes...it was really going to happen!!
So, here I am in Asheville, with my little garden store, Sprig. The magic continues to happen for me and I am truly grateful for it. I feel that Asheville calls us here and gives us permission to release our creativity in order to make this town a very special and unique place. It keeps all kinds of little magical "coincidences" happening so that we can't help but live with a sense of wonder about it all . May the magic continue!