Today we’d like to introduce you to Brad McCullough.
Hi Brad, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
After 20+ years in the retail furniture and mattress business, we had been looking for a change of pace. After visiting a vintage market with my wife, Dawn, the wheels started turning that a vendor concept might be a good fit for our property. After a discussion with a dear friend, Lee Yarboro, who helped build a team of vendor market veterans we began meeting regularly to craft the idea of what Evenbrooke Marketplace would become.
We have been fortunate to receive a great response from customers, creating a desirable amount of traffic flow along with a phenomenal response from vendors who are what make the venue excellent.
I’ve always enjoyed and appreciated the world of retail, but I have to admit, as much as I enjoyed the retail furniture business, this is a lot more fun! In this environment, we have been able to create a space for several specialty shops including Brook’s Nest Clothing Boutique, Wallburg Emporium Coffee Shop, and HoneyBell’s Old Country Store.
This is where the fun comes in that I’m referring to… we have been able to create a space for our guests to stop in and truly escape the day for a bit, explore the venue for vintage items and home decor along with experiencing what the specialty shops have to offer.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
By being in one model of retail for so many years a person can become jaded by the ebb and flow of what that business brings as far as seasons, customer interactions, and so forth. This was a new venture for me in that I had never been a part of vendor markets or antique malls.
My wife has always enjoyed them, but I literally knew nothing about the industry or what to expect. There were some struggles early on learning a new business model that is not dealing with a traditional inventory process and opening the doors to vendors who, in essence, are now your partners in this venture. We opened with about 12 vendors or so and have grown at a rapid pace to over 100 with another expansion on the way.
Overall, it has been a smooth experience due to the wonderful people around us, and have enjoyed seeing a business grow at a pace I’ve never experienced before.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
My primary role in our business is to maintain and progress our shopping center that houses Evenbrooke. When people ask, “what do you do”, the simplest answer is that I’m in the space rental business. In a traditional sense, we lease spaces in the shopping center to other businesses and tenants. Evenbrooke has become the anchor unit in the center encompassing approximately 25000 – 30000 sq. ft.
I have to say the most unique part of being in the space rental business in this sense is that to effectively leasing the vendor spaces within Evenbrooke we have to maintain a retail environment that is pleasing enough to our guests to make them come back again and again along with making sure they tell others about us. The challenge is this, in order to succeed in the space rental side of things I have to create enough activity for the vendors to be profitable.
What sets us apart from other antique malls or vendor markets, I believe, is the atmosphere within the venue. The vendors and staff create a welcoming environment. I am very proud of the personality of our venue and when I witness folks coming in and enjoying meeting and interacting with friends and family in the showrooms it truly is heartwarming.
Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
As with any business the challenge is to stay relevant. In any business, I believe you have to know without any uncertainty what you are selling. We are selling the environment. If we continue to create an environment and atmosphere of fun, relaxing entertainment I believe guests will continue to visit. Vendor markets are unique entities in that if the enjoyment is there the products will move by default. Guests can stop in with the intention of just wandering around and enjoying themselves, grabbing a homemade waffle cone of ice cream at HoneyBell’s or a specialty coffee from Wallburg Emporium, and undoubted stumbling across an item that they want to take home.
This type of venue is one of the last, great uses of brick and mortar. Trends are certainly toward online shopping and items being shipped to your home and I’m sure will continue to do so. Again, the focus is on what we are selling, we are by definition “something to go do!” Our effort is to provide a simple and fun day trip or the opportunity for someone to escape the demands for a brief moment that burden us all!
Contact Info:
- Website: evenbrooke.com
- Facebook: @Evenbrooke
- Youtube: Evenbrooke
