In an area that many believe is in its economic death-throes, one new business is on the verge of celebrating its one year anniversary.
Meet MAKE Whidbey Market, a small-town shop nestled between Cozy’s Roadhouse and Cadée Distillery in the heart of downtown Clinton. According to owner Janae Cameron, the business didn’t just survive the tricky first year, it’s growing. In fact, she’s reporting increased sales for the past two months as a result of adding a wider variety of products to their storefront.
And she’s not an isolated success story. Sixteen new businesses have come to town in the past 18 months, and another — a noodle bar — is slated to open this summer. So if Clinton is supposed to be dead, what gives?
According to Stephanie Cook, Cozy’s owner and the new president of the Clinton Chamber of Commerce, the change in the wind is due to several factors. First off, at $1 per square foot, Clinton has some of the cheapest rent on the island for commercial real estate, she said. Many rental spaces offered huge discounts such as the first two months of rent free of charge, allowing entrepreneurs to gamble on new businesses.
She also says the incoming business owners are younger and raising families on the South End, making their intentions to grow their businesses a long-term venture. The business spurt is also different than prior surges due to “momentum,” Cook said.
“These new business owners are really interconnected with the community in every aspect of their lives,” Cook said. “They are committed to staying in the community, and it’s a domino effect. You have one or two new businesses, and as business picks up things grow around you.”
As for Cameron, her secret to success is simple. She keeps her products as local as possible, prioritizing Clinton-produced goods. She’s also creating a family atmosphere where parents can sip on coffee while their kids play with crafts in the store.
MAKE Whidbey opened as a storefront to sell products from Cameron’s other business venture, Turnco Wood Goods, which she owns with her husband Kelly Cameron. The store also offered products such as gifts, coffee, children’s toys and crafts. But in the past two months, she’s expanded her inventory even more to include items like snacks, non-perishable foods like preserves and other jarred goods, and an expanded kids’ section. The idea behind her inventory is to promote other Clinton and South Whidbey businesses.
“I’ve met the local makers and crafters, and I believe in their product and what they’re doing,” Cameron said.
For example, pantry food items include products from Britt’s Pickles, which are produced and processed in a space across the highway.
“I think MAKE’s status as a localized retailer is great, especially for the area where we’re in,” said Trap Landry, operations manager at Britt’s Pickles. “Clinton is notoriously hard to make things happen in. That sort of cooperative business model is super healthy and it creates a healthy environment for community.”
Promoting local has also been successful for Cameron.
The new additions have increased revenue, and 50 percent of annual sales were earned during the holiday season. That is contrary to the belief that South Whidbey commerce dies during the wintertime, Cameron said.
Cameron summed up MAKE’s first year in one word: “momentum.” Creating the momentum is past, and the name of the game at this point is maintaining it and moving forward. It’s a scenario that mirrors Clinton’s own momentum, which Cook says is picking up steam. This summer will see Island Nosh open for business next door to MAKE, adding foot traffic, Cameron said. MAKE also plans to start hosting kids’ activities such as creative craft nights and party events. The idea is to work towards creating a block party atmosphere of sorts where people hang around Clinton as opposed to driving through it, Cameron said.
Keeping momentum has also required trying out new things and cutting losses on those that didn’t quite work. MAKE no longer rents out a food truck to promote South Whidbey cooks — it just wasn’t sustainable. Also, finances haven’t allowed MAKE to open a full service kitchen.
Cook and Cameron have been rebooting the Clinton Chamber of Commerce as president and vice president respectively since early this year. Chamber participation and activity spiraled downward last year, so much that the organization didn’t apply for annual grant funding allotted to all the island’s chambers. With new blood and excitement at the helm, membership is climbing and the organization is again serving as an active voice for Clinton.
“So far, our involvement in the Clinton Chamber of Commerce has gone great,” Cook said. “I actually can’t think back to a better time in Clinton than right now. There’s a lot of growth going on.”
MAKE is hosting an in-store birthday party on Memorial Day. The event is 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Memorial Day, May 30. Festivities will include free brunch bites catered by The Midnight Kitchen as well as an all day jewelry trunk show hosted by new Clinton resident Alexa Allamano, owner of Foamy Wader.
