By Lynell Morgan
Co-Publisher
There is a buzz in downtown Elgin, the kind that comes with something new filling a long-empty niche. That something is All The Pretty Things, a gift and apparel shop that opened last Saturday at 110 N 2nd Street.
“I really just want it to be like a place that’s cute and inviting,” said owner April Schindler. “….(something) that Elgin can be proud of”.
After months of remodeling, ordering inventory and equipment and stocking racks and shelves, and a summer wedding in between, All The Pretty Things has opened its doors.
April, a native of Holdrege and wife of Drew Schindler, is excited about this new chapter in her life as she is making the adjustment to small-town Elgin. A chance meeting through mutual friends blossomed into a relationship for April and Drew, and she knew a move to Elgin was in the cards. That meant weighing her work options.
“I knew when I was going to move here, I was going to want to do something different than what I had been doing (in corporate retail). But, you know, I didn’t quite know what. I just felt like Elgin could use something…. there’s no place to buy a gift or get something cute,” she said. “Drew, he’s been so supportive, and he’s like, ‘…if you could dream up anything you wanted to do, what would it be, and do it’.”
When April visited with the Elgin Review last Friday morning, she spoke excitedly about her opening and her vision for the shoppe’s future.
“I thought it would be really cool to have a store, and like, I wear t-shirts and sweatshirts all the time….graphic tees, graphic sweatshirts…and just wanted stuff that either you had to go grab quick for a gift or you wanted just something to go shopping (for), and so my mind kind of started rolling on that”, she explained. Eventually, she hopes to host things such as puzzle parties, paint by number nights, Bunco, and other fun gatherings for women and couples alike.….and that I can be proud of. Where people come in and have coffee and sit down and have conversations. Where the high school kids come in and do their homework or whatever, and basically ‘chill’.” An area of the display floor has comfortable seating and a large coffee table.
When she opened her doors, she was encouraged by the number of friends and shoppers who stopped in, said ‘hi’, and shopped.
“I have a very good family base here that’s so supportive and a strong-rooted family….they have been so awesome. Helping get everything set up and coming in and telling people about it. I never expected Saturday to be as busy as it was. I had three out of the four of my kids here helping, and they were like, ‘Wow, that’s crazy!’ And my sister came up. It’s gonna be hard to top that feeling because I didn’t know (what to expect). You try to be a little conservative on inventory….you don’t want to get stuck with a bunch of stuff. But then I was like, ‘oh no, we’re naked here. We have nothing!,” she said as she looked around the shelves and clothing racks.
Family is at the core of her story as she and Drew became “Mr. and Mrs.” this past July. At a destination wedding in Jamaica, Drew officially gained four children: Gavin (a steel salesman in Omaha), Jirsie (works in the marketing department at Brass Buckle Corporate in Kearney), Bradie (runs track for UNK and studies construction and supply chain management) and Baron (plays basketball at Iowa Western in Council Bluffs).
During the course of the interview, one window shopper came in with a cheerful smile, welcoming April and admiring the shoppe. Later, two ladies met up at the shoppe to browse and talk to April about ordering some graphic t-shirts. All this confirmed that she is filling a niche and that Elgin is a welcoming town!
…..see more at this week’s Elgin Review.
