Four distinct small businesses along Downtown Auburn’s Highway 136 are working to come together under one roof at 826 Central Avenue. The businesses are Indigo Collective, Crunchy Bits, Bee Yourself Boutique and Bulldog Brews Coffee, and each of the owners are nothing less than ecstatic for the venture.
“We are becoming greater than the sum of our parts,” said the owner of Indigo Collective, Christina Hatcher. Amanda Gibson, who owns Bee Yourself Boutique, also noted on the ease of operation that the collaborative location would provide to each of the business owners. Already, Bee Yourself Boutique and, more recently, Bulldog Brews share a space with Indigo Collective, and with the addition of Erin Conner’s coffee shop, the women agreed that more space was a necessity. Lyndsay Maahs, who owns Crunchy Bits, is just as excited for the new location as the other women, explaining that while the building she currently operates from is a wonderful space, it was simply too expensive to be viable long term.
To make the shared space more manageable, the four business owners formed Beehive LLC. Just because they are encapsulated under a single name, however, does not mean that the businesses will be any less distinct in the space. “We want to make a sort of lounge space,” it was said, “People seem to really enjoy seeing everything a store has to offer as they walk in, and we want to provide an area that lets people shop as well as just relax.” One of the biggest challenges that Bulldog Brews faced within the space shared by Indigo Collective and Bee Yourself Boutique was the lack of space. Customers who waited for their drinks were forced to mesh around others who looked to shop at either of the retail businesses and as Bulldog Brews gained popularity, the lack of waiting area became very evident. “The shared space is really going to help each of us grow our businesses, as well as grow together.” Gibson plans to start stocking more children’s clothing and was very excited to announce her discovery of a 30 and 40 ounce tumbler vendor. Along with this new stock, Bulldog Brews will offer specials for customers who fill their new tumbler with their coffee. Maahs hopes to expand the scope of her candy creations, branching into more confectionery options to offer alongside her freeze-dried sweets. Those business owners who offer clothes and, in Hatcher’s case, adjustments, are also very excited to finally have a dressing room for customers to use. “I used to just let people into my office,” Gibson said, “and hope that no one opened the door on them.”
