WALK THE STREETS OF DOWNTOWN SPOKANE and you won’t see the
eccentric in-vogue look of Portlanders or the classiness of Seattleites, and especially not any Los Angeles glam. That’s because we’re Inlanders. We like our jeans, pullover sweatshirts and the occasional flannel. Of course, that’s a generalization. But Summer Hightower, owner of vintage/ modern boutique VEDA LUX (1106 S. Perry St., vedaluxboutique.com), says while there may be some Inlanders who dress for fashion, on the whole it’s a dress-forcomfort kind of place. Whereas in Seattle or Portland, people get done up just to leave the house. “You’ll walk down the street here decked out in a cool ’50s dress and people are like, ‘Whoa, where are you going?’ she says. “ ‘Nowhere, I’m going to go get ice cream.’ ”
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“I think it’s really wonderful that we can drive our business by looking at what’s happening in Spokane and extrapolate that to have a successful business nationally.” happening in Spokane and extrapolate that to have a successful business nationally,” Fish says. “I owe a lot to this community.”
Pop Quiz 1.
Every Christmas for the past 56 years a large decoration of hand-painted 6-by-12-foot plastic panels is installed on the face of a building in downtown Spokane. What is the display called and what current building displays it? a. North Pole at Nordstrom b. Christmas Windows at the Crescent c. Silver Bells at the Davenport Hotel d. The Madonna at Macy’s
2.
What historic department store opened in Spokane the day before the great fire swept through town in 1889? a. Hudson’s b. The Crescent c. Bon Marché d. Rhodes Brothers
3.
Boo Radley’s, a wacky downtown gift shop, and Atticus Coffee & Gifts are named after characters in which American novel? a. “The Great Gatsby” b. “The Catcher in the Rye” c. “To Kill a Mockingbird” d. “The Grapes of Wrath”
4.
E. L. Overjorde opened a jewelry store in Coeur d’Alene in 1907 that later became Clark’s Diamond Jewelers on Sherman Avenue. His son Bob worked for Harry Winston, a well-known American jeweler in possession of what famous diamond at the time? a. The Hope Diamond b. The Great Star of Africa c. The Centenary Diamond d. The Orlov
5.
Huppin’s, a home electronics store, was founded in Spokane in 1908 by Sam Huppin. But Sam didn’t open it as an electronics store. What kind of shop was Huppin’s when it first opened? a. Cigar shop b. Home decor c. Tailor shop d. Beauty parlor
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he Inland Northwest might be a particularly gracious breeding ground for local businesses, but it doesn’t happen without hard work and a little coaxing of the Inlander mindset that sometimes gets stuck on big chain stores. Heather Hanley, whose home decor stores — TIN ROOF (1727 E. Sprague Ave., thetinroof.us) and CONCEPT HOME (401 W. 1st Ave., thetinroof.us) — evolved from the radio repair shop that her grandpa opened on Sprague in 1945, says that although Inlanders rally around small businesses, sometimes we need to be reminded to shop local. “It’s easy to remember to go to Nordstrom when you need a new pair ...continued on next page
6.
When the city of Spokane installed parking meters downtown for the first time in 1942, what was the time limit for every meter? a. three hours b. 20 minutes c. no time limit d. one hour
SHOPPING
he upside to living in an area that lags a little behind the bigger cities is that local business owners have the opportunity to fill niches. In already brimming metropolises, your new shop idea might just sink into the clutter, becoming one of many of its kind. But in Spokane, your business has the chance to be its own breed, or at least one of just a few. After lifelong Spokanite Andy Dinnison saw no local business specialized in zany retail items — zombie gnomes, horse-head masks, T-shirts and mugs covered in fictional creatures, and the like — he decided to open his shop, the whimsical BOO RADLEY’S (232 N. Howard St.), in 1993. “I thought Spokane needed to have more fun,” Dinnison says. “It seems like 20 years ago we were taking ourselves pretty seriously.” Then in 2009, Dinnison and his wife, Kris, opened ATTICUS COFFEE & GIFTS (222 N. Howard St.) a couple doors down from Boo Radley’s. Atticus, with its Cheers-like gathering-place feel, also sells “more serious” home decor items that, if carried at Boo Radley’s, would get lost in all the weirdness. Atticus and Boo Radley’s have since become iconic in Spokane’s downtown scene. Other signature Spokane businesses like HUPPIN’S (8016 N. Division St., huppins.com) and MOUNTAIN GEAR (2002 N. Division St., mountaingear.com) put their roots down locally and were able to branch out nationwide via mail order, then the Internet. Paul Fish was making custom-built backpacks when he moved to Spokane 30 years ago. Within a month he opened Mountain Gear. His small outdoor retailer
soon expanded with a large climbing, mountaineering, snow and water sport inventory and began shipping across the country in the ’90s. Fish credits kind-natured Spokanites and their passion for the outdoors and local business for his success with Mountain Gear. “I didn’t know anything about business when I got here, and they treated me gently and took me by the hand, and helped me get where I’m going and where I’ve gone,” he says. What Fish learned in Spokane he took to the national market. Among Inlanders it’s hard to find an outdoor wannabe — someone who dons a Moonstone jacket and state-of-the-art hiking boots for the lone reason of looking outdoorsy. We all participate in outdoor activities, he says. Because of that, he could use Spokane as a testing ground for his gear. “I think it’s really wonderful that we can drive our business by looking at what’s
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