White Elm opens, brings new products to Maryville

By SKYE POURNAZARI | The Forum

MARYVILLE, Mo. — When White Elm Mercantile opened in October, owner Stephanie Campbell said the idea was to offer lifestyles items and home décor.

Also owner of Blue Willow, both in Maryville and St. Joseph, Campbell had a place for clothing and accessories, but wanted to help provide an upscale shop for décor and lifestyles gift items.

She mentioned that Maryville has lost a couple local gift shops in the last couple years, so she wanted a place people could go to refresh their homes.

“The vibrancy of our local community is key for me,” she said “That’s why I keep doing what I’m doing.”

Campbell along with Kent Yount rehabilitated the building that Blue Willow is in downtown and the one White Elm is in next to it at 218 N. Main St. As a member of Four Horsemen Properties LLC, she’s also a part owner in the upcoming Black Pony Brewery located on another corner of Downtown Maryville.

“The love of this community especially right now, it feels very fractured, and something like this is something we can come together around, keeping our money local and our shopping local,” she said.

White Elm offers an assortment of gift and other boutique items. Owner Stephanie Campbell said since Maryville has lost a couple local gift stores, she thought this might help fill the gap.

PHOTOS BY SKYE POURANZARI/THE FORUM

Rehabbing buildings is no longer new for Campbell and Yount who have now invested in three different Downtown Maryville buildings. And while each of the builds have common issues, they’ve each presented their own quirks.

At White Elm, the two closed in August and opened in October, which for them, was a much quicker turnaround than they had with the building next door, but it was not without its own problems.

“It was horrible,” she said. “It had carpet. All the walls were covered. It had the ugly drop-ceiling in here.”

So tearing out the carpet and pulling down that dropceiling led to the discovery of the original decorative tin ceiling, in very good shape. The building was gutted. The flooring was not salvageable, but quickly replaced. And a new HVAC system was installed.

“Downtown is the heart of the community,” Campbell said. “The heart of our community has struggled for many years. These buildings have just been neglected.”

She said while many people might consider it a good idea to knock them down and start over, they were built to last, having stood for 140 years.

“They’re going to stand for a hundred more as long as we don’t set them on fire,” she said.

In the back of White Elm she warehouses products for both of her Maryville stores. It’s also where the office is for each.

Campbell and Yount live next door above Blue Willow, but above White Elm will be two Air BNB units available for renters. It will have all the exposed beams, exposed brick and big windows just like her place.

They’re about halfway done with that project.

Libby Bolin and Savana Wiederholt work in the offices for White Elm and Blue Willow. The two help with online orders and social media.

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How has business been?

Just getting back from market, she said new items are about to hit the floor, but that it’s been a busy time.

Opening right before the holidays, White Elm started offering a gift box service for employee gifts. They’ve also started working to start a corporate gift service for people like real estate and insurance professionals looking for client gifts.

With regard to business, Campbell said fourth quarter was good. She said people were stopping and shopping.

“I think having that following over there (at Blue Willow), probably helped,” she said. “I think they’re happy to have it. We already have regulars.”

She said they refresh their gifts on a regular basis and that shoppers can expect to see something new very regularly.

“All the new stuff coming for spring will be great,” she said.

She mentioned the store also will feature a new “foodie” line such as bloody mary mixes, dip mixes and even kitchen gear.

“Really it’s just a spot for if you need a gift, here it is,” she said.

To shop online, visit www.whiteelmgift.com/.

The shop offers various lines for new babies, men and soon plans to offer a new line of kitchen and food items. Other gift items can be found like a line of greeting cards, hand creams and lotions and even specialty dog treats.

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