Wayne White and Robin Yates, owners of The Middle of Nowhere
HOLLY POND – Holly Pond recently became home to another new business, and the owners are local folks. In November, The Middle of Nowhere, an antique shop and boutique, opened at 28 Brooklyn Road, behind the Chevron station at the town's main intersection. Wayne White and Robin Yates, along with daughter Bailey White, currently operate the store on a part-time basis: Wednesdays-Fridays 10 a.m.-6 p.m. and Saturdays 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; though they are considering possible Monday openings for the near future.
Yates, a Holly Pond native, comes from a family of antique collectors. She grew up around shops and auction houses, and has passed the bug along to her daughter.
"We've always dealt in antiques," Yates said. "Even when I was a young girl, I would go with my parents to auctions. And Bailey and her cousins, they grew up in auctions."
Asked why they chose to locate their shop in the small town, she replied, "We're Holly Pond people. Our family homesteaded land back in the 1800s, and we're still on the homesteaded land, so this was just a natural place for us to open a little store."
The 2,500-square-foot facility is mainly devoted to antiques, but also features more modern items that are vintage-inspired. One small section of the store has been set aside as a clothing boutique, and Robin Yates sells pillows that she makes from grain sacks and quilts. The store also carries specialty milk paint for rustic furniture, and they hope to expand that offering in the near future.
Those pillows Yates makes are popular enough that they may soon be appearing in other stores as well; she has recently been approached about wholesaling them to other retailers.
The Middle of Nowhere is not an antique mall/indoor flea market with multiple aisles of small rented booths. It has an open floor that's easy to navigate, with items arranged in attractive displays. While it is mainly a family endeavor, the store does take items on consignment from contracted private collectors and dealers, being careful to avoid the clutter of malls, and to preserve a high standard of item quality.
Yates said, "We have taken on some vendors to help us fill the store, but we don't do like malls. They don't have a specific space. We take things in on consignment, and we choose what they bring in, and place it wherever it looks best in the store."
The Middle of Nowhere is not for those who enjoy the challenge of sifting through thrift stores and flea markets, panning for that hidden nugget. It is for those who appreciate a true specialty shop, real antiques and quality handcrafts. Those who want to know more about the store, or who are interested in consigning antiques or handmade items, can contact Bailey White at 256-962-8550 or look up The Middle of Nowhere on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/the.middle.of.nowhere.al) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/the.middle.of.nowhere/).
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