My Business Adventure: Columbia Upcycle

Sometimes we feel stuck. We have all of these dreams and ideas and never do anything about them. I made a decision to stop complaining and to start doing something about it. For a while I have thought about opening a shop of some sorts. I love thrift stores and craft stores. We have a place in St. Louis called The Upcycle Exchange, which is a crafting materials exchange shop. Ever since my first visit there (over a year ago) I have thought how wonderful it would be to own a shop like that.

I wrote a piece for Missouri.com about eco-friendly shops and featured The Upcycle Exchange (you can read the article here). The more I learned about the business, the more I loved the idea of opening a store. So I took some time and thought about my obstacles and how I could overcome them. Then I contacted the business owner and got started.

Here's how the store works: It is an arts and crafts materials exchange and drop off shop. Customers get store credit for unwanted crafting items, can drop off things that are taking up space and can come in just to purchase items. The store has pay-as-you-wish pricing, with an average amount consumers usually pay per amount of items purchased.

I am starting out small, running the business as a pop-up shop at events. I don't have the money to open up a storefront, yet, but that is the hope within the next year or so. I have learned a lot about the logistics of opening a small business and I have a lot of faith in myself that I can do this. Only time will tell how successful I will be, but I know I am taking a step in the right direction!

Come visit the business website at: www.columbiaupcycle.com, and follow the shop on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest!