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Small Business - Why We Love It

Small Business - Why We Love It

Holiday shopping is in full swing and Black Friday and Small Business Saturday have come and gone, so now we reflect on what worked and what didn't in our little retail world.  But we are also counting our blessings and reflecting on the things we enjoy about this business. 

That comes down to PEOPLE.  The people we work with and the people we see day in and day out.  We love our hometown community - we know what your wife or husband wants for Christmas (usually).  Your daughter has been in and she is sure to tell us "when mom comes in tell her this is the one!"  Your dad came in and said "when the kids start asking, tell them I like this."    We love when someone rushes over to the counter and says "here, hide this!"  Just yesterday I was visiting with a mom who had already purchased gifts, had them wrapped and had taken them home...when her daughter walks up with the same top that is wrapped and ready for her Christmas morning!  Yes, we are in the business of selling, but the relationships and the fun you are having at our store brings us great joy.

Another blessing, that I wasn't prepared for when we opened 18 years ago, is the people that travel year after year and have made Cornell's Country Store a regular stop.  Families that go from Dallas to Denver, and all over the place every year stop, shop and visit. We have many travelers that we have come to recognize that have been stopping, shopping and chatting for years now.  One of my favorite comments is "I've been wanting to stop here for years, and now I'm sure glad I did!"  Apparently, there are lots of husbands on the road that don't want to let the wife stop and shop?  This is news to me, never have I ever heard such a thing from mine ~  wink wink

One of my favorite stories is of a young couple from Montana that stopped one year and visited with our beloved Dude (Bill's dad).  Dude would close his service station that he had operated for 60+ years in Clarendon and come sit and visit at the store until we closed at 6. This Montana couple stopped the next year, and after visiting for a minute they said they really stopped to talk to the elderly gentleman that was here every day.  It was sad because Dude had passed away, but so wonderful at the same time.  How cool is that?  Relationships is what it's really all about and the fact that these people all the way from Montana had remembered a visit with a very friendly Texan.  Warms our heart every time we tell the tale. 

In closing, I hope that you love your job whatever it may be and that you have great relationships wherever your job is. I also hope that if you are a customer of ours that you know that we appreciate you and you make our job worthwhile.  We are extra thankful for YOU.

 

 

December 01, 2019 — Deanna Cornell
Autumn, It Starts With A Subtle Crispness in the Air

Autumn, It Starts With A Subtle Crispness in the Air

I always say I am a summer time gal, I love all things summer.  I love beaches, cookouts, travel and gardening (flower gardening, that is) and the long days ... until I feel that first little hint of Autumn's crisp air and I crack open the windows at home and let the cool breeze make its way through and it gets me over and over, and I believe I will never, ever tire of it.  I am suddenly a "fall is my favorite gal".  With mid-September's arrival the morning air becomes crisp, the days are a little shorter, the sun is rising and setting in a new place on my horizon and I fall in love every single day with Autumn.  After the long, hot summer has taken its toll on my flower gardens the mums start to bloom, my morning glory flowers stay open a little longer, the cypress vine is loaded, and the roses have put on one or their last shows with a glorious abundance of blooms and I could spend hours in the garden again. 

Then reality slips in and I have a job to get to, so I peel myself away from the garden and the open windows and the breeze and head to work.  But, then there are all the new fall arrivals at the store from delectable fragrances, to lovely pumpkins, to all the black and white checked EVERYTHING that I am currently crazy about.  Let's not even get started on the gorgeous fall clothing and the glorious colors of the season and I am back to my Autumn reverie even at work!

So, today if you ask me what my favorite time of year is...it is now...the very beginning of Autumn and if you ask me during the winter months I will definitely say Summer, and so it goes around and around.

Won't you tell me your favorite time of year, and why?

September 18, 2019 — Deanna Cornell
Tags: fall
Meet The Artist...Small Business Connections At Their Best

Meet The Artist...Small Business Connections At Their Best

...half her heart lives in the Texas panhandle where her family is and she grew up. Her style is fun spirited southwestern folk art which is more of a vehicle to bring people together rather than be taken too seriously. 
January 16, 2019 — Deanna Cornell
Breaking all the rules…after age 50

Breaking all the rules…after age 50

Who makes the rules, anyway?  Where fashion is concerned, especially for myself, I wonder what the rules are for the over 50 set.  I think I am like a lot of you that are over 50, maybe a little fluffy (or ~ ahem ~ a lot fluffy) and you want to be fashionable and on trend.  But, while being on trend may sound great we don’t want to look like we raided our 20something daughter’s closet.

I admire the ladies that have reached the age where they just truly don’t care what anyone thinks about their fashion sense!  I recently went on a little trip to Ruidoso, New Mexico with some friends and family.  We went to the horse races and had a blast betting on the ponies and watching people.  I am an avid people watcher and I noticed this woman who had to have been a former Rodeo Queen – she was adorable.  She was at least in her 70s, and believe me, she KNEW her style and she completely ROCKED IT! She sported a straw cowboy hat, bleached blond long hair worn in a fashionable side braid, HIGH WAISTED WRANGLER JEANS, a Texas Western shirt (that mimicked the Texas flag) and tall red Western boots with her jeans tucked in.  People around may have snickered as she made one of at least 15 trips in front of the stands to go place her bet, but I thought she was freakin’ fabulous!  While, I would never dream of wearing what she had on I admired the fact that she didn’t give a rip what any of us thought and she obviously knew her style and she loved it!  That made me love her!

With all that being said – I say “if you love it, wear it, but keep it simple and classy”.  Don’t compare yourself to all the slick ads and photos we see on social media.  Know your style and OWN IT.  We don’t need to look like we shopped all the window displays at Forever 21…but we can give a little nod to trends and feel great about what we are wearing at the same time.  So, I think I will just mix prints and wear denim on denim…as a matter of fact I think I shall wear it today!

In the words of Coco Chanel “I don’t care what you think of me, I don’t think of you at all”  Ladies – be YOU because YOU ARE FABULOUS!

~ til next time, stay stylish

Deanna

 

August 01, 2018 — Deanna Cornell
Essentials for Spring...

Essentials for Spring...

Essentials for Spring...when Mother Nature is in a MOOD
April 17, 2018 — Deanna Cornell
Hi ho, Hi ho, it's off to market we go!

Hi ho, Hi ho, it's off to market we go!

 I always "regroup" at the beginning of the year and reflect on what worked and what was a disaster, and where to go from here.  
January 19, 2018 — Deanna Cornell