Gina Teel, Calgary Herald
Small Business
Wanderlust Trading Co.
– Started out small, selling imported goods at events and street festivals and wholesaling them as well;
– Opened a temporary kiosk at Eau Claire Market, which later became a full-time kiosk;
– In 1999, opened the Marda Loop store using revenue generated from the kiosk;
– Started as a classic import shop, but has over the last nine years evolved into a jewelry, fashion accessories and home decor boutique.
Anyone who’s ever experienced the vibe of outdoor markets in Thailand or Nepal will likely be struck with a sense of deja vu once inside Wanderlust Trading Co.
Part of it has to do with the quaint size of the Marda Loop shop and the sheer volume of retail goods displayed throughout, and the racks of clothing that take up seemingly every inch of available space.
But the other piece is the ambiance created by the mix of unique jewelry, clothing and handicrafts from around the world, and the customers milling about the tiny store absorbed in their shopping and enjoying the upbeat energy of the place.
“I always wanted it to feel like the market in Kathmandu, and even though we’ve changed the product line I think I still get that feeling,” said Cheryl Kelly, Wanderlust’s owner.
About the only difference — aside from the complete absence of staggering heat and humidity — is that at Wanderlust there’s no haggling over price.
“I do that for the customer before it gets to the retail,” she said.
Wanderlust started out as a classic import shop but has, over the last nine years, evolved into what Kelly calls a jewelry, fashion accessories and home decor boutique.
Just inside the front door are beautiful rugs from Silk Road Carpets in Kathmandu, mirrors, lacquered boxes, and brightly-painted solid wood Tibetan end tables and stools, and other small Asian tables. Kelly also imports Asian art.
Further along are handbags from Suede + Co., Mimi & Marge, and Espe to name a few lines, as well as bags imported from Nepal and Bali.
There’s scarves, footwear, sunglasses, hats and caps, and a selection of beautiful hand-made leather journals from India. The hand-bound journals are filled with hand-made paper and have proven to be very popular with customers.
Sprinkled throughout the store are incense, aromas, teapots, candles, and a body care line from Barefoot Venus.
Wanderlust even has its own line of namesake clothing which Kelly has manufactured in Bali. She also carries all the popular labels such as Point Zero, Raindrops, CYC, and O2 Collection.
But Kelly’s big passion is the silver jewelry, which takes up a good chunk of the display space.
“I’ve always loved silver jewelry and my business really started, and to this day is really hinged on just a really fantastic collection of silver jewelry,” she said.
Wanderlust divides its jewelry display into two categories: sterling silver in straight silver designs and set with semi-precious stones, and fashion jewelry that Kelly brings in from around the world and Canadian sources as well.
On the silver side, there are pieces made with blue topaz, amethyst, onyx, rainbow obsidian, rose quartz, carnelian, cherry quartz, turquoise, and peridot.
Shells from Thailand are the jumping off point for another gorgeous line of sterling silver jewelry, with designs ranging from slightly modern to more classic styles.
Kelly has just brought in Laly, a new designer line from Montreal that features stunning and truly unique hand-made pieces.
On the fashion jewelry side, the two big collections are Foxy and Bauxo — both Canadian lines — but there’s an assortment of pieces from around the world. “We’re always on the cutting edge of the demand. Whatever the hot trend is, we’ve got it,” Kelly said.
Wanderlust evolved from an overseas trip Kelly took in 1990 that was supposed to be six months but wound up lasting more than seven years.
In her time there, she began trading and making a living buying and selling goods.
“At some point I ran out of money and had to fill the coffer,” she said.
When Kelly returned to Canada, she brought her new skill-set with her, intent on doing the same thing here.
“It was more or less a continuation for me,” she said.
Guided by her rule of thumb to buy what she loved, Kelly started small, setting up tables at the university and at street festivals, and wholesaled some goods as well.
She started a temporary kiosk at Eau Claire Market which later worked into a full-time kiosk, becoming her first retail location. At the time, she was importing from Nepal, Thailand and Bali.
In 1999, Kelly opened the Marda Loop store using the revenue generated from the kiosk.
Making the leap from kiosk operator to store owner didn’t leave creative-type Kelly tossing and turning all night with worry, however. She knew she was cut out for the work.
“It’s more than doing what you want, it’s doing what you know that you were meant to do, then you don’t even worry about it,” she said.
In addition to silver jewelry, she carried handicrafts from Kathmandu and a small selection of garments from Wanderlust’s own clothing line.
Customer demand for the mostly fun, easy-to-wear summer fashions soon saw Kelly expand the line.
“What I do is mostly expand on what I like, so I give a twist to what I like. I’m by no means a clothing designer,” she said.
In 2002, she opened an inline store at Eau Claire, which will eventually close when the market site is redeveloped.
While Kelly has put in her share of hours behind the counter, these days she spends the majority of her time doing all the buying for Wanderlust, scouting out new and unique products, and managing her employees.
Kelly proudly notes that she provides training for all her sales staff, so customer service is top-drawer at the store.
“The idea of just kind of sitting behind the counter is foreign to us,” she said.
Annual revenue is approaching $1 million.
gteel@theherald.canwest.com
Source: http://www.canada.com/
