Two Years at Kickshaws Downtown Market

Two years ago…pre-opening.

Two years ago today we hastily opened the doors of Kickshaws Downtown Market. The store had been almost a year in the making and Fredericksburg was eager to see what we had to offer, unfortunately at the time that wasn’t much. In those first few months we really questioned if we would be able to keep the doors open at all. Stocking the shelves with product was difficult on a meager budget and we really had no loans or investments at all to speak of- our shelves were stocked with the little money we personally had in savings. It was difficult, but we were passionate about what we were trying to do for our community so we kept pushing forward.

Well… that is much better. Fall 2015

We didn’t celebrate our first year being open because we were still in the thick of trying to make it day to day. But today I look back on our last two years and am thankful and so clearly blessed with all that we have worked through and those who have worked through it with us. We have some amazing vendors who have been with us since the beginning working hard to help us keep product on shelves when there wasn’t much else to put on them. We, with absolute graciousness, thank our vendors for allowing us to carry their products. Without these small businesses we would have little to bring to you.

Winter 2015

When we opened the doors to Kickshaws we were rushed with many expectant customers- many of which were largely disappointed. We were warned early on that we needed to be completely ready to run because Fredericksburg is NOT a forgiving city. This advice scared the life out of me because I didn’t think we would truly ever be ready to open especially with the budget we were working with.

While we disappointed many people with our scant offerings early on, Fredericksburg was very much inviting and forgiving of our short comings. Many of those folks who first walked into Kickshaws two years ago continue to walk through our doors week to week. We delight in the looks on their faces when they see new products stocked on our shelves and are happy to talk with them about not only nutrition and food, but about how the kids are doing and what Sparky’s last vet appointment was like. Where small businesses and their owners are perhaps the backbone of our country, the customers who support small business are the life blood that keeps us running. We thank each and every one of our customers who have continued to support us and those businesses whom have been supported through them.

As we stand at our two year mark, we are in a position I didn’t think we would be in- expansion. It has been an incredibly slow process to get Kickshaws Kitchen underway but as Mr. Kickshaws say you can’t rush these things! Rather, every other governing party doesn’t allow you to rush these things. None the less, we are diligently working to get the Kitchen open to be able to offer our community more options for gluten-free and vegan baked goods, breads and meals. We are currently building with hopes to have the kitchen open no later than early fall.

Thank you to the City of Fredericksburg,  its residents, Fredericksburg Main Street, our vendors, friends and family. Your support, dedication and hard work keep not only Kickshaws Downtown Market running but all our wonderful small businesses in the city.