Alabama Goods
Photo by Madoline Markham.
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Alabama Goods co-owner Sherry Hartley in her downtown store.
Sweet Home Alabama is not just where the heart is; it’s where the goods are, as the selection of hand-crafted items at Alabama Goods attests.
“Alabama is deserving of having something like this,” said Sherry Hartley, one of the shop’s founders. “When you buy local, you know you’re helping to support a local artist or craftsperson that lives in the state and has made the products with their own hands. Also, purchasing from local artists allows tax dollars to stay in the state. It’s like a constant flow of recycled dollars.”
Sherry Hartley and business partner Beth Williams met while serving on Birmingham Chamber of Commerce committees together. Hartley ran an online source for local businesses to advertise jobs, and Williams owned a gift basket company.
“We saw that there was a void,” Hartley said. “You couldn’t go to a store to find a variety of things made in Alabama.” Hartley and Williams looked at stores with similar concepts in Virginia and Mississippi, sold their businesses in 2006, and in 2007 launched the Alabama Goods website, for which they primarily filledcorporate orders.
On the website, Alabama Goods sells mostly gift baskets but also pottery, jewelry, candles and more—mostly for customers out of state.
It took a while for the online business to get going, but in the meantime, Hartley and Williams traveled to state craft fairs and art shows and thought about opening a shop.
“We kept finding these items that were very unique, and we didn’t want to put those on the website,” Hartley said.
“We decided to showcase them, and it was the best business move I’ve ever made.” Alabama Goods opened in Homewood in March 2011.
“What we sell in the store is a little different,” Hartley said. “For example, we have potters with unique pieces of pottery that cannot be duplicated. We sell those here.”
The shop also sells affordable art, jewelry, handmade soaps and lotions, gourmet food, gift baskets, photo frames, Alabama-shaped cutting boards, aprons, furniture, and home accessories, among other hand-crafted items.
“Vendors come in with something new and different that I didn’t even know to ask for,” Hartley said.
Hartley has found the location to be perfect.
“Customers here are interested in original and unique items, and it’s a plus that they’re made in Alabama,” she said. “They appreciate that.”
Sales tripled over their first year at the store, and the storefront has also helped corporate sales for Alabama Goods. Business picks up in wedding season as brides buy hostess and bridesmaid gifts.
“It’s been a year of people finding out about us,” she said. “Past customers come back because inventory is constantly changing. There are always new items coming in, and people come in and ask, ‘What’s new in the store?’ It’s obvious that these items are hand-crafted and made in Alabama, not mass-produced. That’s not what you get here.”
Hartley hopes that Alabama Goods will soon work more with designers and decorators. She said she loves all of the vendors and developing relationships with them.
The employees’ aprons say, “Need gift ideas? I know where the goods are,” for a reason.
“Our employees go out of their way to help people come up with gift ideas,” Hartley said. “They’ll make recommendations, and customers love that.”
