If you’ve lived in Waco for more than two minutes, then you’re well aware of the recent influx of the boutique + antique store population. When Joni Lindsay decided to open up her own store in town, she didn’t want her store to be “just another.”
That’s why at Chatter Box, you’ll find an assortment of quirky gifts and goods – pieces with some personality, spunk and humor, pieces Joni hopes will leave a smile on your face.
Curious what you might find tucked inside this box?? Read on, my friend!
How did the store get started?
“We opened at the very end of October 2017. I had just recently moved back to town. I had always wanted to have my own store and I thought it was a good time to make that happen. I found a good building at a good price. It’s a lot harder than I thought it was gonna be.”
What’s been the most challenging part?
“Trying to figure out what people really want. I’ve got such an eclectic amount of things in here, I figured at some point people would start gravitating towards one certain thing and then I could start focusing on that, but it really hasn’t happened that way.”
What all do you sell?
“It’s kind of quirky, we’ve got a little bit of everything. Souvenirs, gifts, home goods, clothing, furniture. We have stuff for football fans, signs and t-shirts with funny sayings on them. We have some camo workout outfits. I like to think we have a little bit of stuff for everybody.”
Where do you source all that from?
“Some of it we make, some of it’s new. Sometimes people come in and sell us stuff and we’ll re-do it or fix it up a little bit. And then sometimes we just buy from various places.
We just try to have stuff that’s funny or makes people laugh or reminds them of something or someone. I want it to be a real upbeat place, I don’t want to just have old junky stuff, you know? When I hear people in here laughing at something they find, I love it. That’s kind of what my goal was with the store.
For example, one of the things that I made that I thought was kind of clever – you know when you go to the beach and you can buy sand in a bottle and it will say, ‘Galveston, Texas’ on it or wherever they are? Well, I did shiplap in a bottle, and it says, Waco, Texas. So I thought that was pretty funny.”
Love it! Any other little tidbits like that you want people to know about?
“I’d say just keep us in mind and come take a look if you’ve got birthdays or holidays coming up, because we have something you’re not going to find in a Wal-Mart or any big box retailer. We have a lot of unique products, kind of quirky, kind of funny.
And we always offer free gift bags with any purchase!”
It’s that extra touch that makes all the difference, and that’s something you’ll only find when you shop local! Explore and support Chatter Box and other local businesses on Towny, the app that rewards you for choosing local! Find Towny online or download the free app to your phone.