Strawflower Store has been component of the Geneva retail landscape because the early 1970s, and its legendary clock tower stands out in this kind of a way that it ought to be integrated in any photograph marketing the city to people.
Which is why it was not an easy decision for proprietors Susan and Mike Haas to transform the identify of the enterprise at 210 W. Point out St.
The official name is Geneva Layout Dwelling by Strawflower, and that’s how the retail store will be branded for keep indicators, ads, social postings and news releases.
“Marketers kept telling us we will fall the Strawflower identify soon after a interval of time, but we are going to choose when we drop it,” Mike Haas claimed. “We’re regarded by so quite a few as Strawflower.”
Even now, Haas and his spouse made a decision it was time to improve the search and truly feel of the keep, in addition to its title, generally to entice young home owners and additional correctly describe what the small business offers.
“They are so utilised to searching at Instagram and Google to locate outlets, and when Strawflower comes up, they might imagine, yeah, my mom goes there and buys dried flower preparations or a candle,” Haas mentioned of younger people. “And they go it by and go to the next shop recommendation.”

























With Geneva Style Residence by Strawflower standing front and middle, Haas figures he’ll be able to get the message out that going for walks into this retail outlet is all about developing your home and finding out the home furniture, rugs and components to do so.
Haas hates to see the store’s display screen of spot rugs not stand out. “We have one of the largest space rug choices in the Western suburbs, and the Strawflower name will not truly suit that.”
Daughter Kelsey Haas is the interior style skilled and “is seriously taking this shop into her hands simply because she loves putting matters with each other for customers,” Haas claimed.
Those who have shopped at Strawflower for years will recognize alterations that go outside of the name. For one, you will find a kitchen area inside that operates as a prop for demonstrating men and women how to embellish that region of their house. Ultimately, Haas is hoping he’ll at minimum be in a position to make espresso in there to give to prospects.
They will also see the 2nd floor no extended capabilities home furnishings shows for the reason that the 1st ground has been reworked to make more home and generate a new place for Susan’s dry flower preparations.
We can nevertheless hope to see the magnificent window displays the retailer is famed for, especially through the holidays.
“We will nevertheless have wonderful Christmas window displays, irrespective of the Xmas Stroll probable not taking place this calendar year,” Haas said. “We know people displays are seriously inviting, and people today consider absent some superior strategies for their households.”
Yet another Colonial adjust:
A couple of months right after noting that the Colonial Café on Randall Road in St. Charles had eradicated its evening meal hours to near at 2:30 p.m., we now hear that site is closing to make way for a new Syrup restaurant.
Colonial will keep on to work its east-aspect Primary Street spot, as some of its workers has a possibility to perform for Syrup, although other people will relocate to the east aspect.
The west side web-site closes for superior at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 18.
A Syrup cafe, described as an upscale breakfast spot with a rural motif, now operates in Algonquin.
The Xmas tree vote:
Recognizing the Xmas Stroll in Geneva is probably to unfold in a scaled down vogue more than a for a longer time time period of time (we cannot have that many people in a single area at a single time, just after all), the Geneva Record Museum is thinking about choices for its yearly “Geneva Offering Trees” Xmas tree gallery.
The museum is staying renovated and could not host the gallery anyway this year, so term is trickling as a result of town that merchants are getting requested to volunteer some window space or protected outdoor regions to show the trees.
As quite a few readers know, charitable companies adorn trees for the gallery, and visitors vote for their beloved at $1 a vote. A lot of persons voted on the night of Xmas Stroll, although others voted on the web. The company with the tree that collects the most votes retains all of the cash gathered for that tree. The some others share their vote funds with the museum.
The thought of the trees getting distribute out by town for voting in excess of a interval of months allows the museum, the charitable corporations and the merchants showcasing the trees.
Hanging in there:
It’s a story that possible could be advised by any quantity of area retailers in any town across The united states. It can be a tale of the struggle in running a business enterprise all through a pandemic altering your organization model as considerably as probable letting some personnel go, then using the services of them back again, and maybe letting them go once again taking into consideration on the web ordering for products and solutions and solutions like at a restaurant, when including shipping, curbside pickup and makeshift out of doors seating.
Those people eventualities are taking part in out all in excess of with a backdrop that is a tricky fact: Lots of enterprise house owners are not able to shell out their lease, so some negotiation has to just take area with the landlord.
They hold out hope that the authorities can support when it is most essential and that anyone will do their component to hold the pandemic in check.
Mary Barr, owner of Café & Barr coffee shop at 407 S. 3rd St. in Geneva, has a rather fantastic standpoint on this. Immediately after all, it is really been about a yr given that she opened her enterprise with higher hopes in a fantastic location in Dodson Put — and exceptional drinks and foodstuff things to sell.
From March by way of June, enterprise at Café & Barr was down 80 %, Barr claimed.
“We shut down the cafe entirely for two weeks and truthfully wondering it (the pandemic) would be over shortly,” she additional. “When recognizing it was not heading away, my daughter Jacque arrived back and ran the carryout or curbside with no foodstuff objects right up until we could provide back again two of our other personnel.”
The company has climbed again “a little bit,” but the anxiety now is the forthcoming winter season months, Barr said.
Appropriate subsequent to the cafe, Barr’s daughter Nikki operates Appreciate Principle Bridal shop, 407 S. Third St., which shockingly has been able to initiate some income as a result of Zoom sessions with customers.
But that business has also slowed down, as Nikki experienced her initial youngster.
“Certainly, we are ecstatic about the new baby, but that leaves the bridal shop rather dark,” Barr famous. “I try to fill in, but my daughter is a challenging act to observe. She must return in November.”
Right until then, like any enterprise for the duration of COVID-19, there are confident to be highs and lows whilst waiting for a return to normalcy.
Heading north on Third:
Jane Pabon is packing her wares at the Jane Pabon Boutique at 220 S. Third St. in Geneva, telling followers on Fb she is making the transfer a little bit north on the well-known retail strip into the Floral Miracles web-site at the corner of Campbell and 3rd streets.
The upscale consignment boutique will have more place at this new web site, 200 S. Third, even though Floral Miracles options to shift and change to a warehouse operation.
