Jamie and Nate Church co-own and operate Grandpa Bo’s Bargains in Hutto. The store offers a variety of clothing, goods and gifts.[/caption]
Jamie Church, co-owner of Grandpa Bo’s Bargains in Hutto, said she is on a mission to benefit the community by supplying quality, name-brand clothing and gifts at a fraction of the regular price. The store, located in the former guesthouse behind her home in Hutto, started as an online store before expanding to meet the demands of local customers.
“We’ve been blessed—it’s unbelievable,” Jamie said. “It’s opened a door for people who loved the name brands but couldn’t afford to pay those prices. Most of what I carry comes from recommendations from customers.”
Jamie said she started the business with her father, James Ackerman, or “Grandpa Bo,” to generate money to pay his medical bills after an attempted robbery of the guesthouse left him paralyzed.
“He wanted to leave a legacy that I could carry on,” Jamie said. “He was just the most caring, compassionate person.”
Ackerman died of cancer in April 2014, three weeks before the retail store opened. Jamie said the store has become everything her father had hoped for.
“We aren’t out to be millionaires—we just want to pass savings on to the customers,” Jamie said. “We don’t have a lot of overhead, and we don’t have other employees.”
Jamie said with the large variety of products and clothes, there is something for everyone.
“We get a lot of [positive] feedback. You’d be surprised by how many men come shop here, too,” Jamie said. “We have a huge variety of people in our customer base, and we get a lot of orders from other states.”
Jamie said Saturdays are the busiest days at the store, which is usually open seven days a week. Groups traveling from out of town frequent the store as they stop in Hutto for lunch.
“I think people miss that face-to-face interaction that comes with visiting a store like this,” Jamie said.
The most popular items at Grandpa Bo’s Bargains include flip-flops, clothing and Western home decor such as wall crosses. Jamie said she and her husband, Nate, buy locally whenever possible.
“We think people mainly hear about us through word of mouth,” Jamie said.
Grandpa Bo’s Bargains is making plans to launch a custom digital printing service in June.
Jamie, who worked at Dell Inc. before becoming her father’s caregiver, said she takes marketing and business courses online to learn strategies for effective management. Nate, who is also a co-owner of the shop, works as a diesel tech while she runs the store.
“A vacation would be lovely, but it’s not in the future for a long time with our schedules,” Jamie said. “It’s worth it every day though—we love it.”
Jamie and Nate Church co-own and operate Grandpa Bo’s Bargains in Hutto. The store offers a variety of clothing, goods and gifts.[/caption]
Jamie Church, co-owner of Grandpa Bo’s Bargains in Hutto, said she is on a mission to benefit the community by supplying quality, name-brand clothing and gifts at a fraction of the regular price. The store, located in the former guesthouse behind her home in Hutto, started as an online store before expanding to meet the demands of local customers.
“We’ve been blessed—it’s unbelievable,” Jamie said. “It’s opened a door for people who loved the name brands but couldn’t afford to pay those prices. Most of what I carry comes from recommendations from customers.”
Jamie said she started the business with her father, James Ackerman, or “Grandpa Bo,” to generate money to pay his medical bills after an attempted robbery of the guesthouse left him paralyzed.
“He wanted to leave a legacy that I could carry on,” Jamie said. “He was just the most caring, compassionate person.”
Ackerman died of cancer in April 2014, three weeks before the retail store opened. Jamie said the store has become everything her father had hoped for.
“We aren’t out to be millionaires—we just want to pass savings on to the customers,” Jamie said. “We don’t have a lot of overhead, and we don’t have other employees.”
Jamie said with the large variety of products and clothes, there is something for everyone.
“We get a lot of [positive] feedback. You’d be surprised by how many men come shop here, too,” Jamie said. “We have a huge variety of people in our customer base, and we get a lot of orders from other states.”
Jamie said Saturdays are the busiest days at the store, which is usually open seven days a week. Groups traveling from out of town frequent the store as they stop in Hutto for lunch.
“I think people miss that face-to-face interaction that comes with visiting a store like this,” Jamie said.
The most popular items at Grandpa Bo’s Bargains include flip-flops, clothing and Western home decor such as wall crosses. Jamie said she and her husband, Nate, buy locally whenever possible.
“We think people mainly hear about us through word of mouth,” Jamie said.
Grandpa Bo’s Bargains is making plans to launch a custom digital printing service in June.
Jamie, who worked at Dell Inc. before becoming her father’s caregiver, said she takes marketing and business courses online to learn strategies for effective management. Nate, who is also a co-owner of the shop, works as a diesel tech while she runs the store.
“A vacation would be lovely, but it’s not in the future for a long time with our schedules,” Jamie said. “It’s worth it every day though—we love it.”
