By Gerri Miller
EAN Staff Writer
Want an Alabama-made product? Shop Everything Alabama in Downtown Prattville. The store can help you not only shop local this holiday season but also find hand-crafted and small batch gifts from about 90 Alabama companies.
It is the River Region’s only store devoted exclusively to Alabama brands and makers.
The downtown store is the result of a vision Tillie Jones had to grow her business into a store front. She said she had about $30 in her pocket five years ago and sold a dozen solid brands from a booth inside an antique mall.
Jones had a strong customer following for her Alabama-made products and when the time was right, she started looking for a downtown Prattville storefront. She said she has lived in Prattville for about 30 years and married a city native. “I’m as southern as kudzu,” she said. “I didn’t come from here, but I have certainly thrived here.”
“God has abundantly answered my prayers,” she said. “I live in a wonderful community.”
She found a building at 183 West Main Street (near the fountain and next door to the candy store) and opened her business in June of 2019. She said the community has been incredibly supportive.
“People want locally crafted products,” Jones said. “I am filling an unfilled niche in the marketplace.”
“It was a heart’s desire of mine to have a shop in downtown Prattville,” Jones said. “I conceived the idea when I was working at a local university and my son brought an international student home to visit. All the student wanted to take home was a locally-made T-shirt and we couldn’t find one.”
The store carries products such as the well-established 1919 Farm. The company, which won a small business award from Amazon, sells bath, body and lifestyle products made in Mooresville. She also sells products from the Alabama Sweet Tea Company based in Montgomery as well as Aqualime SkinCare products and Mama’s Secret Cookies.
Another product line is from Nelson’s Studio Pottery in Cullman. The company specializes in creating Ug-Chug Mugs, which are their quirky take on traditional Southern Ugly Jugs.
Glassware is another store product line. The store sells hand-blown glass from Little Sandy Glass in Tuscaloosa and hand-etched glassware from Honeysuckle Home in Tuscaloosa.
The store also has several food products. Jones sells artisan tea from Piper & Leaf in Huntsville, jams and pepper jellies from Hornsby Farms in Auburn and Wickles Pickles from Dadeville.
“There are many other makers’ products we sell whose brands you may not recognize but you will certainly appreciate their craftsmanship,” Jones said.
Jones said Alabama’s product makers are making an impact because they bring jobs to their communities. “One of the reasons it is so important to support them is that when we lend them our strength it helps to employ people here at home.”
She said it is more important than ever now to shop local as merchants continue to deal with COVID-19 shutdowns and setbacks. “We all need to support each other,” she said.
Everything Alabama is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Jones said she will stay open later for special events such as the upcoming Mix, Mingle, Shop & Jingle on Friday, November 20th, from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. Downtown merchants will also have a Holiday Open House on Sunday, November 22, from 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.
The store telephone number is (334) 301-0191 and Email is [email protected]. Facebook and Instagram @everythingalabama. See more photos below!
