It Is What It Is, A Most Unique Shop in Lock Haven
By Christopher Miller
Hodgepodge. Mixed bag. Assortment. Assemblage. Miscellany. Whatever you wish to call it, this unique store is a must-stop, must-shop in downtown Lock Haven.
The store located at 109 East Main Street all started with an idea and a question. The late Bonnie Sanders, wife of the owner of Lock Haven’s oldest merchant, Art Sanders of Sanders Window Fashions was known for giving the answer “it is what it is” when asked about her health and how she was doing.
“After her treatments when Bonnie was ill,” Art regaled, “we would walk around Boston and go into the small stores to occupy time.” “The store next to the Window Fashions was empty for some time and I wanted to do something with it, so we would get ideas from the little shops in Boston,” Art recalled.
So what is it? That seems to be a loaded question, almost as if asking “what is it not” would be an easier question to answer.
It Is What It Is is a specialty food, gift…”little bit of everything and a whole lot of things you never expected” store. Something that makes the store so unique is that the inventory is always changing.
“Something we learned very early on was that people like to see different things each time they come in, something fresh and interesting,” said Fabre, Art’s daughter who runs the store with her father and husband Larry.
“Most of what you see is familiar – wax melts, BBQ and hot sauces, candy bars – but not brands you are familiar with, or know,” Fabre explained. “We are not competing with the big box stores, we bring the little guys and the small business shop offerings to our small Pennsylvania town.”
When asked about the future of the store, it appears that there is no end in sight for what could be done with the location! “We opened the store and quickly outgrew our space…we were smaller, and the store got bigger and we enlarged it, and expanded…TWICE,” Fabre and Larry said excitedly. “Sometime we’ll kick Art to the street and take over,” Larry said jokingly.
Fabre and Larry, formerly of Lock Haven and Boston, respectively had made a life for themselves in the coastal Massachusetts town prior to coming home (for Fabre) and moving to the country (for Larry).
“We get a lot of our ideas from the Boston food show,” explained Larry. “People and shops you’ve never heard of are there introducing their foods…you need to know how to PACE YOURSELF when walking around and sampling.” Larry further explained, “as you walk around there is no rhyme or reason; in a lineup of vendors you could have everything from seafood, to salad dressing, chocolate, and calamari.” It sounded as if one could really make themself sick if they did not watch what they were eating, and when they were eating it, the writer of this article assumes.
Many of the ideas of what to bring to Lock Haven started off at the Boston or New York food shows. “We want to bring the world to Lock Haven, the rest of the country here, so we expanded into gifts, but just “gifts” in the giving sense…things that you can buy for yourself, too,” Larry explained. “Even local restaurants come and buy spices from us!”
Fabre and Larry’s varied backgrounds add to the mystique that is the store you see today. They both have worked in the specialty food and personal chef industry, Larry has managed his own book and media business on Amazon.com, they had once sold vintage clothing, all of this experience being compiled for the success of It Is What It Is!
The local community has taken a great liking to the store and their unique offerings day-to-day and season-to-season.
“The community support has been outstanding for us,” Fabre said. “There has been a very nice feeling of shopping locally that you do not get in other towns these days…Downtown Lock Haven, Inc. has been promoting Shop Local and the holiday season for us saw many new shoppers from State College, Williamsport, Port Matilda…all wanting to shop Lock Haven!”
Facebook has been a buzz for months with the store holding live sales online most weeks. Every Wednesday night at 8pm is a casual and fun way to preview their products filmed right in Fabre and Larry’s very own kitchen! “We are goofing around and having a fun time, we show enthusiasm on video, more so than we could ever show in the store in person,” Larry explained. From watching these live videos on Facebook one can tell that Larry has amassed quite the local fan base on social media.
“The city and county have been very helpful for the merchants,” Fabre explained. “We loved it when downtown Main Street was closed to traffic last summer, it was a very hot summer, and we could come downtown and dine and shop where it was quiet and safe…it was fun to see people out and about.”
“We think the city is moving in the right direction,” Fabre further mentioned. “People are coming to downtown, it is making Lock Haven more dynamic and the community is rallying behind the businesses…we cannot run without customers!”
Though customers are what keep businesses alive, there is also a great appreciation for each other from a business-to-business connection. “I had a lot of help from other merchants when I broke my wrist before Christmas,” Fabre explained. “Help came when we needed it the most assembling gift baskets, and Ashley from Skeleton Key Boutique and her crew came and helped us finish a large gift basket order!”
Open year-round, It Is What It Is has some special seasonal offerings as well, such as Christmas, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Valentine’s Day…and custom gift baskets are always a possibility for any event! “We had many corporate gift baskets going out our doors this year,” Larry remarked.
A sampling of product lines available at It Is What It Is are: specialty foods, specialty socks, coffee/tea, candies, hot sauce, BBQ sauce, jewelry, baby items, pet items, lotions, bath and body, hand bags, specialty soft drinks, men’s and women’s accessories, scarves, pajamas, Lock Haven specific items (such as signs, glasses, mugs, greeting cards, tea towels), and much, MUCH more!
So what is it? A unique experience? A one-of-a-kind store? A gift store? A candy store?
All that I know is – It Is What It Is!
It Is What It Is
109 East Main Street
Lock Haven
570-748-3686
Facebook – It Is What It Is Lock Haven
Instagram – @itiswhatitis
www.ShopItIsWhatItIs.com (shop it is what it is)
Store Hours:
Winter
Monday to Friday
10am – 6pm
Saturday
10am to 3pm
