New furniture store serves Sisters residents

Dancing Coyote didn’t take long to make an impression in Sisters.

“The day I opened, they were waiting at the door,” said Ebony Small of her new consignment furniture store.

Small thought an affordable furniture store was “really something Sisters needs.” She wanted to open “a business for locals” and she wanted to remove the seasonal aspect of a tourist-based business.

So Small got serious about her dream, researched costs, found the “perfect building” and opened Dancing Coyote this month. She said “it’s fun to see all the interesting furniture” from sofas, chairs, dining room sets, beds and art. Furniture must be both clean and functional to meet her quality standards. She splits proceeds with the owner of the piece, with the owner getting 60 percent.

Small has always been a big fan of consignment, or “gently used,” furniture stores.

“I haunted them,” said Small, adding that she furnished her own home with consignment furniture. “It’s such a good idea; it’s a way of recycling.”

She said everybody loves a bargain and it’s nice to furnish a home without it costing “an arm and a leg.”

Small took an interesting path to her new business. She and her husband began raising their three boys in Southern California but decided they didn’t like the big city influences. So 15 years ago, they moved to Sisters. Although Small has a degree in economics, she started cleaning houses for a living. She says to be able to live in Sisters “you must multitask.”

Her hope is that her business will grow enough to enable her to give up cleaning houses.

Although Small’s business is new, she already has plans for the future. She wants to purchase a truck to help with pick-up and delivery. She may add staff and expand her hours. And she may push out walls to make more room.

Small thought the need was strong and the timing was right with the growth in home building in Sisters. While she knows there are risks in starting any new business, “unless you take a risk, you get stuck.”

Small said she is “amazed at the response” and sees a steady flow of customers, even some from Bend.

Dancing Coyote is located at 367 Sisters Park Drive, next to Curves in the former sheriff’s office building. The hours are Tuesday through Friday, noon to 6 p.m. and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.