News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Cynthia Hydes and Matt McCurdy are opening Sisters Dollar Store in the Three Wind Shopping Center.
In tough economic times, everyone in Sisters is looking to make their dollar go as far as they can make it stretch.
Sisters Dollar Store aims to make that dollar go a long way indeed.
The store, located in the Three Wind Shopping Center, opens Thursday, October 29, with a 9 a.m. ribbon-cutting ceremony hosted by the Sisters Area Chamber of Commerce.
"A lot of people are saying they're happy it's coming to Sisters so they don't have to drive to the dollar store in Bend," said Matt McCurdy, who is partnering with Cynthia Hydes in the venture.
"With the economy, this kind of store is in demand," Hydes said.
The inventory is targeted at having a little bit of everything, from kitchen goods to light hardware, from socks and shirts to party supplies. Hydes said that teachers have been stopping by, eager to be able to buy inexpensive school supplies for their perennially cash-strapped classrooms.
Everything in the store costs $1 or less, even if there's another price marked on the product, Hydes said.
Obviously, it takes quite a few sales at $1 a pop to make the business model work. And margins are always critical.
"We have to really closely watch our margins with the vendors that we work with," Hydes said. "Freight is a huge factor, naturally."
Hydes and McCurdy are pleased with their location. Their landlord completely remodeled the former NAPA Auto Parts store to accommodate the new retail store. And the presence of Bi-Mart has breathed new life into the shopping center, which had struggled since the departure of Ray's Food Place.
"If it (Bi-Mart) wasn't here, we probably wouldn't have considered this spot," McCurdy said.
The welcome the store has received even before it's open is a reflection of a strong demand in Sisters - and it's not just from consumers.
"The number of people coming in asking for jobs was somewhat expected, but not to this degree," Hydes said.
There will be three people on staff in addition to Hydes and McCurdy.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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