Columbia, Missouri: The Knotty Goat
The Kiersten J Yarn Shop Hop
A Timely Travel Stop
I happened to walk into The Knotty Goat for the first time on the weekend they were moving to their new space, soon after Molly had taken over the business. There were empty rooms, partially filled shelves, excited volunteer helpers, and the amazing Molly with a million ideas and so much infectious energy. She was incredibly generous on that busy day and took time to share some of those ideas with me, and the vision she had for the business she was running and the community she wanted to continue to support.
A Convenient Location
The Knotty Goat happens to be perfectly located for a rest stop on the long drive to or from where some of my family lives. We’ve paused there several times on our trips and had the pleasure of watching the growth over time. The inventory has grown beautifully and the shop is filled with more people every visit. It’s exciting to see the vision that Molly shared being made into a reality.
One huge benefit of The Knotty Goat is its location, right by I-70 in Columbia. The shop is located on a frontage road that takes a little dipsy doodling to get to, but it’s not hard, and it’s so nice to be able to access what you might need to solve a knitting emergency right off of a major interstate!
Generous people
We’ve visited The Knotty Goat several times now, and we’ve never failed to meet lovely people in the shop. There’s a welcoming, friendly culture in the shop and the staff are generous with their time and energy. There have also been knowledgeable, experienced knitters on site, cheerfully helping others talk or work through difficulties in their crafting. I love to see that generosity, as well.
Clever Uses of Space
The shop’s space is quite large, but broken up into several rooms. This isn’t uncommon in yarn shops, but one of the uses Molly had planned that first day is, and I wanted to share that.
One of the rooms is tucked away and a little less convenient to reach. As a result, it’s naturally a bit quieter than others and has no through-traffic from other areas of the shop. Molly’s intent was to put some comfortable chairs, a bookshelf, and other comfort items, and create a quiet space. It could be used for knitting or crocheting. It could be used as an overflow room for a class or for a teaching space. But she spoke of it as a retreat space for someone, or for a few people who may just need a little bit of peace and quiet.
I thought it was a brilliant idea, and one that could be modified easily to fit the needs of any public shop space that has that resource of extra space available. What a gift to give your customers the option of a separate, quiet space.
Educators know that sometimes a student needs a place without the distractions of a busy retail space to learn.
Anyone who has spent time in crafting groups where deep sharing bonds are made knows there are times when personal issues come up that are better handled in a more private setting.
And we can all find ourselves at a point where we need a moment of peace to take a breath without an audience.
Isn’t that a lovely idea? It’s yet another way local yarn shop owners are providing more for their communities than just a place to buy supplies. When’s the last time you visited one?
