Where to shop other than Wal-Mart? (Johnson City, Kingsport: sales, consignment, house)

[scmtngirl]

Hi folks,

I'm interested to know where you shop for home goods, groceries, clothing, automotive supplies, pet supplies, electronics, or sporting goods other than Wally World.

I'd also like to know what your favorite second-hand/thrift as well as antique stores are and why.

Lastly, if you have recommendations for furniture stores, either second-hand or new, please let me know.

We would like to try to keep our dollar local once we move out to our homestead, even if it means paying more and/or driving farther away. Our land is in rural Hancock County, and everything will be far away for us. We welcome trying out new places and exploring, so please don't hesitate to list something even if you think it might be too far away.

Thanks!
Mitsy

[bkjonesborough]

Target for household stuff.

Earth Fare for groceries if I have it in the budget. (and some things just come from there anyway)

Krogers for my regular groceries.

Ace Hardware in Jonesborough for tools, repairs, etc. They have a good selection and they're a locally owned franchise.

Corner Nest for antiques, in Elizabethton. Very large, lots of clientele and over 90 vendors that keep things moving. Always something new, and she packs it in. And all very reasonably priced!

Local restaurants - We don't eat out often anymore, so when we do, we try to make it count at local restaurants from people that are passionate about their food and running a restaurant.

The Dining Room in Jonesborough - Cuban- American. Very tasty, very clean, super staff and hard, hard working owners.

Red Chili - Amazing Korean food in Elizabethton. Very small place, but authentic food and a very involved owner/chef that mingles to make sure you like your meal.

Scratch in Johnson City- Awesome smoked pizzas in their woodburning stoves that they built themselves. Plays vinyl from the 70's and super eclectic. They've had a couple of different restaurants before, and have always been a little ahead of their time, but their hard work paid off and they have a great place.

Sahib - Indian restaurant - Great food from a hard working family. They truly appreciate their customers. When we don't show up for a long time, we get hugs.

[Trevor92]

I totally agree with trying to keep the dollar local and spend a lot of time trying to find the 'most local retailer' myself as it's better for the local economy and you usually get better products that aren't from China. I'll plan on following the thread too if anybody has any better recommendations. Here here is how I currently shop:

Home goods: Dollar General (based in Tennessee) and Target, no good local options afaik

Groceries: Food City as they have all the conveniences and sales of a large grocery chain and are based in Abingdon. They carry a lot of local produce in summer, local eggs, and use other local vendors. The meat is the best quality in the area. The Hometown IGA stores are actually less local as they're now owned by a chain in Central Kentucky.

Clothing: Belk (based in Charlotte) for good clothes, Target for some comfy clothes

Automotive: NAPA, all usually locally-owned

Tools: Tractor Supply (based in TN) and ACE depending on what you need.

Local Restaurants: Pal's for quick drive-thru food, The Firehouse (BBQ), Cootie Browns, I've head good things about the Dining Room in Jonesborough but not tried it yet.

Pet Supplies: Grocery store aisle or Petsmart (no local pet stores afaik)

Antique stores: Numerous in downtown Jonesborough. Just take a walk down Main St. There are a number of stores, all with a very good selection. Some carry more keepsakes, some with furniture, etc.

Electronics: HHGregg, Sears, Target, Amazon (no good local options)

Sporting goods: Mahoney's, Dick's for things Mahoney's doesn't carry.

Furniture stores: Antique stores/yard sales for second-hand. Zak's is local but a bit more expensive on things we looked at. Grand's is also good. It's a national chain but locations here are franchise-owned.

[rccrain]

Home goods: Goodwill, Craigs List

Groceries: Food City, Food Country

Clothing: Consignment/second hand stores like The Clothes Line and Platos Closet in JC

Automotive: Hayworth for tires, brakes, and oil changes

Local Restaurants: Cookout - hamburgers, hotdogs - it's a little better than Five Guys

Antique stores: The best ones are in the downtowns of Bristol, KPT, JC, Elizabethton, and Jonesborough

Electronics: No box store can beat Craigs List or Amazon

[knittergirl]

Hi Mitsy,

I'm new enough here to not have much to add (though I'm finding all the info to be very helpful), except that there's an excellent pet store in JC - Natural Pet Supply. They're on People's Street, below where PetSmart is. I prefer to go natural anyway, and they've got a lot of good stuff, as well as being pleasant to deal with and knowledgeable.

Hope this helps! Take care,

Sue

[scmtngirl]

Thanks, y'all! This is all very helpful. Looking forward to our December visit even more now.

[jabogitlu]

Get connected with Shop Local in J.C. on Facebook, they have lots of great resources. They're going to launch a regional initiative soon (Shop Local Upstate or something similar).

[rccrain]

jab, can you let us know when that launches?

[Jim37680]

Originally Posted by scmtngirl

Hi folks,


We would like to try to keep our dollar local once we move out to our homestead, even if it means paying more and/or driving farther away. Our land is in rural Hancock County, and everything will be far away for us. We welcome trying out new places and exploring, so please don't hesitate to list something even if you think it might be too far away.

Thanks!
Mitsy

One option no one has mentioned are local consignment auction companies. Some really good buys can be made on furniture from estate liquidations.

I have to recommend "Olde Time Auction" in downtown Kingsport every Tuesday starting at 11 AM with their "box lot" sale. The really good stuff including antiques and better furniture items follows in the evenings after 5 PM. I don't know where your homestead is in Hancock but these folks may be your neighbors. Olde Time Auction is owned and operated by Steve and Linda Ladd who live on a farm in eastern Hancock. Good folks, too.

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[scmtngirl]

Oooooo, an auction sounds like fun! We are in eastern Hancock county also, so they probably really are our neighbors. Always down with supporting local business owners, and we have a house to furnish, so this sounds great. Thanks so much!

~ Mitsy