Two local creative businesses mix unique opportunities and challenges as long-standing creative entrepreneurs navigate the holiday season.
For Cindy Dach, co-owner and CEO of Changing Hands Bookstore, Arizona’s oldest and largest independent bookstore and a national leader for literary events and programming, “The biggest challenge is competing with all the online and mass chains who get our books at a lower discount.” To counter this, Changing Hands emphasizes community engagement by hosting events like Costume Storytime with The Grinch and a crafting session for kids. They also stock a mix of the year’s award-winning titles and perennial favorites like David Sedaris’ Holidays On Ice.
Balancing holiday shoppers with their regular customer base is another consideration. Cindy told Northeast Valley News, “the priority has to be the person who’s here to buy their holiday gift and not necessarily the holiday event we have.” Strategies include hiring extra staff and offering online ordering, with curbside pickup. There’s also a heartwarming experience, noted Cindy: “The holiday season also brings back longtime customers, who make a visit to the store a family tradition and we bump into them. That’s a feature unique to indie bookstores.”
A different set of challenges face Jake and Bree Deverill, who took over Deverill Studios, the bronze wildlife sculpture business created and previously run by Jake’s sculptor father, Chris, who passed away a year ago.
Managing inventory levels during the holiday rush is a key issue—especially since the foundry they work with make limited edition copies of Chris’ original sculptures closes for two weeks in December.
Each sculpture copy can take 4-6 weeks to produce and costs $1,000 – $2,500. This presents a difficult decision, Jake said, “Do we spend $20,000 investing in backup inventory for the holidays, or do we just kind of play it by ear?” Their solution is to rely on relationships with seven galleries who carry Chris’ sculptures and “a little bit of our own intuition.”
While continuing to produce limited editions of Chris’ popular bunny, bear, and elephant sculptures, Jake and Bree are looking to evolve the business with their own creative input. “We are the Deverill 2.0,” Bree said with a giggle, hinting at plans for a new line of tabletop sculptures in collaboration with the foundry. These new pieces represent a careful blend of honoring Chris’ legacy while allowing their own artistic vision to emerge.
Whether it’s finding creative ways to stand out in a crowded market or balancing tradition with innovation, Cindy, Jake, and Bree exemplify the spirit of small businesses that offer something unique during the winter holidays.
