Casey Huff opened Hippies and Cowboys Trading Post during the eclipse weekend in April.
Hippies and Cowboys Trading Post is located at 173 S. Van Buren Street in Nashville between Lakehouse Candle Company and Not Just Gyros II.
Hip, hip, Hippies and Cowboys! This shop has a variety of items in different price points including jewelry, tshirts, sassy socks, unique snacks, stickers, plants and more.
Howdy, pumpkin! Get ready for fall decor.
You’ve heard of Christmas in July, at Hippies and Cowboys it’s Christmas year-round.
Find your sole mate in sassy socks for all personalities.
Huff found this homemade sign in her garage when her family moved to Brown County, she keeps it in the shop.
Huff has a real-plants-only rule in her shop, she even sells starts from her personal string of pearls succulent.
The bassinet that once held her infants now holds babies of a different form— a much quieter and softer form.
It’s a hairy situation down at Hippies and Cowboys, Huff uses airplants as hairstyles to deocrate her planters.
Where else can you buy single-log campfires, fidget toys and scented slimes on one table?
Ho! Ho! Ho! Carry a piece of Christmas with you all the time.
Hippies and Cowboys also sells sodas and snacks including bubblegum, pickle and ranch flavored cotton candy.
There’s only room for one of us in this town, except for at Hippies and Cowboys Trading Post (173 S. Van Buren St.), where all are welcome.
Casey Huff opened the shop during eclipse weekend in April after living in Brown County for four years. Huff said she wanted a new baby after graduating her oldest children from high school and the shop was the perfect thing to set her focus on.
Huff only orders from small businesses with owners she can talk to and build a relationship with, many of them she found while traveling with her family around the country.
“Everything in here is handpicked by me,” said Huff. “I have to love it, that’s the bottom line. I’ll love it for different reasons, I have about eight local artists in the shop too. I prefer them (vendors) to create things and we start small. I look for people to approach me. I have some people who haven’t sold anything anywhere, just giving people hope because a lot of times people don’t think that it’s possible.”
Her mission is to show her patrons that regardless of their background, political affiliation or opinions, they can find something in her shop and forge a connection.
“I think if I just show up every day and be present and be kind and not talk about issues that are dividing everybody, then people at the end of the day will love me, this shop and they will see that we don’t all have the same ideas and still like each other. Everybody’s different, if we were all alike the world would be really boring and it wouldn’t make it. It takes all kinds of kinds but we have a lot in common. Going around in here, everybody loves pickles, popcorn, funny flavors, there’s something for everybody. I have price points in here for everybody, but it’s still very important for me to talk to everyone that comes in here about the importance of voting. That’s where I think I can make a difference. ”
Huff respects the title of a Trading Post and will trade her merchandise for things that people enjoy making.
“Bringing back that concept of a trading post has to have the right feel and vibe,” said Huff. “I don’t want to advertise with big signs. I’m not judgemental at all, I had someone on the day of the eclipse that asked if I would be interested in doing a trade for a sticker. I said sure, she told me I was the first person that had said they would do a trade. She comes back from her car and at that moment she brings me a pair of socks and a hat, I didn’t know it at first but she rides on the Tour de France. She traded me that sticker for those things, I was so excited and happy. It was a really cool connection.”
While the shop has no set focus, the assortment of items includes clothing with sassy phrases, stickers, artwork, plants, home decorations, snacks, toys and more.
Huff’s first purchase for the shop was a sign for the window and says, “All y’all are welcome, but you gotta act right.”
She said that no matter where life took her, that sign is a reminder of who she is and what her shop stands for.
Hippies and Cowboys is stroller and wheelchair accessible. Huff said that her shop is child-friendly and parents are free to let their children roam.
“They can break anything, it does not matter to me,” said Huff. “I respect that shops here have artwork and there are some places where you have to respect. I want to be a place where they can come in and cut loose, they can run around and be kids and get their energy out and then they can go to the art gallery and they will have burned their energy, or they will be holding their fidget toy that they got. I’ll blow bubbles with them, give the parents downtime from having to be concerned with everything they touch. That’s why my shop’s an experience, each person that walks through the door doesn’t matter the age, are welcome. Let’s find something in common, that’s what we do. I want my shop to be known for that.”
Huff is constantly looking for new local artists and vendors who would like to be featured in her shop, no experience is necessary. Interested parties can reach out to Huff via email at [email protected].
Hippies and Cowboys is open every day from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.. Huff said that her store hours might fluctuate because she wants to make sure she is in the proper headspace to give patrons the best experience.
“It shouldn’t happen a lot, but I’m a human being,” said Huff. “I understand people’s frustrations, but you don’t want to come into my shop if I’m not having my best day and I don’t want to do that to you either. I’m here for the long term and one thing I’ve learned over 45 years is you have to take care of yourself, you can’t pour from an empty cup. I will be here being my best self for as many hours as I can be, but if I’m not here then all I’m doing is recharging my battery.”
