Clayton small business owners innovate in the face of COVID

By ROBIN KOPPEN

The Market at Three Little Birds on Main Street in Clayton has become synonymous with local and community, hosting goods from 70 vendors, most of them from Johnston County. With the first anniversary of COVID-19 upon us, Christi Burwell Thompson, shop owner, said, “It’s a good time,” in her seemingly effortless calm, cool and collected vibe.

When asked why, she praised the community support over the last year. Before the pandemic, the shop was strictly brick and mortar and had never shipped a box, much less had any type of online business.

What Christi had done since opening her shop on Main Street in 2015 was built a strong social media presence and anchored herself in downtown Clayton as not just a shop owner, but as a small business and community advocate.

January and February are the slowest months in retail, so foot traffic was already down. With buzz of the virus and people afraid to go out in public, it became nearly nonexistent.

“Staffing was also an issue,” she said.

On March 17, she made the decision to shut the doors to Three Little Birds before the governor’s orders required it. The thought process was that if this was serious enough to close bars and restaurants, it was serious enough. That was a Tuesday.

On Thursday she and Erin Nenni, owner of Real Neighbors, and also a vendor, hosted the first live sale with about 30 people watching. “It blew up from there,” Thompson said. When it was obvious this

wasn’t coming to an end any time soon, they decided to make it a weekly event.

Now 300 to 450 Birdwatchers, as they are known, tune in every Thursday night to see Christi and Erin show their latest goods and wares.

There is even a group of ladies in Alaska, who became Birdwatchers via a friend in Wake Forest. These gals watched together, separately, as a COVID-style ladies’ night. The huge outpouring from the community gave Christi a sense of responsibility.

“We made them feel normal and made them laugh,” she said.

This powerhouse didn’t stop there.

Erin Nenni, owner of Real Neighbors (left) and Christi Burwell Thompson, owner of The Market at Three Little Birds (right) pose for a photo in Clayton.

In the middle of a global pandemic, Three Little Birds also gave back to the community through fundraisers. When Clayton Fire Department was ravaged by COVID, the shop matched donations of miscellaneous items totaling $1,500 for the families of the firefighters. They also raised about $500 for a local business owner whose young daughter was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. For Christmas,

Christi and her team partnered with With Love From Jesus and held a toy drive for children in need collecting nearly $3,000 in new toys.

Where does that energy come from?

“I’m passionate about what I do,” she said. “It’s not work to me.”

One year — and a lot of blood, sweat and tears — later The Market at Three Little Birds has a strong e-commerce business shipping 60-90 packages a week. They also launched a shopping app and have a YouTube channel in the works called “The Nest,” with which Christi plans to cultivate and educate others on the culture of the South.

To the Birdwatchers, never fear, the Thursday night live sales will continue.

“There’s no going back now,” she said.