General stores offer present-day conveniences with historic feel

BY JAMIE SHELL

In today’s world, it is often simple to find some needed item at the tips of one’s fingers via smartphone or computer. But there’s something to be said about the satisfaction of visiting and supporting a locally owned small business, knowing the proprietor by name, then finding your needed item and much more.

General stores have been romanticized for decades and in many places they are lost to time, but they are alive and well in the High Country.

Fred’s General Mercantile, Todd General Store, Banner Elk Consignment Cottage and the Vintage Farmhouse General Store are just a few of the unique stores that tourists and locals alike flock to in the High Country.

CONSIGNMENT COTTAGE (BANNER ELK)

consign@skybest.com

(828) 898-5733

Banner Elk, a town of woolly worms, Highland Games and High Country culture, is home to the Banner Elk Consignment Cottage. Just 17 miles from Boone, the cottage is a sought out store in the area. While Banner Elk often attracts a large group of people during the summer months, most people only stay at their summer homes for four-to-five months. Instead of hauling their replaced, fine furniture back to their primary homes far away, people bring them to Susan Brown at the consignment cottage for resale.

Brown is selective in what she accepts and chooses to sell, which only increases the customer trust. In turn, the constantly-changing stock offers a potential for multiple visits to the store resulting in various shopping experiences. No two visits are alike.

FRED’S GENERAL MERCANTILE (BEECH MOUNTAIN)

501 Beech Mountain Parkway www.fredsgeneral.com

(828) 387-4838

Owned and operated for more than 40 years by Beech Mountain and Avery County icon Fred Pfohl, Fred’s General Mercantile has been a staple of Beech Mountain and the main outlet in the area.

The main store consists of a grocery store, hardware store and clothing store. Fred’s can outfit the entire family for a weekend vacation, home improvement project and more. The grocery is a fully stocked grocery store that carries everything from canned goods to gourmet foods. The hardware section features Stanley tools, tire chains, screws, nails, nuts, bolts and more.

Also on the property is Fred’s Backside Deli, which serves all kinds of food on a daily basis for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The company also takes advantage of its location by offering guest quarters for rent and ski and snowboard rentals. The store is also a great location to find information on all of the many nature sights, trails, mountain views and local events throughout the year.

GOOBER PEAS COUNTRY STORE (BOONE)

1773 NC-194

(828) 386-1017

It is almost hidden along Hwy. 194, going north out of Boone, but Goober Peas has 2,500 devoted followers on Facebook for a reason.

If you are looking for fresh, locally grown food products, you are likely to find them at Goober Peas. The store carries local meats, farm-fresh eggs, Ashe County Cheese, local jams and jellies, ice, firewood and more.

You can buy Cheek’s whole milk by the gallon at Goober Peas. It is so fresh you the label says you need to shake it a bit to blend the cream on top. From their own