A Business For Pleasure, Not For Profit

All the items you won’t find on a Walmart shelf are located at Heritage Gifts and Gourmet in Opelika.

The shop, located on 8th Street in Opelika, is the passion project of Barbara Patton, owner of Heritage Gifts. Browse the walls for estate-sale finds, vintage clothing, Christmas gifts, Jim Shore and more.

“It’s different; it’s got a little bit of everything,” she said.

The shop was originally part of the Heritage House bedand-breakfast, selling items to guests that they may have forgotten at home — toothpaste and clothes for example. There were collectibles too, such as Department 56 villages and snow babies.

Eventually Heritage House was sold to new owners and the shop was moved to 108 S. 8th St. in 2004.

“We like being in downtown,” Patton said, though she

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Downtown

admits she misses being in the carriage house (where Heritage House is located).

At one time, the back of Heritage Gifts was used as an artist’s location. Different artists displayed their work there. Too, the shop used to sell a lot of coffee, but when more coffee shops started cropping up, Patton said they didn’t want to encroach on that territory.

So, the business has changed over the years.

Now, Patton works with individuals to display their goods. One of the artists who used to display her work now brings in items she’s purchased at estate sales.

Some of the more popular items are the gourmet foods, Patton said, and of course, Christmas decor.

The Christmas decor, like the Department 56 villages, isn’t just popular for the most wonderful time of the year, but all year long.

“People might come in and buy an anniversary gift, or a birthday gift, a wedding gift, sometimes people like to give a church [Department 56 village], get [the couple] started,” Patton said. “Some people have collected a lot of this for a long time, so they’re collected out. And not many people sell these anymore, so I have a lot of people coming in saying, ‘Oh, I didn’t know you still sold this.’”

Patton is the sole owner of the shop, but she has a couple of employees to help her out. Part of the difficulty in running Heritage Gifts comes with the technology side of the business. However, making a large profit is not her goal, Patton said.

“If I had to make a living out in this shop, I wouldn’t be here,” she said.

The charm of the business is the people, Patton said. Friends will stop by just to talk.

“I love the people coming in here, visiting with the people and finding out their stories,” she said. “It’s the connections, and the people, and the relationships and staying involved.”

Of course, it’s hard to connect with people when the shop is closed, which is what happened when COVID-19 hit last March.

The shop remained closed for a couple of months, but thankfully, Patton said, Heritage Gifts has bounced right back.

“Christmas was fairly good,” she said. “People came in, they were careful.”

Patton said that Heritage Gifts is a part of both the Opelika Chamber and the Main Street program.

“Downtown’s the heart of your town,” Patton said. “When people first come in, that’s what they see; they want to make sure it’s viable. And they want to make sure, I mean if your downtown is falling apart, the whole place is falling apart. So, it’s your front door.”

Part of being downtown is connecting with other business owners, Patton said. If Heritage Gifts doesn’t have something that a shopper is looking for then she said she’ll refer them to another downtown shop.

“Come downtown, not just to my shop,” she said. “Come to all the shops … Come downtown and know about your downtown. Know what we’ve got to offer.”

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