Refinery423 Mercantile's Carl Greene stands in the booth area at Merchants on Main where he and partner Keith Wooten are launching their sales effort.You can buy a tube of ChapStick just about anywhere.
Or, you can buy Lucky Bastard-brand "gentleman's lip balm" from Refinery423 Mercantile, a new vendor that opens today at the Merchants on Main antiques mall at 607 E. Main St.
"It's all handmade, small-batch," said Carl Greene, who launched the store with partner Keith Wooten.
Along with gentleman's lip balm, the shop's offerings include artisanal mustache and beard wax from Nashville and hot sauce made in Chattanooga. The shop also will sell locally made dog treats and vintage items, such as antique liquor flasks.
Greene describes the store's goods as "curated," like works in a museum.
"We know their story," he said. "We've talked to the owners, the vendors."
The duo thinks the items they're carrying will sell at the antiques mall in Chattanooga's trendy Southside neighborhood, partly because a pop-up version of the store they ran there in December did well.
"We did have men purchasing items for themselves," Greene said, "And we did have women looking for gifts for men."
Refinery423 Mercantile will take up an entire room at Merchants on Main, which along with antiques also carries pottery, home decor and consignment furniture. The store's owner, Missy Steiner, is happy to have Refinery423 Mercantile open.
"A huge trend I see with people is wanting to buy locally," she said. "One of the things we've always looked for here at the store is men's gifts. They're doing a really good job with men's gifts."
Contact staff writer Tim Omarzu at tomarzu@timesfreepress.com or www.facebook.com/MeetsForBusiness or twitter.com/meetforbusiness or 423-757-6651.