Northern Exposure
Merav Hoffman -- Gifts & Decorative Accessories, 2/1/2001
Crosslake, Minnesota, 150 miles north of Minneapolis, is a tourist spot in the summer, but come winter everything pretty much shuts down. That annoyed Judy Cotton and her husband, Jim, when they moved to Crosslake. After all, she had to drive 50 miles round-trip to get to a gift shop! So, in 1986, the couple constructed a 1,000-square-foot store (Jim is a builder by trade) called Judy's House of Gifts. It would be open year-round. Their store soon ran out of space, and in 1989 they opened up 800 square feet in the store's basement. By 1994, they were out of space again, and built a 1,000-square-foot extension. But guess what? By November 1998, it was time to build again. In May 1999-just in time for the summer tourist onslaught-they finished another extension and became proud retailers with 5,000 square feet of display space, plus another 5,000 for storage, offices, a garage, and restrooms. In order to tie the various spaces together, the Cottons carpeted the entire store in a dark forest green. Exposed beams, a vaulted ceiling, and knotty-pine walls and display merchandisers support the "up North" theme of Judy's House of Gifts. A wooden gazebo with a hardwood floor serves as a focal point and display area for garden and outdoor accessories. Crosslake is now a very "gifted" town.
