Unique store caters to products just for men
Chesterton — While shoppers browse for items in downtown Chesterton, Larry Kennoy is creating a new type of gift store directly beneath them. He is transforming a basement on Broadway Avenue into the Coffee Creek Trading Co., a store that will carry products specifically for men.
In addition to purchasing silk-screening equipment to create his new line of gift items, Kennoy built his own darkroom. Leather hides, wooden slats, sand paper, saws, wood glue and other tools are scattered along the counters of the workshop.
Brian Mock of Valparaiso expressed frustration regarding the lack of variety in gift choices.
“Every store has the same 12 to 14 things for men,” he said. “Particularly this last year, you see all of the garbage that goes out of the big stores because people don’t know what to get. A unique gift that is not the norm is a neat idea.”
Kennoy’s first product is a crate that will contain a two pound sack of coffee beans. The rustic-looking crates are built with the tongue-and-groove method, rather than nails and staples.
The containers are made of pine slats, the lids secured with two leather straps. Since each crate is individually hand-made, Kennoy said it takes at least three days to be completed.
