Upon entering Shannon’s Web, the candle and home decor shop owned by USF St. Petersburg senior Shannon Kelly, one is instantly awash in an aroma of candle-scented goodness.
“I like warm smelling stuff,” said Kelly, a mass communications major who cites the store’s Bourbon Maple Sugar candle as her favorite. “Candles are my core thing.”
Yet opening up a sweet-scented shop was not always a dream of Kelly’s. Instead, she worked with College Hunks Hauling Junk, Swan Creek Candle Company and as a sales and marketing assistant for the alternative weekly newspaper Creative Loafing.
“I loved all those places, and I learned so much, but why not market myself?” she said. “I decided I wanted to be my own boss.”
So, Kelly, 23, quit her full-time job and set out to open shop.
“The idea came to me in August,” she said. “The doors were open the week of Christmas. The sign out front came a couple of weeks later.”
Shannon’s Web, at 2454 Central Avenue in the Grand Central District, is comfy-cozy-country, with a vibe not unlike a downtown, indie version of Bath & Body Works.
In the shop’s back corner, a gilded mirror rests above a little white sink, which Kelly hopes to turn into a testing station so customers can try out her skin care products in-store.
Her shop sells items mainly from independent companies, with local vendors ranging from the Tampa-based jewelry maker Julie Meloche, to a Georgian purveyor of pepper jelly.
“It’s fueling the local economy,” she said. “I’m trying to keep it affordable.”
Yet, despite the abundance of candles and home decor items (ceramic swans and wreaths included), the store, which Kelly describes as “a surf shop meets a Cracker Barrel,” is for all to enjoy.
“I didn’t want it to be girly,” she said. “I didn’t want to be gender defined.”
This neutrality is evidenced both in the store’s color pallette # the walls are both blue and “greige” (a hybrid color combo of grey and beige) # as well as in the plush seating area, wedged behind the back corner of the shop.
“We have a ‘man cave’ where a comfy couch and TV can be found, hosting custom fishing rods, men’s bath and body products and masculine-scented candles,” said Kelly. “I’m calling them ‘mandles.’”
This “everyone’s welcome” vibe also extends to the store’s physical location, and is part of what drew Kelly to Central Avenue.
“I was back and forth between the 600 block, but I’ve always liked the Grand Central District,” she said.
“I love the community, the hipsters, the LGBT, the young families in Kenwood. At some of the places downtown, I feel like you get sized up. I want everyone to feel comfortable. For the most part, you have the cupcake places, the antiques across the street. It’s more of the mature crowd.”
The ability to appeal to a range of audiences is one reason Kelly decided to create a store in the first place.
“Part of the inspiration of opening the shop came from working for Swan Creek Candle’s outlet store in Leesburg, Fla.,” she said. “A little boy and his dad came in completely lost while shopping for mom. After asking a few questions, I helped arrange a huge gift basket for her. The little boy walked out beaming, so proud he helped put together something so special.”
While the Swan Creek candles and other fragrances can be purchased pre-packaged, another option exists for those who want candles on their own terms.
In the center of the store is a candle and gift bar where customers can customize their own gift baskets and scents. Shannon’s Web pours tea lights, and can custom pour and refill jars for customers. “Someone [can] bring in gramma’s mug that they fill,” she said.
This personal touch is part of Kelly’s mission.
“There’s cute home decor out there, but it’s all mass produced,” she said. “I want to keep it U.S. based and made, not something from China.”
She sells items from “local artists. Each [product] is handmade, unique. It’s not something spewed out on a conveyer belt. It takes time.”
While Kelly herself makes some small jewelry items for the store, most of the products that line the shelves are made by friends, family and fellow creators.
“My mom made this table,” said Kelly, pointing to a display. “In opening this, I was trying to help out my boyfriend and mom, and [asking] what can I do to help everyone out?”
After playing around with store names # she eschewed both Sun Shade (“Everything in Florida is ‘Sunrise’”) and A Place for Him and Her (“Like, you’re going to find some body massage oils in here”) # Kelly settled on the concept of a collection of items she enjoyed.
“[Shannon’s Web] shows everything I like.”
Her inspiration stems from a range of places.
“I was inspired by Cracker Barrel and the Villages back home,” said Kelly, who hails from Leesburg. Her mother’s house also provided inspiration for Shannon’s Web. “Everything old, country, vintage … my mom was always that way.”
Her family is not only an inspiration for the store’s aesthetic but is also the team that has helped launch Shannon’s Web.
“My ‘employees’ are friends and family helping me get this place off the ground: Allie Farnsworth and Debbie James.”
Kelly also has an intern, Austin Johnson, who is a senior in the graphic design program at USFSP. “He’s done my grand opening flyer and signage in the store,” she said.
Kelly is also a student at USFSP, running Shannon’s Web while finishing up her coursework online.
“I decided to take a store and take my last two classes at the same time,” she said. This doubling up process, which Kelly wouldn’t recommend to anyone, may prove stressful, but at least she’ll have somewhere to relax.
“I wanted [the store] to be neutral and calming. People aren’t mad when they’re buying candles. They’re just happy to be here.”
The Grand Opening: The grand opening of Shannon’s Web is set for Feb. 8, from 5 to 7 p.m. The store will provide cocktails, snacks and a ribbon cutting, as well as live acoustic entertainment by Jason Neil and Kyle Chason. For more about Shannon’s Web, visit the store’s Facebook page at facebook.com/shannonswebstpete.
