Hidden Gem's History: Or should we say Herstory
Maybe you've been here with us since the beginning, thank you. And maybe you are new, thank you. Here's a little more about us!
Let's start at the beginning:
Heather has very fond memories searching for garnets and rubies with her mother and Grandmother in North Carolina as a small child. She had always had a fascination for rocks and crystals and dreamed of having a magical crystal shop. That dream came true after buying Willowtree Market in 2015, formally Willow’s Naturally, a health and wellness store . She decided she would bring a small selection of crystals in and the customer’s enthusiasm continued to grow, so Heather decided to fill the entire upstairs of the store with more crystals , jewelry and gifts . In the fall of 2019 The Crystal Loft opened. Lou, who also had a deep interest in the healing qualities of crystals , discovered the shop days after she moved to Washington. She knew instantly that she wanted to work there and applied on the spot! She came from a life of collecting pretty rocks as a kid to connecting with the metaphysical side and loving every aspect of it. We loved the Crystal Loft. It was cozy and the sun would come in and play with the crystals.
During the summer of 2020 we moved the Crystal Loft downstairs in Willowtree and changed its name to Wild Heather, so that it was Wild Heather under the Willowtree. We loved this space, it felt like it went hand in hand with Willowtree. A wellness shop with a metaphysical wellness space. But it was a very tiny space and our customers excitedly asked for more.
Through all of its iterations, we got to know our regular locals very well.
In April of 2021 we moved to the Winslow Mall and expanded 5 times the space we had. Here we were able to meet even more of our locals and tourists, making sweet connections. We expanded in every way, carrying more of the metahysical and occult items as well as dipping our toes into the jewelry world more, and of course find even more awesome crystals to share with everyone. We had 2 wonderful and busy years filled with a lot of growth.
And now we found the space we have always wanted, at the Orchard. We are excited to be going into our third year of Hidden Gem in a beautiful light filled space. This space feels like a breath of fresh air. The crystal sparkle a little more and we are all happy to be here. We can't wait to see how things will progress in this new space.
Through all of this time of growth we have worked hard to support local women makers and employ amazing women who have knowledge of many wonderful things. As a women owned, women run small business we work hard to support women in our local community and our small business community. Currently we have 25 local, regional, and US made items from women owned companies. And we are always looking for more that we align with. If you are a maker and interested in having your pieces in our shop please reach out through email, hello@hiddengembainbridge.com
We fully acknowledge everyday that we wouldn’t be here without all of you who have been here with us since the beginning or have just recently found us. Your presents means so much to us. Heather and Lou and the whole team at Hidden Gem want to thank you for the love and support. We hope you will come checkout our new space and we thank you for being a part of our community through all of the change.
