Interview by Mercedes Arnold

All photos provided courtesy of Nicki Stanford.

Maine Vibes Magazine: We’ll get started, I'm going to ask you questions and then we can go from there. I really appreciate you taking the time to talk with me.

Nicki Stanford: I’m so proud of you that you're trying something new.

MVM: Thank you so much! Can you introduce yourself and then talk a little bit about your business and when you got started?

NS: Nicole Stanford is my name. I go by Nicki, Nicole is only for when I'm in trouble. I opened Freckle Salvage Company in August of 2019. My husband and I had been working on it for a few years prior to that out of our home, we both had full-time jobs. I was about 40 when it hit me that this is what I wanted to do. I have 25 years of retail management experience in the Atlanta area. I worked for about 17 years in home decor and furniture and learned from the best of the best there. We moved to Maine, my husband was in the Coast Guard, that's how we ended up here in Maine, and we fell in love with it. We moved 10 years ago, and we decided to stay. We were down at a market in Brimfield, MA. I was walking around and thought this is cool; they’re buying stuff, they’re reselling it, and they look like they're having a blast. I didn't know at the time how much hard work it really was. It hit me that day and I remember looking at my husband telling him this is what I want to do, and as all supportive husbands, he's like, okay, cool, it's another thing you're going to try. I told him no, I'm serious, I'm going to do this. Something happened, it was just different.

We started with a flea market booth and a Facebook page and grew to do things like the Vintage Bazaar and some other markets. I felt that I was more suited to having a store environment, I like the idea of setting up displays and not having to take them down two days later. I took the leap, my son was in kindergarten at the time when I made the decision. 

I drove through here [Winthrop] to my job in Augusta for over four years. I would drive through Main Street Winthrop twice a day. I always thought it was so cute but a little sad. There were a couple of businesses, but a lot of empty space, it looked a little depressed. I would sit and count cars and watch the traffic. There was so much traffic that passed through and people were going fast and not stopping. After that, we made the decision to choose Winthrop, and it's been a great decision. We didn't have a whole bunch of savings or loans. We slowly reinvested every dollar that we made and by the time my son started first grade, we had opened here because I felt like I wasn't there enough for him. I was working 60-70 hours a week in my retail job and my husband was working the third shift. I saw him about an hour a day, and we swapped our kid almost like we were separated. We lived together, but we didn't see each other. I don't think you should work that hard your whole life to maybe enjoy a few years in the end. 

MVM: Yeah, absolutely. 

NS: A lot of people are starting, especially with the pandemic, are really starting to realize that, that there's a way to build a life that you love now, even if it means eating peanut butter and jelly for a while, but it's worth it. Now, my kid gets off from school and then is here with me in the office. 

“I felt it was too important for me, it takes persistence and consistency.”

MVM: That’s so great! Are you from the Atlanta area? 

NS: No, I was born in Ohio, but I moved and grew up in Tennessee. I was about 17 when we moved to the Atlanta area, and I lived there for 17 years. It was fun when I was young and single, and even when my husband and I first got together and married, it was a lot of fun. We then spent a little time in Savannah before we moved to Maine. I miss the food, but other than that, it’s too much.

MVM: There's a lot going on in there.

NS:  I like the pace here, I really like the people. Being in Maine, if someone takes the time to be kind to you, you can believe that it's true because otherwise they don't bother, and I respect that.

MVM: How was opening right before the pandemic, and then after the pandemic hit, how did that go?

NS: We were very optimistic, we had a good first holiday season. Our first winter, after we got out of that Christmas, we had the shop open four days a week and I had to work two days a week in a pizza place our first year in business because I wasn't willing to go back and work for somebody else in that capacity. I knew that if this [Freckle Salvage] had the time that it would grow into what it needed to be. My husband was still working his job and I picked up two days a week slinging pizza for a couple of months. I felt it was too important for me, it takes persistence and consistency. Seven months after we opened, we had to close down for two months, so you question all of your choices. I had about 10 vendors at the time when I first opened that were paying rent. I remember driving home the day Janet Mills made the announcement and crying.

We pause briefly, and Nicki starts to tear up. The weight of the pandemic is close to our hearts and livelihoods. It’s painful to recall what it was like at the beginning and middle of it all, but Nicki shares what she did for her vendors.

NS: I made an offer to my vendors that they could skip paying rent or pay whatever they could. Every single one of them paid in full.

MVM: Wow. That's amazing. 

“The ‘salvage’ part of our business name is not just what we do, but it’s what this business has done for us.”

NS: I wanted to show them that their faith in me was worth it. We were here every day during the pandemic. I would come in and take pictures [of the displays] and measure everything. I would post [on social media] and kept the store going and the community was amazing. 

Freckle Salvage sold mostly online during the pandemic. Nicki would spend hours posting her vendors’ products online and selling through social media and the eBay store. When they reopened, people showed up in a big way. 

NS: Looking back on it, I don’t ever want to go through that again. But I told myself I wasn’t going to fail, I worked too hard for this. 

MVM: Having that support must have been everything and meant so much to you and your family and to your vendors.

NS: A lot of them are still with me, not all of them, but that’s ok. I tell people I know I’m not the last stop on their journey. Freckle Salvage is here while they are to incubate their dreams and help them and support them. 

Part of the support Nicki and Freckle Salvage provide for vendors is knowing that it’s important to be open for business for all residents, not just the summer visitors. 

NS: Having people choose to come here for a birthday card instead of Target, that’s a really big deal. I want to be open for them [local residents]. My advice when people ask what should they do with their business is to be open, you have to be here. The support, especially in the Winthrop area, is amazing. 

MVM: I think when you do it for the community, you get that back in return because the community can tell you're there for them. If you build your store with them in mind, instead of say, the snowbirds, people can tell.

NS: Yes, and it’s okay to share other businesses in your area. Darlene Steele owns the Main Street Mercantile shop [in Winthrop]. One of the first things I did was go and talk to her and let her know I was supportive. If we work together and support each other, then it's going to bring in more people for both of us. There shouldn't be a sense of competition. If Ted's [Trackside Grill, Winthrop, ME] does well, if Pickles [Potions and Lotions] does well, if Darlene does well, then all of us are going to benefit because people are coming to our area. I think the lakes region gets the shaft sometimes, everyone thinks of Maine and thinks of the coast. There is more to Maine that's not coastal.

MVM: So true! How did you come up with the idea for The Vault and when did you start it?

NS: My husband and I, and he's been in this with me 1,000% since the beginning, I know this is a magazine celebrating women, but the people that support you deserve their credit.

MVM: Absolutely!

NS: We had done a lot of [vintage] shows and they're brutal. If you've ever set up a weekend show, you get there on Friday morning and have to be set up by 5 pm. You’re sunburned, you're hot, you're dehydrated, then you have to break down at the end of the weekend. It’s a whole thing and it is a ton of fun, but there are only so many times you can sit crying under a tent that it's raining or your tent blows over, or your neighbor's booth falls over and breaks your stuff. We knew we didn't want to keep doing those forever. We had all these takeaways from it and had always talked about if we could do a market one day, but it was always a what if? I had been talking with my landlord and he mentioned a garage space under our shop, which I didn’t know about. My husband and I went back and forth on what we could do with the space. It was August of 2020, there were still no flea markets, no bazaars. We started thinking about a monthly market. I ended up drafting a letter and sending it out to all of the vintage vendors and asked if they’d be interested in coming to this dirty garage to sell. There were 12 people who said yes and 3 of my vendors here [Freckle Salvage] took a spot too; Three of my original vendors, they committed to help me. We decided we would set it up like it was another store, at the time there were still limits on how many people could be in person. 

Opening a vintage market in the middle of the pandemic, Nicki had to get creative. They had a set amount of shoppers they could allow in at a time, and using a register, would cash people out for their purchases. They also would text people as they were waiting to let them know it was their turn to enter the market. 

NS: It grew from there, October of 2020 was our first fall vintage market down there. And this month [March] marks our 18th month. After six months down there [in the garage], we realized how quickly it was growing in popularity. We ended up moving to the mill building next door where there’s no heat, no air conditioning, it is what it is, but we took the space. We grew from 12 vendors to 24 vendors after six months. 

MVM: Amazing! Congratulations on 18 months!! 

NS: Thank you!

Nicki and her family came up with the idea for the vintage market themes. They named the monthly market The Vault and host vendors in the mill building on Main Street, Winthrop. You can find the dates and themes for The Vault on social media and in-store on Freckle Salvage flyers. 

This year, my word is ‘protect’…protecting my personal time is something that I'm struggling with, making sure that at eight o'clock, I'm going to put my phone down and I'm going to read, or I’m going to snuggle with my kid before bed. 

MVM: Do you ask your vendors if they have theme ideas for The Vault?

NS: I do. The one last month [February], Perfect Pairings, was the result of a conversation with a vendor. I get inspired by different things and I have planned out the themes through the end of the year. 

MVM: The Vault is well known in this area, you get a lot of people shopping! 

NS: It's a ton of pressure, but the whole community is benefiting from it. People will shop in Darlene’s [Main Street Mercantile] and Pickles. There is a food truck that comes and Root Fire Farm sets up a pop up farmer’s market. My goal is to have more activities going on the street to encourage more people to stop if they see things going on. 

MVM: There are so many vintage sellers, how do you choose who you want to work with? Do you reach out to them? Do they reach out to you? How does that process work?

NS: In the beginning, I reached out to them and people really took the chance on us, those vendors have a special place in my heart. At this point, for the most part, vendors reach out to me. With The Vault and the shop, there is a waiting list for both and I no longer offer consignment. The vendors renting space in the shop merchandise their space, which I highly encourage. I've been very lucky and had many female bosses over my lifetime. I've experienced that type of encouragement several times in my working career with women. This outlook is something that I've adopted and I feel very strongly about. 

I want to show my vendors they are appreciated. We have an annual meeting with them, this past year was our third meeting. Jesse and I purchase ‘intent bracelets’ for our vendors and pound them out ourselves. This year we did 60 bracelets and everyone chooses their word of intent for the year. For me, choosing a word helps because I try to think about my word when I make decisions. In my first year, my word was “curate” because I opened Freckle Salvage and I needed to spend time curating and making sure I had the best vendors and the best stuff. Then year two was ‘enrich’.  We’ve got The Vault now, so how can I enrich the experience for my customers for my vendors? This year, my word is ‘protect’.  We've worked so hard, and when you grow and start to be successful, not everybody is rooting for you, so I feel this is the year where I have to protect what we've created. I'm going to protect it for my vendors and my family. Also protecting my personal time is something that I'm struggling with, making sure that at eight o'clock, I'm going to put my phone down and I'm going to read, or I’m going to snuggle with my kid before bed. 

This rings true for SO MANY women and mothers! 

NS: There are a lot of layers to my word this year. I'm so proud of us and all that has unintentionally happened. I thought I was going to have my little shop and be chill, and that’s not what happened at all. My husband quit his job in June 2021 and we run the shop together full time now. It’s been really cool to see all that this is. The ‘salvage’ part of our business name is not just what we do, but it’s what this business has done for us. 

MVM: That's amazing, your son can see that, he’s around the business, I’m sure he will be so proud.

NS: Right, he’s either gonna grow up loving it or hating it.

MVM: He’ll have an amazing amount of respect for you both though.

NS: I hope so, he has started to help in the shop. This kid is the love of my life. My husband is my best friend, my soulmate. But this kid he's the love of both of our lives, and we know it.

MVM: You were talking about how you are so supportive of your vendors and really encouraging them to do bigger things. I've heard from several women, that you're amazing and supportive and encouraging. When you give out that energy, how does it feel in return, and how do you feel when you're giving so much to everyone? Do you feel it back? 

NS: I do, there are times that it has got the best of me. I’ve had moments where I need to take a break. But especially Kristen and Gary at Pickle’s [Potions and Lotions], we are right across the street from each other, but hardly ever see each other. She works her butt off. The other day they [Pickle’s] had had a market at Thompson's Point, The Maker’s Market, I guess Gary was telling them where the shop was and said you should really come up and check out Freckles, and a lady came in. I get as many customers that come to see them, that they refer to this side of the street as the opposite. It was really fun to start because when we opened I shared everything about the community, if a new business was opening, etc. Now other businesses are doing the same thing and it is the best. 

This community is amazing, I don't think it gets enough credit. It has more businesses post-pandemic than it did pre-pandemic. Winthrop has done something special with that.

MVM: Yeah, it’s so great for Winthrop to have all these wonderful businesses here. Nicki, you talk about your husband is really supportive and how you work together and you have your son in the store sometimes. How is that helping with running your business, having that support? 

NS: I couldn't do it without them. We don't have any family here, it’s the three of us, we say Team Stanford.

MVM:  Oh, I love that. 

NS: We operate it like it's the three of us and we're gonna get it done or figure it out. It’s not easy on a marriage, you know, marriage is hard enough but then you get into a situation, especially me being a strong-headed female and then to bring him in full time. We each have our wheelhouse, he has things that he's really amazing at. He makes sure everyone is comfortable, everything is clean and working properly, and he’s also very charming.

MVM: What advice do you have for anyone looking to start their own business?

NS: Learn to give yourself grace, which is something I struggle with, it's not going to be perfect right away. If you're really good, you're never going to be happy with it, it’s a constant evolution. Give yourself that grace to realize that there are changes and things that are going to evolve, but stay consistent. The hardest thing to do is to stay consistent when you don't feel like your hard work has paid off. If you're not excited about your business, nobody else is going to be and it just takes time. You have to believe and toot your own horn. I know it's hard to stay consistent when you just feel like it's not getting anywhere.

MVM: That is a great reminder.

NS: Yeah, give yourself a little grace, be consistent and it’s okay to start over again tomorrow.

Links:

Pickle’s Potions & Lotions - picklespotions.net

Main Street Mercantile - facebook.com/220MainStreetMercantile/

Thank you to Nicki Stanford and family for having me to Freckle Salvage and sharing your story with MVM. It was truly a pleasure!! What you are doing for the Central Maine area does not go unnoticed, your gifts are so appreciated. The Vault runs every month in Winthrop, Maine, check on the Freckle Salvage Facebook and Instagram for more details on themes, dates, and times of the event.

Freckle Salvage is located on 129 Main St., Winthrop, Maine. Hours are 10 - 5 pm daily.

Web: frecklesalvageco.com

Instagram: @frecklesalvageco

Facebook: @Freckle Salvage Co.