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Shop Talk: Two Bees, One Hive and a Whole Lot of Buzz
It takes “good vibes” to turn passion into revenue, as husband-and-wife team Justin Kingsley Noyes and Rachel Vanatta prove daily. The two met as freshmen at Savannah College of Art and Design—she was a jewelry maker and he an illustration major—and shared a sole ambition to introduce their wares to the world. Eight years later, Vanatta, 26, and Noyes, 27, are two years married with a new baby—a shop, The Hive, born November 2007, and located on Anna Maria Island. There, trinkets sparkle on quirky tables, bold hues adorn the walls and little Buddha sculptures sit peacefully adjacent to scented candles, making customers feel as though they’ve wandered into a vintage tiki resort.
Q: When you opened your shop, what kind of vibe did you envision?
A: We shopped our products around and had a great response, but decided we wanted to be more involved with each other’s businesses since they really complemented each other. We hunted and found a store location. The inside, ceiling to floor, was a tone of beige, so we covered the walls and floor with fabric, paint, sticks, furniture and displays. We wanted customers to find a funky piece of clothing or jewelry, rather than just a mug that said “Anna Maria Island.” So many people have come in, young and old and said, “The Island needed something like this.”
Q: What kinds of treasures are at The Hive that shoppers can’t find anywhere else?
A: Ninety-five percent of what we sell, we make. We do order some items from artists in California, like tiki barware and mugs, but everything we carry we want to be American made. We cast certain elements of jewelry pieces, so those are always special. We’ve started making all-natural soy candles—which have been a big hit—and original hand bags. We make whimsical-style illustrations and develop them into designs for clothing and cards and prints. We love the versatility of children’s books because various styles of drawing can express the story in the way the author and illustrator have collaborated. When we’re both working on new designs, we get excited to present them at the shop and show our customers.
Q: Some of Justin’s drawings will be featured in the The House Bunny, which opens in theaters on August 22. How did that opportunity come about and how will his drawings be featured in the film?
A: The opportunity came through the old, traditional way of having contacts in the right places. A long-term college friend of ours, Sam Petlock, who is coincidently from Sarasota originally, now works for Frameworks (a division of Adam Sandler’s Happy Madison Productions in Los Angeles). Sam called one day and said his company was in need of a traditional illustrator. After we sent sketches, the producers asked Justin to create 18 drawings. In the trailers, the pieces look as if they’re being flipped through to open the movie.
—By Abby Weingarten, Photos by Cat Horton
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