
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, April 12, 1990                   TAG: 9004130665
SECTION: NEIGHBORS                    PAGE: S-4   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: GRACE BOSWORTH CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

COUPLE PUTS RETIREMENT MONEY ON THE LINE WITH OPENING OF SHOP

Tom and Billie Reid met at Jefferson High School and have been married for more than 30 years. Both have full-time careers and hold positions of responsibility - he is a major with the Roanoke Police Department and she is science supervisor for the Roanoke County school system. They have a home in Penn Forest and a black poodle named Baba. Their one daughter is grown up and married.

So why in the world are these two prowling around in a downtown gift shop at nearly midnight, unpacking boxes, moving display shelves, installing dry wall and painting?

"We've been thinking about something we really wanted to do after retirement for many years," Billie said. "And this is it."

BBT Gifts Etc. opened at 302 First St. S.W. in September 1988. "We're so crazy, we plan to open another store at Lakeside Plaza on May 1," said Tom.

Their enterprise is an incorporated small business with a five-person staff. In addition to the Reids, their daughter Sharianne and her husband, William Cleveland, work at the store along with Debbie Jacobs, a full-time employee.

Sharianne and William also have full-time jobs, working in Roanoke's computer information system.

Shop location was an important consideration for the Reids. "We started looking in the spring of 1988," Tom said. "We believe downtown is viable and we chose this site because of its proximity to a daytime market," Tom said.

People come in at lunch time, spend 15 minutes reading cards and laughing, then leave," Billie reported, "and that's OK with us. We like to hear people laugh and we think many of them will be back later as customers."

Their shop, in addition to cards for every occasion, offers gifts that range from carved animals, glassware, candy and sandcastings to collectibles such as dolls, music boxes and thimbles.

A current crowd-stopper in the window is a full-scale carousel horse - black, with flashing eyes and pink lips pulled back over big, white teeth. "Yes, we could order one for you; they're done by a firm in Chicago and shipped to us," Billie said.

"You can't have this one; it's mine," she said.

Billie grew up a big fan of the merry-go-round at Lakeside, and so the family bought her the horse for Christmas.

"All of us make buying decisions," said Billie. "We want to provide alternative gifts, quality products. Tom and I have gone to shows whenever we could, places like Atlanta, Ga.; Charlotte, N.C.; and Reston, Va.

"Everyone told us it was going to be tough to even break even in the first two years," Billie said. "We've tried to provide extra services, like free gift-wrapping on any purchase over $10 and just a small fee for wrapping items under that price, or even wrapping something bought elsewhere. It's a convenience for working people who need a spur-of-the-moment gift."

Billie pauses for a moment, then adds, "There's still a great deal we have to learn about pricing and expenses. For one thing, we didn't know shipping costs would be so high."

Tom talked about the risks for a new business. "It took all the savings we had put away for retirement and a bank loan. We looked at the bottom line and it would be," he pauses, "it would be to lose everything."

by CNB