Print
Retail

New Owners Of Downtown Store Plan To Make Their Mark

By Cece Nunn, posted May 13, 2022
A store founded in 1999, Occasions...Just Write at the Cotton Exchange, is under new ownership. (Photo courtesy of Derek Schmidt)

At around 10 years old, Kirsten Lovan discovered a downtown store that stuck with her to adulthood. 

Lovan's family lived in downtown Wilmington, and her mother was a chef at Caffe Phoenix, a popular Front Street restaurant that closed in 2012. So Lovan grew up downtown, where a store in The Cotton Exchange at 313 N. Front St. grabbed her attention and held it.

“I remember going to Occasions...Just Write as a little girl and flipping through the wedding invitations and stationery,” said Lovan, who bought the store with her husband, Derek Schmidt, last week. 

Lovan said she wants to continue the legacy of the store, which opened in 1999 and was owned for the past 10 years by Peggy Mahan, while also making her mark. Lovan and her husband purchased the business for an undisclosed amount, and she said she plans to bring some new ideas to the business (while continuing to stock items the regulars love, including high-end pens and unique gifts).

Lovan and Schmidt have more than 10 years’ worth of experience in retail and merchandising, and Schmidt is the founder and CEO of two businesses – DesignLoud, a marketing agency founded in 2011, and SWELL Systems, a software as a service company started in 2017.

The addition of Occasions…Just Write to the couple’s portfolio of businesses will enhance Schmidt’s other endeavors, he said, allowing him to use its products and services for his needs as well as offer them to his own clients.

“There’s a correlation where we can expand our services by utilizing some of the products and services that Occasions...Just Write will offer,” Schmidt said.

The new owners plan to add gift baskets, fresh local flowers, custom invitations and thank you cards, journaling, art and school supplies, writing utensils and calligraphy, gift wrapping products and services and journaling and stationery subscription boxes.

Mahan said Friday she made the decision to sell the business because it was time "to embrace a new era." Lovan said Mahan's customers have shown their appreciation for the business.

She said, "A lot of people have come by the past week to wish her congratulations and say they are longtime supporters of the store."

Ico insights

INSIGHTS

SPONSORS' CONTENT
Cfss headshots parker robert webversion 21422121214

The Latest Solar Scams and What You Can Do to Help Stop Them

Robert Parker - Cape Fear Solar Systems
Untitleddesign4

Paving the Way to Better City Streets

Tony Caudle - City of Wilmington
Georgiarowe

Salling and Tate Dentistry Launches Annual "Gunner’s Runners" Shoe Collection Event, Aiming to Surpass Last Year's Success

Georgia Rowe - Wide Open Tech

Trending News

Conservation Group Signs $8M Deal To Buy The Point On Topsail Island

Audrey Elsberry - Mar 26, 2024

Rezoning Could Bring 123 Townhomes To Growing Leland Corridor

Emma Dill - Mar 25, 2024

N.C. Ports Officials React To Baltimore Bridge Collapse

Audrey Elsberry - Mar 26, 2024

Engineering Firm Hires Four Employees

Staff Reports - Mar 26, 2024

National Organization Bestows Top Award On Cape Fear Professional Women In Building

Staff Reports - Mar 26, 2024

In The Current Issue

Hacking Cyberdefense Shortage

A shortage of cybersecurity professionals influenced professor Ulku Clark and her team to slowly evolve UNCW’s offerings to now include eigh...


Park Progress

The planning for Pender Commerce Park began in the early 2000s when the county wanted to create an economic driver on its largely rural west...


Berries, A Battlefield And More In Pender

The N.C. Blueberry Festival, founded in 2003, is one of several events in Pender County that have drawn more attention over the years....

Book On Business

The 2024 WilmingtonBiz: Book on Business is an annual publication showcasing the Wilmington region as a center of business.

Order Your Copy Today!


Galleries

Videos

2023 Power Breakfast: Major Developments