A country and primitive gift shop may be new to East Peoria, but Quinn’s Station has been in service for almost 16 years.
The shop, which opened Feb. 1 at 125 E. Washington St., has outlasted two locations and the owner’s health problems.
The store’s owner, Kathy Quinn, a Peoria native, started selling her homemade creations at a booth in Washington. However, her business expanded when she met her husband, Steve Quinn, an East Peoria native.
“I was lucky enough to meet my husband at the Peoria Park District,” Quinn said. “We married in 1993, and he helped me open my own business.”
The Quinns' store — named after a gas station owned by Steve’s father in Lexington years before — was opened originally in Peoria in 1994. The store got off the ground after Kathy met a woman in the same business, Lynve, who quickly became a friend and mentor. The Quinns stayed in that location for three years before making their way to Canton.
“I got connected to Canton when I helped a lady open a store there, and I was the only one she would buy from,” Quinn said.
Quinn’s Station in Canton was open for nearly 13 years before Kathy became ill and was forced to close her shop.
“I really should have closed my shop last January, but I just couldn’t let go. I had truly supportive friends who housed my stuff,” said Quinn, whose doctor released her in good health last month.
As soon as she was released, the Quinns started looking for a place to reopen the shop. In just three weeks, the spot in East Peoria was found and opened.
“We have downsized a bit from the store in Canton, but we already have plans to remodel starting in the spring,” Quinn said. “In May, we will knock down a wall to open the space and move the entrance to be right next to the Tea Room.”
Quinn attributed the potential to remodel and the affordable space as the biggest draw to open the shop in East Peoria.
East Peoria is supporting the business nicely, said Quinn. In the three weeks since the shop opened, she has had repeat customers and owners of other local business bringing in customers and providing flyers, she said.
“It’s important that all the smaller, privately owned business work together. It is helpful for all,” Quinn said. “In the few weeks we have been opened, we have had people from the bank, Bamboo Inn, the Tea Room and all the shops down the row come in to buy items.”
Quinn’s Station’s products are 90 percent handcrafted, and Quinn is the biggest contributor.
“I see something, and I can put it together,” said Quinn. “I can lay all the material on the counter, and it will all come together. It’s a God-given talent.”
The store exclusively sells handcrafted furniture and cabinetry from Primarily Primitive and handspun aprons, clothing and more from Creations by Joyce Rae.
Quinn, who has decorated the outside of the shop to draw people in, reiterated the shop’s ever-changing nature.
“Things change here all the time. A table that we brought in on Saturday sold on Wednesday, and newly made cabinets didn’t last 24 hours before someone purchased them. We would rather have people come in and move merchandise and buy all the time,” said Quinn.
In addition to products being sold in the store, Quinn has gift certificate raffles every month. Plus, she has scheduled seasonal events, the first being the May Garden Show, which will take place the first two weeks in May.
Quinn’s Station is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday. For more information, call 369-4086.
East Peoria, Ill. —
