Published: Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2010 / Updated: Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2010 08:02 PM
Setting up nest at Birds of a Feather
FORT MILL TOWNSHIP --
Although there are some good things that come from the area’s continued growth, there are also unintended consequences, such as a negative impact on mom and pop stores as big chains move in.
Donald Cooke wants to do his part to keep locally owned stores a part of Fort Mill’s fabric.
“I enjoy being an active member of the community,” Cooke said.
“I am proud of the fact that we are local people and own a business in our hometown.”
Cooke, along with his mother-in-law, Renee Miller, his wife, Jamie Cooke, and a silent partner, owns Birds of a Feather boutique.
The boutique, located on Hwy. 160 West across the street from Baxter Village, carries a variety of items that are sure to pique customers’ interests.
“We carry everything from jewelry, household items, decorative items and collegiate and custom monogramming,” Donald Cooke said.
Cooke, 28, and his silent partner are veterans of the U.S. Army. After a serendipitous meeting at Fort Carson in Colorado, the two realized they both were reared in the same region.
“We lived in the same apartments [off base] and he helped me fix my car when it broke down,” Cooke said. “We learned that we were from the same area.”
Cooke, from Fort Mill, and his fellow veteran, a Rock Hill resident, soon became friends.
After leaving the military, the two friends, along with Jamie Cooke and Miller, were given the chance to become owners of the already-established Birds of a Feather.
“When the opportunity presented itself, the four of us thought it would be a great opportunity and wanted to work with each other,” Donald Cooke said.
While molding the company into the type of business the partners thought offered the best chance to be successful, the veterans decided to employ some of the philosophy the Army had bestowed on them.
“The Army’s values of loyalty, duty, respect, selfless-service, honor, integrity and personal courage are the values that we run our business.” Cooke said.
“This is why we are successful.”
As more chain franchises move into Fort Mill, shops such as Birds of a Feather will need to build a following if they want to compete for dollars that are more scarce during the recession.
“I like the fact we are locally owned and operated, I hope the community can appreciate that as well,” he said.
Birds of a Feather is open Monday-Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The phone number is 802-3777.