Artifacts Gallery in Athens, Ohio is one of the many shops located on the hustling and bustling Court Street. The store originally opened in the mid-70’s as a vintage furniture shop, the only thing that hasn’t changed in that time is the name. A woman who worked at the furniture store – Amy Mangano – bought the store and changed it into a shop that sold everything from clothing to gag gifts. “When Amy came in, she completely changed the store to cater more to college girls,” said Cassi Spires, one of the girls who works in Artifacts. Even though Amy now lives in New York, Artifacts continues to be a success with the workers acting in as management.
Christine MacVicar, browses the jewelry selection on Tuesday, February 18, 2014. Most of the jewelry sold at Artifacts is made by local artists.
Amanda Weaver views the store’s merchandise in one of the display cases.
One of the store workers, Sharon Fritz, checks the inventory list for a new shipment of clothes. "These things have really vague descriptions and I'm just supposed to guess," says Fritz. She has to make sure everything they ordered made it into the shipment.
Greg Ornella and Abby Carlson stopped in Artifacts to check out the clothes during their night out on Court Street. All of the clothing is bought from independent vendors, which gives the store a unique selection for customers to browse and buy.
Cassi Spires rearranges the jewelry in the display cases one morning before the store opens. Spires is one of the workers who has worked at Artifacts the longest. “There’s four of us, and we all pretty much manage and run the store,” said Sharon Fritz.
Caleb Balduff walks by the store window display on a sunny afternoon. Artifacts has been awarded the Athens News Best window display for the past four years. The display has to be switched out every week that way the sun doesn’t ruin everything.
Thea Erwin rings out her customer, Molly Bail, during her shift.