Booming business continues to grow in Auburn amid pandemic

Despite the blows of 2020 and all of the COVID-19 restrictions local businesses have faced, there are several Auburn spots that have either recently opened, rebranded or are looking to expand. Auburn has proven it won't be brought down by pandemic-related obstacles as it welcomes two new retail shops, one new salon, one merged business, one new eatery and two more big-name businesses in the planning phases. New shops on the block First on the scene opening mid-pandemic in October is Old Town Hobby. Owner Mike Walker shared he used to run the Bear River Winery tasting room at his 111 Sacramento Street Old Town Auburn location, but his business was brought down due to coronavirus restrictions. "I've been collecting cards for over 30 years, and my business partner said if we aren't going to do wine, we need to do something else," he said. Old Town Hobby sells a number of hobby-related items, including trading cards, games, figurines, models and more. He carries products from brands such as Funko Pops!, Upper Deck, Star Wars, LEGO, Marvel and more. Walker said a good portion of his business is in buying, selling and trading cards. The pivot in business model has helped reach an even wider audience, bringing more success, Walker said. "I've done better as a hobby shop than I ever did in wine tasting," he said. Also new in Downtown Auburn is 360° of Auburn, a gift shop featuring an array of Auburn-branded items and various other gifts. Many of co-owner Lori Tompkins' products came from the former retail side of Dancing Dog, a screen-printing business in town. "I've wanted to open up some type of Auburn garb shop for years," Tompkins said. The new retail space, which used to house Skye Clothing (which has now expanded), hosts a number of gifts from Auburn-branded clothing to novelty glassware, bags, notebooks, journals, party supplies and more. Tompkins' contributions to Downtown Auburn don't end with 360° of Auburn. She is also one of the women behind the new men's salon 5 O'clock Shadow. Tompkins said she and business partner Vicki Chapman bought the old La Dolce Vita Salon right as COVID-19 hit in early March 2020. "It just sat there during the pandemic," Tompkins said. "So we thought, 'Let's open a men's retail store,' but I had already purchased these beautiful barber chairs, and as we kept building our ideas up we settled on a men's salon." Tompkins said 5 O'clock Shadow is no barber shop, it's a full-service salon which offers services such as waxing, facials, hot shaves, hair coloring and more. The store also features a retail element which has "everything a guy would need to groom," including manscaping tools, shampoos, conditioners and more. New and upcoming eateries Auburn also has new dining hot spots to look forward to with two business in the planning stages hoping to open by late 2021 or early 2022. A newer spot is also an additional spot to grab a slice or full pizza at Old Town Pizza Pavilion, located on the Gold Country Fairgrounds. This new space is for takeout only but also includes several picnic tables for patrons to enjoy their food on the open grass fairgrounds. "We wanted to create an outdoor dining space, given COVID," said Reece Browning, majority owner of Old Town Pizza. "We don't have that option in our Old Town location." Browning also said many customers have complained about the lack of parking for their takeout at the Old Town location, and this new location will "make it easier for customers to get their takeout." Also on the horizon for Old Town Pizza is a new building on the east side of town at 510 High Street, the old Salvation Army Building. "We will be right as High Street turns right and heads down the canyon," Browning said. "The amount of traffic going in and out of that canyon every day is unbelievably large. We are expecting a lot of business from people going in and out of the canyon." Browning is still waiting on the new location's plans to be approved by the city but said a contractor is ready to start building April 1 if everything is approved. He said if everything runs smoothly, the new restaurant could be open as soon as January 2022. He added the original Old Town Auburn location would be rebranded once the new restaurant opens so there aren't "too many Old Town Pizzas in one small area." "We've been planning and saving for a rainy day so to speak," Browning said. "COVID has damaged our business significantly, but because we have takeout and delivery, we have been able to survive. We are still optimistic about the future, which is why we are (opening a new location)." Also opening a new business, which will include a dining spot, are the owners of The Pour Choice and Clementine Coffee. The companies have teamed up to open Remedy Supply Co., slated to go into the old Mickey's Boots historic building at 875 Lincoln Way in Downtown Auburn. The new store will serve the public in many ways, including a coffee roaster business, a coffee training laboratory with courses for the public, a full bistro, a walk-up coffee window and a bar in the middle featuring beer and wine and potentially cocktails. The space will also house a co-op space for local businesses to share their goods. The bistro will be run by Chris Barnum, a Michelin-rated chef who owns Localis Restaurant in Sacramento and was born and raised in Auburn. "We are definitely excited to continue to invest in Auburn as much as we can and make Auburn a cool spot to be," said Jordan Minyard, who purchased the historic property in November. Minyard said he already demoed the property and is awaiting his plans for the space to be approved by the city. As for the Stan Padilla mural from the 1990s on the side of the building? Minyard said they are doing everything they can to preserve it, but in case they can't, he's working on a tribute to Padilla to showcase what the mural was. Minyard said should everything be approved and run on schedule, he hopes to open as early as Christmas 2021. Merging expertise While Dancing Dog INK and Special T's officially merged at the beginning of 2020, they only recently began sharing one location at 142 Hoffman Avenue. Because COVID affected their businesses screen printing clothing, they decided it was better to operate out of one space, said co-owner Kathryn Gonzales. They made the move at the end of January. "We were both screen printers, garment decorators," Gonzales said. "I come with the more inside operations expertise and Bill is more the expert in screen printing and running the shop." The shop does bulk garment printing for T-shirts, uniforms, jerseys, scrubs and more. They do items for CAL FIRE and local schools. Business Buzz will be an ongoing series in the Auburn Journal. Know of a new business or changing business in town? Let us know! Email tracin@goldcountrymedia.com.