On a cold and uninviting Monday, I ventured into the town of West Chester for another go at finding a tasty dessert. What I didn’t know was that every dessert vendor was closed on the worst day of the week. No wonder Mondays suck: no comfort food. I almost turned back to campus when something caught my eye: “$5 RACK.” Like most college kids, I can’t keep myself away from a good deal. I perused until the bitter cold finally edged me inside.
“Hello!” A welcoming voice cheerfully said from behind the counter.
“Hello!” I echoed in the usual way customers do.
The door opened me to a whirlwind of different decades standing side-by-side before my eyes: wall to wall and ceiling to floor, simply covered with history. There were colorful clothing racks and shelf knick-knacks. I recognized 1920s hats on mannequins, 1950s posters of Marilyn Monroe and jewelry that I definitely could not date. My go-to for antique stores are always the records, which sat directly to the left of the entrance with the familiar slightly torn edges of their cases that proved they’ve been played once or twice—and probably a few decades ago.
A woman stood behind the counter talking to a customer that looked to be about my age, probably another student, about a pair of earrings she was about to purchase. After she had completed the sale, I simply had to tell her how intrigued I was by her store.
“You have a very interesting shop. I never knew this place existed.”
“Thank you! It’s because of the location.” I could imagine why. Getting to Gay Street from West Chester University was a bit of a hike—and especially less enjoyable in the cold. “I get a lot of beef for the name too.”
“Where did the name come from?”
“Well, my name is Gigi.” She gestured to the items surrounding her. “And this is my spot.” I giggled. It was a clever name in my mind.
“Where did all of this come from?”
“I used to own a place in Austin and I started gathering things there at auctions—”
“Why relocate?” I thought that maybe I was being nosy, but we actually ended up talking for quite some time. Her story is so interesting. Gigi had originally been from here, gone to college at different universities in the tri-state area and owned a shop quite similar to the G-spot before working as a producer and eventually returning to her one true love: shopping, collecting and of course, sharing that passion for artifacts with others. Gigi came back to West Chester to be closer to family—and she got quite close indeed; her brother owns a restaurant located a little down the same street—which may or may not be my topic for next week.
Before I left, I asked about a couple of items in the shop, one being a very retro Barbie case. Gigi was happy to answer any questions. She informed me that the Barbie case I was looking at was from 1962, the era where Mattel™ combatted the backlash they had received about Barbie having too much sex appeal with the releasing of Barbie’s more wholesome best friend, “Midge.” Midge was designed as less busty with red hair and sweet freckles; a perfect counterpart to Barbie. I had never heard of Midge as a little girl—and I avidly played with Barbie dolls.
Gigi continued to show me artifacts with religious significance from centuries ago and a recent painting of Kurt Cobain from a local artist. The G-Spot is anything but a niche store; there’s something for everyone. I would categorize the G-Spot somewhere between thrift and antique, a museum that sells its artifacts. If you’re looking to own a piece of history, I recommend stopping by.
Kirsten Magas is a second-year student majoring in English with a minor in biology. ✉ KM867219@wcupa.edu.