By Keysha Drexel
Journal editor
The place where generations of Over the Mountain residents have gone to buy gifts for special occasions for more than 50 years will close its doors later this month.
The Briarcliff Shop, which opened in Mountain Brook’s English Village more than half a century ago and moved to Homewood four years ago, is closing May 21, owner Mary Glen Carlton of Mountain Brook said.
Carlton has owned and operated the shop since buying it from the previous owners 12 years ago. Her mother, Glenda McPherson, also of Mountain Brook, has worked with her daughter at the shop since the beginning.
Carlton said the Briarcliff Shop is known for being a great place to purchase gifts for weddings, Mother’s Day, graduation, birthdays and other special occasions.
Carlton said about a year ago, she decided she wanted to spend more time with her 6-year-old twins, Mary Grace and William, and looked for buyers for the shop.
“It was a very hard decision to make, but I want to be home with my kids,” Carlton said.
But Carlton said while she knows she’s doing the right thing for her family, she is still having a hard time saying goodbye to the Briarcliff Shop.
“I will miss the friends I’ve made here, the people who started out as customers and ended up being true friends,” she said. “There’s a sense that I’m letting them down a little bit by closing, but my customers have been really supportive and understand my decision.”
Carlton got her first taste of the retail business as a child, her mother said.
“Her father owned Hood-McPherson Furniture, so she’s been around it her whole life,” McPherson said. “Our family has been in the retail business in one way or another for a long time.”
After working as a manager in another retail shop for several years, Carlton said she was ready to make the leap to being her own boss.
“The Briarcliff Shop came up for sale, and so I jumped at the opportunity to own my own shop,” Carlton said. “It was more exciting than scary to make that jump.”
Carlton said she knew she would need some help juggling the responsibilities of being a small business owner, so she turned to her mother.
“She has always been great to jump in and help out in any way she could,” Carlton said.
McPherson said she is glad she was able to help Carlton realize her dream of owning her own shop. McPherson has been a real estate agent for more than 25 years and splits her time between that job and helping out at the Briarcliff Shop.
“It’s been wonderful to watch Mary Glen achieve all that she has, and it’s been wonderful to be a part of that,” she said.
The mother and daughter said some of their fondest memories over the last 12 years have been the trips to market they have taken together to purchase new merchandise for the store.
“It’s time that we have gotten to spend together and enjoy each other that I wouldn’t take for anything in the world,” McPherson said.
Both women said their time behind the counter at the Briarcliff Shop has taught them lessons about business.
“I learned that you don’t necessarily buy what you want or what you like–you buy what the customers want,” McPherson said.
Carlton said while offering the right merchandise at the right price has been very important, she said owning the shop has taught her that retail is all about relationships.
“Retail is all about working with people and building relationships with your customers,” Carlton said. “It teaches you patience and compassion, because sometimes, people just want to come in and talk.”
The women said their loyal customers were the reason the shop was able to survive the economic downturn a few years ago that had small business owners shutting their doors left and right.
“Being a locally-owned, family-run business helped us weather that storm, I think,” Carlton said. “Our customers know us as friends and neighbors, and they supported us as much as they could through that.”
“The thing is, a lot of what we sell is not something that you just have to have, so we had to learn how to be a little more selective with the merchandise we were offering,” she said.
The shop’s customers showed their loyalty when Carlton moved the business from English Village to 1829 29th Ave. South in Homewood four years ago, McPherson said.
And it is those loyal customers Carlton and McPherson said they are thinking about as they prepare to close the doors of the Briarcliff Shop.
“The shop has a long tradition in the community, and we would love for that tradition to continue, even if I don’t own it,” Carlton said. “We would love for someone to come along and buy the shop and keep it open.”
Carlton said she is looking forward to staying home with her children but said she hasn’t ruled out a return to retail.
“Never say never,” she said. “Retail is in my blood, and I’ll feel sure I’ll be back in it in one way or another in the future. I’d love to own another store someday.”
The Briarcliff Shop is open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturdays. For more information, call 870-8110.
