According to local lore, Topsail Island, North Carolina, got its name because pirates used to hide between the barrier island and the mainland waiting for merchant ships loaded with goods. Merchants became aware of their presence in the area and started to look for the “topsail” of the pirate ship.
Today the popular barrier island is free of pirate ships, so those seeking treasures look for the easy-to-spot teal lighthouse-shaped building known as Topsail Island Trading Co. It’s just a couple hundred yards from the beach.
There, they will find just about anything their hearts desire: souvenirs, jewelry, apparel, decor, fragrances and over 160 flavors of homemade fudge on rotation.
Owners John and Claire Noto strive to keep an upbeat atmosphere for customers perusing every nook of the 3,600-square-foot store.
The two main focal points of the store are the fudge counter and the jewelry section. Customers entering the store often head left and save the fudge counter for last. When they do that, they’ll first encounter glass cubes that house hundreds of T-shirts. A variety of impulse buys like expandable back scratchers, pill boxes and handheld puzzles sit on top of the cubes.
The children’s section is next on their journey. Among the fun items customers will find there are plush sea animals, games, puzzles and science kits. As customers continue meandering through the store, they approach the women’s wear section. It includes resortwear, loungewear and pajamas. Natural Life is one of the store’s most popular women’s apparel brands.
Soaps and lotions are the next stop. Inis Energy of the Sea is a big seller in this section. Continuing around the back wall are paper goods which lead into housewares, including wine glasses and kitchen gadgets with men’s gifts interspersed.
“We try to keep the store fun but nice,” says John. “We try not to have things too cluttered. We like to have things easy to shop.”
Jewelry takes up the entire middle section of the store with jewelry cases in the front and glass bookshelves in the back. A spiral staircase in the center of the store is also draped with jewelry. Customers aren’t allowed up the 30-foot winding staircase that leads to a widow’s walk. “It can get a little wobbly,” according to John. “We rarely go up there.”
After making their way around the store, customers reach their final indulgence, the large, 14-foot fudge counter.
Topsail’s top sellers
Fudge is by far the store’s biggest seller. The company sells about 20,000 pounds of the rich, chocolatey treat every year, including a couple thousand pounds that are shipped out over the holidays. T-shirts are the next most popular item.
“We sell thousands of T-shirts, so we do a lot of T-shirt folding,” jokes John. Many of the T-shirts feature names of the three towns located on the island: Surf City, North Topsail Beach and Topsail Beach.
“When we’re ordering the T-shirts there are always lots of spaces to fill in on the designs so we try to come up with catchy slogans, like ‘You’re on island time,’” says Claire.
Latitude longitude coordinates are also in the mix of T-shirt patterns. “People really like that,” John says.
Jewelry is the next biggest seller after T-shirts, with sterling silver items taking the lead. Marahlago and Pura Vida are the store’s biggest selling jewelry brands.
The store also carries a range of souvenirs like coffee mugs, picture frames, drinkware, garden flags and magnets. Some of the store’s top selling brands include Tervis, Lake Shirts, Corkcicle, Regal Art & Gifts and Cape Shore.
“We’re definitely not a big box store,” says John. “We consider ourselves not quite a boutique but not quite a full volume store. We’re somewhere in the middle.”
Even though the store is shaped like a lighthouse, the island itself doesn’t have any real lighthouses.
Sea turtle jewelry is popular at Topsail Island Trading Co., too, because of the nearby Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center in Surf City.
The island also has a rich military history. During World War II, some missile projects took place on the island and observation towers can still be found there. “We’ll make some T-shirts or have a custom ornament with them on it. We try to utilize the local landmarks,” says Claire.
Eying the island
Claire grew up in Virginia and vacationed at Topsail Island with her parents since the 1980s. In 1988, her parents bought a house on the island.
She remembers buying fudge and T-shirts at Topsail Trading Co. and getting her souvenirs and jewelry at another local gift shop, The Gift Basket, as a child.
In 2002, her parents, Kristin and Grier Fleischhauer, bought The Gift Basket. A few years later, they considered expanding and talked to Claire about joining them in the business. She moved to the island in 2006 and in fall of 2007, the family purchased Topsail Island Trading Co.
He worked as the fudge manager and maker for a few years and then the Notos hired a new fudge manager so John could handle more managerial responsibilities.
The transition to retail was easy for John as he says both food and beverage and retail are “all about customer service.”
Claire’s parents have also been able to pass their wisdom on to Claire and John. While Claire’s mother is still involved with The Gift Basket, Claire’s father isn’t involved in the day-to-day operations so much anymore. He does help out on capital improvement projects with John. Claire’s mom hopes to wind down her involvement with The Gift Basket soon too.
“Pre-COVID, John and I had started to transition a little bit working down at The Gift Basket more,” says Claire.
But COVID-19 may have delayed her mother’s retirement. John and Claire have had their hands full running the family business and also raising three kids ages nine, seven and five who were all having to be home-schooled during COVID. The couple’s twin 16-year-old nephews also recently moved in.
“It’s been challenging working at the store and having kids at home,” says Claire.
Crazy times
The COVID-19 pandemic’s travel restrictions had an interesting effect on the normal ebb and flow of the store’s business. Short term rentals on the island were shut down along with most everything else in March 2020. People were getting nervous about traveling and John says Topsail Island became a ghost town. The store, which normally employs about 18 workers, decided to shut its doors and lay off staff. John and Claire kept busy during the closure by building a new e-commerce website.
John describes the store’s old website as out of date and difficult to work with. “We just kind of shut that one down and then I opened up a Shopify account,” he says. The site initially sold just the store’s fudge. John and Claire would come into the store each day to either make or pack fudge for shipments.
The closure didn’t last long. As soon as rentals opened up in mid-April, the store re-opened and the staff was incrementally called back to work.
“2020 was definitely a crazy year,” says John. “After closing for a couple of months during the onset of COVID, we opened strong with our best June ever.”
Then, he says, “things got a little strange in July and August as we had our worst and second worst respectively. Then it picked up in fall and we had our second best September and our best October and November ever.”
And business continues to soar in 2021. The store is having its best year to date. “2016 was a benchmark year for us and we are beating sales from then,” says John. “Our ticket averages have also been higher. We are feeling very optimistic.”
Masks are no longer required inside the store though some customers and employees still choose to wear them. Many are also still practicing social distancing.
The biggest changes to the store during the pandemic were with the fudge counter. John says it used to be customers couldn’t get within five feet of the counter without being offered a sample. Samples are only by request now, and when they are requested, they are placed on small sheets of wax paper instead of being taken right off the spatula. “We’re definitely giving away less fudge,” notes Claire.
As Topsail Island Trading Co. gets into the busy summer season, the Notos are concerned about the supply chain. Some reorders are taking a long time to fulfill and some items, the store can’t get at all, according to John. “As we reach the end of the season, we hope missed sales are not something we’ll have to worry about.”
Tourists make up the main customer base. The Notos see lots of younger families and generational families come through the store. Grandparents who came to the island with their kids are now coming to the island with their grandkids. The area itself is also booming. John says it is one of the fastest growing areas in North Carolina.
Finding goods
“And we have a lot of independent sales reps who will come and visit and bring us lines that may not be in those places,” says Claire. They also keep their eyes peeled when they are on vacation for interesting items. Instagram has also been a source for vendors.
“We’re a very small town and there are several gift shops,” says John. “We don’t really consider anybody our competition because if everybody does well then more people will want to be here because there are more options.”
The Notos try not to carry the same merchandise as anyone else in the area “so we’re always looking for something unique and trying to be the first to carry it,” says John.
He adds that being an established business allows Topsail Island Trading Co. to take more risks than some of the other businesses in the area. Because the store does so much volume and has storage availability, the Notos can place large orders and negotiate on price.
Expansion plans
As if owning Topsail Island Trading Co. and the Gift Basket and raising children isn’t enough, the Notos are looking at expanding. Plans are underway to make some renovations to Topsail Island Trading Co. The front section of the porch has already been enclosed and once the busy season is over, the interior wall will come down to create more space in the front corner of the store.
Jewelry and women’s merchandise will move to that front third of the store, and according to John, make the area much larger and easier to shop. The T-shirt cubes and the toy section that are currently in that part of the store will be relocated. The toys will move toward the back corner and T-shirts will take up the center of the store.
“We are very excited and looking forward to that challenge,” says John about the renovation.
Another challenge the Notos are up for is continuing to build Topsail Island Trading Co.’s e-commerce site.
“Choosing the items that we think will sell on there has been a challenge, but once we are up and running fully, I think we’ll have a better idea of what our customers are looking for,” says John.
People people
Customer service is John’s favorite part of the business. “I like people. I like talking to people, and I like helping people. It is not something I have to think about, it just comes naturally,” he says.
The variety is another aspect of the business he enjoys. “As soon as you get tired of one thing you are moving on to something else,” he says.
Claire also likes interacting with customers and “giving them our best.” Looking for new merchandise to carry in the store is also a favorite aspect of the job.
The staff at Topsail Island Trading Co. has also been reliable. Claire and John have been able to count on them to handle store business when family matters take precedence.
The Notos know they haven’t been alone in the challenges they’ve faced as a family business through the pandemic. “It’s been a tough year and a half for a lot of folks out there and we want them to know we are thinking about them,” says John.
