A new shop called Simply Imagine will open right off campus on Tuesday, Oct. 14. Store owner Eva Rose said the shop specializes in gift items, accessories, fun knickknacks and gourmet food and will have many affordable options for Harding students.
“You can come in and find something for under $5 easily,” Rose said.
Rose said she thinks some of her best selling items will be her scarves and team spirit wear. She has products representing Harding University, Harding Academy, University of Arkansas and Searcy High School, and she hopes to start carrying items decorated with Harding social club colors as well.
“I think my team spirit items will be fun, and I’ve also been thinking about ‘cheering up’ gifts that are cost sensitive,” Rose said. “I know college students have limited budgets. “
Rose said one section of the store will also be dedicated to gourmet food, including her own personal line of gluten free products. She calls the line “Three Little Bakers” in honor of a business owned by her father, and she considers designing the healthy, gluten free food a testament to him.
“Call it a daughter’s calling to honor her father’s legacy,” Rose said.
Rose has also set up a free community room that will be available for anyone to use during store hours. The room is equipped with a table and chairs and a DVD player, and customers can simply sign up for a specific time slot to fit their needs. Rose said Harding students are welcome to meet there, and she is hopeful the room will occasionally be used for Bible studies.
Rose has also started hiring Harding students who live in the Searcy area. Sophomore Heidi Abston said she is enthusiastic to start working at Simply Imagine.
“I am extremely excited to be a part of the new store,” Abston said. “I love having new businesses in Searcy, and Mrs. Rose has a great vision.”
Rose said she requires her employees to stick to a modest dress code.
Sophomore and Simply Imagine employee Mary Carr said she does not have a problem with the dress code, because it exemplifies the Christian values that are important to Rose.
“Mrs. Rose definitely has a ministry aspect to this business, so I think her dress code is just another way to show that this business wants to conduct itself differently than other places,” Carr said. “She wants the things that we do and that we wear to line up with the Christian beliefs of the business, and I think that’s great.”
Rose said she sees her opportunity to start a new business as an answered prayer, and she wants her store to be a ministry as well. Rose founded a non-profit called Logos: One By One that provides weekly Bible classes to African children.
Last Christmas, she donated a Bible to each of the 23 children enrolled. Her next goal is to provide the children with nutritional supplements and send them to school. She plans to donate a portion of her profits from Simply Imagine to this cause, and she is also planning on placing a donation well on the front porch.
“We really feel like this was a divine happening, it really has a purpose and ministry attached to it,” Rose said. “If it didn’t, I wouldn’t be doing it.”
Simply Imagine opens officially on Oct. 14, and a ribbon cutting ceremony will be held on Oct. 16. Store hours are 10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, and 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Saturday. Simply Imagine will be closed from Christmas Day through the month of January, as well as June and July. It is located at 1215 E. Race Ave.
