Madison921web

– W O M E N I N B U S I N E S S –
A D V E R T O R I A L
Since she was a child, Summer Starnes has
dreamed of owning her own store. She loves
fashion and unique decorative items for the
home, and she wanted to open a place where
people could feel comfortable shopping for
themselves and others. In 2018, her dream
became a reality when she opened Cotton &
Tumbleweeds in downtown Flora.
“My husband, Wes, and I had a remodeling
company. We have always worked together.
I do a lot of his design work, which I love. I guess
I have the creative personality. I actually went
to Academy of Art University where I studied
interior design.” Because of their combined
skills, creating the space for the shop came
naturally.
Summer named the store Cotton &
Tumbleweeds Lifestyle Marketplace after
herself and her husband. “My husband has deep
Mississippi roots, and he keeps me grounded.
He is the ‘cotton’ in the name of the store. I’m
originally from Odessa, Texas, and my parents
moved to this area when I was a teenager.
I’m all over the place like a Texas ‘tumbleweed,’
so that’s me!”
After finding the right spot on Main Street
in Flora, Summer thought about how the
space could be used. She loved the idea of a
community gathering spot, so she thought
having a space for classes and workshops
would be ideal. “We enjoy traveling, and we
all love coffee,” she says. “We always visit local
coffee shops when we are traveling, and we
realized there was no place to get specialty
coffees in Flora. We had to drive to Madison
or Clinton to get a good cup of coffee.”
Summer talked to her husband, Wes, about
adding a coffee shop to the store. He said it
was no problem, so we opened it with a coffee
café in the front.”
The coffee café has been wildly popular
with Flora residents as well as with others who
visit the small town. “We have lots of regulars
who come in, and several people use it as an
extended office, meeting with clients and
working on their laptops.”
In addition to all the standard coffee shop
fare, Summer has created their own signature
coffee drinks, including the Tumbleweeds
Latte, Dixie Darlin’ Frappe, and the Magnolia
Java Chip Frappe.
In addition to coffee, the café serves
homemade milkshakes and “freakshakes,”
something Summer made up last summer.
“They were a big hit,” Summer says. “Now it’s
become a big Friday after-school treat when
kids have been good all week.” Other items
on the menu include smoothies, protein
smoothies, and creamies.
Summer has added grab-and-go breakfast
burritos, including a Mexican-style sausage,
egg and cheese burritos made with Rotel
tomatoes and green chiles. There are also large
jumbo muffins, including chocolate, banana
nut, blueberry, and apple cinnamon. Another
popular grab-and-go item is the Southernstyle
biscuit with honey butter and breaded
crispy chicken. The café also has pie, including
Texas Trash Pie, Ann’s Pecan Pie, Sweet ‘n
Salty Pie and Bud’s Chocolate Pie. “We are
transitioning to a full breakfast on Saturdays,”
says Summer.
The retail side of the business features
everything from t-shirts, vintage clothing, and
other apparel to reclaimed wood furniture,
enamel ware splatterware, Dixie Belle chalk
paint, and locally made jewelry and gifts. “We
try to have as many local vendors as possible,”
says Summer.
Part of Summer’s vision for her business
was to have a place where people could gather
to learn new skills. “We did a few workshops
before Covid hit, and they were very successful,”
she says. “We are looking forward to
bringing that back. We already have a
‘Witches’ Night Out’ event planned for
October that will include a sip-and-shop,
crafts, and lots of fun. We are hoping to add
more kids’ classes, and I’d like to start a regular
craft class for homeschooled kids.”
Summer homeschooled her three children,
Austin (22), Caden (19) and Kenzie (16).
Austin works on the coffee side of the
business and Kenzie works in both the store
and the coffee shop. Caden is working with
the renovation company with his dad.
Summer could easily be an ambassador
for Flora. “We love this little town! Flora has
been so good to us. We were a new business
when Covid hit. People reached out to us and
asked what they could do to support us. They
didn’t want to see us leave!” Summer says they
did all they could by doing curbside pickup
and selling on social media. “We sell a
surprising amount online, and we are so
grateful for that!”
Cotton & Tumbleweeds is located at 4849 East Main Street in Flora.
Visit their website at www.cottonandtumbleweeds.com.
Hometown MADISON • 89