Community Highlights: Meet Rhea Aka Maria Van Atta of Old Town General Store, Inc.

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rhea Aka Maria Van Atta

Hi Rhea AKA Maria, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Immigrated to the U.S. when I was 8 with my 13 year old sister. Grew up in Lansing not far from where my store is today.
I was the first Asian kid in my grade school and my sister was the first Asian teen in her Jr High. We had to endure some stereotyping and jeering from our peers but eventually, I think we taught them that we were not all that different. We were smart, we worked hard, and worked and worked and stayed focused on finding our identity and also our passion. But it wasn’t all work, we managed to have fun and made some wonderful friendships along the way, that has endured the test of time.
Into my 20’s, I managed and owned a Garden Center- flower shop and green house in a nearby town where I met my husband.
We were together for 26 years and then I decided to venture out on my own. In 2012, I decided to create a place where start up farmers as well as those seeking to learn to live off the land, could use my land to expand their knowledge and decide if farming was for them. I have had several organic farmers, bee keepers, flower farmers, cows pastured, a sustainability study for a student at MSU who wanted to see if they could live off the grid and in a yurt for 2 years. I decided to call my farm
” Dream Acres” since it was my dream and it was helping others realize their dreams as well. Meanwhile, while all this is happening, I partnered with my friend and neighbor, to cultivate 15 acres of my land to certified organic hay production. I marketed and sold hay to hobby farmers as well as certified organic meat producers.
I had already purchased the building that would become the Old Town General store by this time. Lots of people-men, mostly, advised me not to do it. But why listen?? As you can imagine, it was a very busy couple of years organizing all of these activities. To make a long story short, I opened my store in 2013, focusing on locally sourced products. The store has evolved over the years but the mission is still the same. We are Michigan based and love our state and all the wonderful things it has to offer. This mantra has really helped me stay focused on our goals

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It’s easy to look back and maybe over simplify how we got to where we are now. but we all know that anything worth doing will come with some hiccups along the way. 2020 was a giant hiccup, but it made us resourceful and creative in how we resumed with business. Was it weird? Yes! but it was also a challenge that we can feel proud to have overcome; I sure am.
I think that the most difficult part of doing business today is how much we have to rely on technology and how much we have to pay for those services. I expect bumps along the way. That’s just inevitable. Thankfully, no catastrophes. My store is small, I have 5 part time employees that can work more if needed, and me that run the show, And what a fantastic crew I have. I am extremely fortunate to have such a great team. We have very little turnover. My daughter is my bookkeeper and the grandkids have all spent time as infants in my office/nursery or running around the store are toddlers. We are family.

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
The store started out in 2012 as a local centric specialty grocery store, but I quickly realized that was not sustainable and added many non perishable and shelf stable products all made in Michigan; as well as Michigan made and themed gifts. The concept of buying and selling locally produced products remained the driving force of my business. We make amazing Gift Baskets filled with Michigan products sourced from Mom and Pop businesses to well known brands. And that is what we are best known for today!

Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I think all entrepreneurs are risk takers. There is no guarantee when you’re a start-up. Especially if you have to borrow all the capitol needed. I try not to have any dept.
Can’t say I haven’t taken mayor risks but they are calculated ones, like, paying my staff a wage that I am not sure I can afford. because I know they are worth every bit of it. It is important to to me, that I include my staff in my thought processes, so that they understand the cause and affect of what we are doing.
Then we work hard to have the sales to support it. That is probably opposite what most companies do, but that is the risk I choose to take. The people who work for me, allow me the freedom to come and go as I please. This adds the balance that I need to stay engaged and excited about life!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://oldtown-generalstore.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/@oldtowngeneralstore