# Most oddly specific retail store **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 25, 2017, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981 "2017-03-25T02:58:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2017, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/41 "2017-03-25T20:28:23Z")
Hello Kitty store. Everything in the place related to [this](https://www.google.com/search?q=hello+kitty+images&client=safari&rls=en&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjZjZaGv_LSAhVQx2MKHSPqDaYQsAQIGw&biw=1437&bih=801). ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2017, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/42 "2017-03-25T20:35:20Z")
There was a shop in Sutter Creek, California, that just sold dog collars. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2017, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/43 "2017-03-25T20:37:16Z")
There’s Sunglass Hut. And a Spice Merchants store near me. Nothing but spices. Smells wonderful. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2017, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/44 "2017-03-25T20:54:44Z")
> [@](#): > > Quoth **Grrr!** : > > Speedometer repair shop. (WTF? Wouldn’t it be cheaper to buy a new one?) I suspect that their real business is in resetting odometers so a car can be fraudulently sold as having fewer miles on it. Obviously, the car companies take measures to make this more difficult, so a specialized skill set and/or tools are needed to pull it off. That specialized skillset/tools are what the shop is advertising. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2017, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/45 "2017-03-25T21:44:50Z")
A store that sells pest-control products (rat traps, poisons, etc.) and Christian religious supplies (bibles, crucifixes, rosary beads, etc.). ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Mondegreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/91b2a8/32.png) [@Lord\_Mondegreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Mondegreen)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2017, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/46 "2017-03-25T23:20:33Z")
> [@pabstist](#): > > “The Leftorium”, owned by stupid Ned Flanders. He only sells things for left handed people. This isn’t just an idea from fiction. In 1979 I visited a store in London called “Anything Left Handed Ltd”. I still have a “backwards” ruler I bought there. And what do you know, I’ve just Googled it and they are still around: [Here’s their online site](http://www.anythinglefthanded.co.uk/), stating that they have been around since 1967. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/47 "2017-03-26T00:21:41Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > …And a Spice Merchants store near me. Nothing but spices. Smells wonderful. I go there whenever I don’t have thyme. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/48 "2017-03-26T00:22:51Z")
My all-time favorite store was just outside of River Falls, WI. There was a sign out front that said “Cheese and Taxidermy”. ---
**Author:** ![drewder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/57b2e6/32.png) [@drewder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewder)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/49 "2017-03-26T00:31:33Z")
I would suspect that the higher the city’s density is the greater chance of finding very specialized stores since there will be enough people close enough to make the store viable. That being said I always thought that the hot sauce store on cannery row in Monterey is pretty specialized. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/50 "2017-03-26T00:31:46Z")
There’s an oil and vinegar store in Canandaigua and they’ve been in business for several years. They sell aged balsamic and spice-infused oils and I think the cheapest pints is around $10. The only times I’ve been there was during the holiday season but they are always busy then (with around 4 other customers in there.) ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/51 "2017-03-26T01:02:51Z")
Maybe they are more common, and I have never noticed before but places that sell only popcorn strike me as wierd. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/52 "2017-03-26T01:12:19Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Here in Portland, we have Ingrid, The Rune Woman. I have no idea what she sells; woo, probably. There’s also an ionized water store in my neighborhood, where you can get a foot bath treatment. And there are the ubiquitous crystal stores. A new place just popped up down the street called “The Sacred Well”. Haven’t been in there, but according to their website: > > :rolleyes: My city has a similar store called The Enchanted Willow. I shop there once in a while to buy incense sticks. They have the biggest variety around. ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/53 "2017-03-26T01:14:46Z")
> [@drewder](#): > > I would suspect that the higher the city’s density is the greater chance of finding very specialized stores since there will be enough people close enough to make the store viable. That being said I always thought that the hot sauce store on cannery row in Monterey is pretty specialized. Also heavily visited tourist towns tend to have some really specific stores. I think Las Vegas still has that hot sauce store that was two stories tall. I also remember Circus Circus having a storefront that exclusively sold magic trick kits. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/54 "2017-03-26T01:23:57Z")
I suppose vintage candy really doesn’t qualify as oddly specific, but it is definitely a niche market. [Rocket Fizz Candies](http://rocketfizz.com/) ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/55 "2017-03-26T01:29:44Z")
> [@Projammer](#): > > I suppose vintage candy really doesn’t qualify as oddly specific, but it is definitely a niche market. > > [Rocket Fizz Candies](http://rocketfizz.com/) There’s another one around here called Powell’s that does the same thing. They’re a chain, but I don’t know how big a one. They have Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory on endless loop on a screen in the back. I like them. I thought Rocket Fizz was more known for weird and vintage soda (though they definitely have candy too). ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/56 "2017-03-26T01:33:45Z")
The Bone Room in Berkeley. Now closed, though they still have an online presence. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/57 "2017-03-26T03:15:07Z")
There are multiple stores in the Greater Toronto area that sell only various types of [lucky cat figurines](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maneki-neko). ---
**Author:** ![erysichthon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d07c76/32.png) [@erysichthon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/erysichthon)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/58 "2017-03-26T07:40:18Z")
I visited a store in Seattle that sold nothing but socks. I don’t remember what it was called. (This was in the late 90s, so it might be gone.) ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/59 "2017-03-26T08:03:18Z")
> [@Infovore](#): > > There’s another one around here called Powell’s that does the same thing. They’re a chain, but I don’t know how big a one. They have Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory on endless loop on a screen in the back. I like them. > > I thought Rocket Fizz was more known for weird and vintage soda (though they definitely have candy too). we have a vintage/normal candy store here and they sell rocket fizz soda … ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 8:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/60 "2017-03-26T08:13:39Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > I think Las Vegas still has that hot sauce store that was two stories tall. I also remember Circus Circus having a storefront that exclusively sold magic trick kits. Not sure about that one, but the Strip does have an all Coca-Cola store and an all M&Ms store. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981.md?page=4)