# 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:** 4
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 9:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/61 "2017-03-26T09:35:31Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > Speedometer repair shop. (WTF? Wouldn’t it be cheaper to buy a new one?) No, not by a long shot. > [@Chronos](#): > > I suspect that their real business is in resetting odometers so a car can be fraudulently sold as having fewer miles on it. No, it’s a legitimate business model. ---
**Author:** ![bubba001](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f17d59/32.png) [@bubba001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bubba001)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/62 "2017-03-26T11:49:24Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > 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. I think most of thier business is in older cars. I needed a tach cable for a old tractor, I ended up at speedometer repair shop. Resetting odometers is illegal, and you aren’t going to invest in a store to do it. The skills have changed, also. New odometers are electronic, and I doubt that they can be reversed mechanically. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/63 "2017-03-26T11:59:54Z")
> [@erysichthon](#): > > I visited a store in Seattle that sold nothing but socks. I don’t remember what it was called. Darn.☹ ---
**Author:** ![williamweigand](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b3f665/32.png) [@williamweigand](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/williamweigand)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/64 "2017-03-26T13:46:27Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > I used to go to a store in Midtown Manhattan that sold nothing but seashells. It should be by the seashore, especially if it’s a woman selling them. ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/65 "2017-03-26T14:07:10Z")
There used to be a store in downtown Dallas that sold nothing but ties. I don’t remember their name but their slogan was “Come in and tie one on.” I have a faint memory of a butcher shop somewhere in Washington state that sold only horse meat. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/66 "2017-03-26T14:39:27Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > There’s also an Eyebrow Threading Place. One woman and one chair in an otherwise empty store. I actually stopped and stared, waiting for a punchline. I did not get my eyebrows threaded, nor do I know what that means. The signage was an 8x10 piece of paper taped to the window that proclaimed, “Eyebrow Threading”. Eyebrow threading is torture masquerading as grooming. It’s like waxing, but instead of ripping the hair off with wax, they trap the hair between two pieces of thread and \*then \*rip it out. I’ve had my eyebrows (and bikini line) waxed for decades, and I was shocked at how uncomfortable threading was. On a side note, she probably threads other regions as well. People get their upper lip, cheeks, chin, eyebrows, and sideburn areas done. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/67 "2017-03-26T15:21:58Z")
Saw a bird seed place as mentioned above. Huh. One that was GREAT was a spaghetti store. And they sold sauce. But you could pick from different kinds of fresh dough (infused with different flavors) they would cut it to your liking (linguine, angle hair, whatever) to be cooked at home. It was great. Nothing like REAL fresh spaghetti. I make it at home (rarely) and make quite the mess. I thought it was brilliant. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/68 "2017-03-26T15:23:38Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Darn.☹ Well done. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/69 "2017-03-26T15:34:04Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > It was great. Nothing like REAL fresh spaghetti. I make it at home (rarely) and make quite the mess. I thought it was brilliant. So there were no impastas? ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/70 "2017-03-26T16:20:00Z")
> [@steatopygia](#): > > There is a small store I drive past frequently called TRI Con Bolt Company. No link as they have no website. It has been there at least 25 years. It is all alone on a nice piece of property with a lake on one side and the only major road around on the other. It is a legitimate business. The one time I went in, the guy there said “What can I do for you?” > I got very happy and said “I need some bolts.” That sounds nuts. ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/71 "2017-03-26T16:37:18Z")
> [@delphica](#): > > David Letterman used to do a bit about a store that only sold light bulbs, called Just Bulbs, and another store called Just Shades. There is still a Just Bulbs and a Just Shades in NYC, I _think_ they are the same businesses, but not in the same locations that were featured on the show. Every time I pass Just Shades, it’s like I hear the entire sketch in my mind. Just Bulbs is still in business. Great store. They have every kind of bulb there is, as far as I can tell. I go there once in a while for 24-volt bulbs for this weird track lighting in my apartment. Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk ---
**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, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/72 "2017-03-26T16:42:51Z")
> [@erysichthon](#): > > 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.) There’s one of those a few blocks from here called Sock Dreams. They’ve been in business for several years now. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/73 "2017-03-26T18:21:03Z")
There’s a store in Lincoln, Nebraska that sells nothing but licorice. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/74 "2017-03-26T18:22:11Z")
> [@bubba001](#): > > New odometers are electronic, and I doubt that they can be reversed mechanically. I believe they work by sequentially burning out cells in a chip - something like a very large one-bit memory chip or PAL. The process is not reversible and the chip cannot be replaced without leaving identifiable serial number changes. I suppose there are hacker/mechanics out there who can do a passable job. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Girlfriend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.girlfriend/32/193_2.png) [@Dr.Girlfriend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Girlfriend)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/75 "2017-03-26T18:31:44Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > There’s a store in Lincoln, Nebraska that sells nothing but licorice. I’ve been there! I don’t like licorice but my Mom loves it, so I brought her back a bag full of stuff. ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/76 "2017-03-26T18:49:58Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > I remember going to [The Purple Store](http://www.google.com/aclk?sa=l&ai=DChcSEwjn0L-SpvLSAhUYVg0KHT7ABnoYABAAGgJxYg&sig=AOD64_0hARe3hzvTL0ptBVM54YWTjY3ACA&rct=j&q=&ved=0ahUKEwjHpLqSpvLSAhXj54MKHRGjBVIQ0QwIGg&adurl=). > > Yes, all they sell is purple items. Link didn’t work for me. Was it this Purple Store in [Seattle](https://www.thepurplestore.com)? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Butterfly\_s\_Ghost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_butterfly_s_ghost/32/3462_2.png) [@The\_Butterfly\_s\_Ghost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Butterfly_s_Ghost)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/77 "2017-03-26T20:30:49Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > There’s a store in Lincoln, Nebraska that sells nothing but licorice. There is one in Cologne as well: [Die Bärendreck-Apotheke](http://www.baerendreck-apotheke.de/). The name literally means “Bearpoop Pharmacy”. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/78 "2017-03-26T21:05:56Z")
There used to be a “store” in Boston called. Gargoyles, Grotesques and Chimeras. I put that in quotes because it wasn’t a conventional store at all. It was on posh Newbury street but it wasn’t marked and it was only open some of the time during irregular hours. You just had to show up and look for it among endless rows of brownstones to figure it out yourself. The only person that worked there was the (very nice if not extremely eccentric) owner. It was like stepping into the storeroom of a European cathedral. There were often leaves on the floor, this strange musty smell and this very odd, slow tempo piano music recorded by the owner on infinite loop called “The Anatomy of Melancholy” playing in the background. It was possible to buy things because I did it a few times but nothing had a price tag on it and the selection of the day was just laid about in seemingly random patterns that probably weren’t. Here is a picture of what some of it looked like but this photo only shows a small part of the “store”. Still, if you needed any combination of gargoyles, grotesques OR chimeras, this was the place you needed to go as long as you could figure out where it was and when it was open. ![Inside](https://s3-media0.fl.yelpcdn.com/bphoto/qGcs7fBD95ktYyY5Dqc8RQ/o.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![MonkeyMensch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@MonkeyMensch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MonkeyMensch)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/79 "2017-03-26T22:04:43Z")
without going off to see if there still in business there was a map store not too far from me and it was heaven to go visit. I got my brother an upside=down world map for Christmas one year and it was wonderful how strange all of the landmasses looked just by swapping N and S on the map. of course all the names and labelss were orinted correctly. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981/80 "2017-03-26T23:10:47Z")
There’s a store in my home town that sells nothing but buttons: [Exclusive Buttons](https://www.yelp.com/biz/exclusive-buttons-el-cerrito) Out of curiosity, I stopped in there once and talked to the owner. Her husband used to be a traveling button salesman with a route that covered northern California. The internet cut into his business so much that he quit, and she created a brick-and-mortar store with his remaining inventory. The woman was quite proud of the fact that she sells no plastic buttons. Her buttons are made from metal, glass, wood, shell. . . but no plastic. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-oddly-specific-retail-store/782981.md?page=5)