# Strangest business combinations you've ever seen **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 15, 2015, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627 "2015-11-15T13:16:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/21 "2015-11-15T16:39:43Z")
We’ve got a laundromat on the corner that’s trying everything\* to stay in business. At last count, it was a laundromat, gym, ice cream parlor, lunch counter, and notary. Convenient, I suppose, but weird. \*Except maintaining their washers and dryers so they work. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/22 "2015-11-15T16:41:16Z")
Somewhere in this state exists a hardware/pet store. ---
**Author:** ![seal\_cleaner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@seal\_cleaner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seal_cleaner)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/23 "2015-11-15T17:15:23Z")
Taxidermy/pet boarding, Beaver Arkansas. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/24 "2015-11-15T17:19:00Z")
> [@seal\_cleaner](#): > > Taxidermy/pet boarding, Beaver Arkansas. That’s just wrong on so many levels. 😃 ---
**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:** [November 15, 2015, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/25 "2015-11-15T17:33:25Z")
> [@seal\_cleaner](#): > > Taxidermy/pet boarding, Beaver Arkansas. > [@WhyNot](#): > > That’s just wrong on so many levels. 😃 In Oakdale, Ca, there is a BBQ place (House Of Beef) next door to a daycare center (House Of Tykes). However, it’s separate buildings/addresses and I don’t know for sure if they are owned by the same people or not. ---
**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:** [November 15, 2015, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/26 "2015-11-15T17:34:52Z")
> [@Abner\_Ravenwood](#): > > I hear in Springfield there’s an attorney that also does expert shoe repair. They’ve got nothing on the mystical curios & frogurt shop, though. Strangest combo I’ve seen in my neck of the woods is a 24-hour diner that has two different brand names on the marquee and sells BBQ/soul food and Chinese food off the same menu. Apparently it’s a mom-and-pop operation where mom and pop had very different ideas about what kind of restaurant they wanted to run and decided to compromise. There’s also a sub sandwich restaurant in my town which is co-branded with the house painting company situated next door. ---
**Author:** ![seal\_cleaner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@seal\_cleaner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seal_cleaner)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/27 "2015-11-15T17:35:46Z")
> [@seal\_cleaner](#): > > Taxidermy/pet boarding, Beaver Arkansas. “So, how’s Fluffy doing? Very LIFELIKE !?!? What does that even mean!?!?” ---
**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/28 "2015-11-15T17:37:49Z")
Tanning salon/video store/ radio shack. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/29 "2015-11-15T17:43:20Z")
While we are on the subject of Beavers. I once saw a sign for people whose business was apparently blowing up beaver dams. They were licensed and insured! Not quite as good as the local scrap yard that had MIG out front…on blocks of course. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/30 "2015-11-15T17:57:49Z")
Not exactly a business combo, _per se_, but in Joplin, Missouri the Ace Hardware store (don’t know if it’s still there or not) sold hardware and… collectible plastic horses. And while much of the hardware and similar merchandise didn’t move (a lot of it accumulated dust), the plastic horses would fly off the shelves. People would come in and ask for “Princess Buttercup, Caramel Creme, right-front hoof up, model 11©-89(b).” And the owner would take a drag off of his Pall Mall and apologetically explain that Princess Buttercups were in shot supply of late, and the closest thing he had on his shelves was the “Prince Gallant, Mocha Cinnamon, right-front hoof up, model 11(d)-90©.” And one of the auto repair places around here sells CD’s of the owner and his wife singing gospel tunes. ---
**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:** [November 15, 2015, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/31 "2015-11-15T18:18:39Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > And one of the auto repair places around here sells CD’s of the owner and his wife singing gospel tunes. There’s a gas station/minimart/auto shop/car wash just off the exit ramp here that sells CDs of the owner’s music as well, but I’m not sure what genre they are and I haven’t bothered to check. ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/32 "2015-11-15T18:33:41Z")
Weird combos I’ve come across include a hardware store/funeral parlour, a zoo/vintage radio museum and a baby clothes/jetski shop (that was local, husband and wife couldn’t agree…) ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/33 "2015-11-15T19:58:40Z")
Convenience store and lingerie. ---
**Author:** ![Helena330](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/helena330/32/531_2.png) [@Helena330](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helena330)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/34 "2015-11-15T20:05:24Z")
Des Moines, WA: Smoke & Dress. It’s a clothing store that sells cigarettes, etc. Or maybe it’s a smoke shop that sells clothes. > **[Smoke And Dress](https://foursquare.com/v/smoke-and-dress/4da21580b3e7236aa5bb1779)** > > Smoke Shop in Kent, WA ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_Hey\_Paula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hey\_Hey\_Paula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_Hey_Paula)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/35 "2015-11-15T20:13:51Z")
There was a Chinese restaurant in the strip mall near my house. Their food was pretty good, we used to get takeout on a fairly regular basis. One day I walked in and saw that one side of the restaurant had now been taken over by a donut shop. It was a very strange combination, with the competing smells of donuts and Chinese food. The restaurant closed not long thereafter. ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/36 "2015-11-15T20:23:17Z")
Where I used to live in Madison, TN, there was a place called Rollins Corner. It was a series of interconnected businesses including at any given time a gas station/convenience market/carwash, video store, tanning salon, storage facility and barbecue. Pretty much one stop shopping for that neighborhood. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/37 "2015-11-15T20:30:17Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Back in West Texas, there was a bar/laundromat combo called Suds 'n Duds. When I was in college, there was a chain of laundromats that also sold beer called Duds & Suds. I see they’re down to a single location now. [http://dudsnsudscr.com/](http://dudsnsudscr.com/) During this time, I met a pharmacist who had graduated around 1960, and for several years, she worked at a business with the husband’s business - the pharmacy - in the back end, and the wife’s business - pet care supplies - in the front end. Right now, there’s an independent pharmacy in one of my city’s bedroom communities that doubles as a Christian bookstore. I lived briefly in a small town in the Ozarks, and there were all kinds of unusual combo businesses there. Probably the most unusual in that town was a vacuum clean repair shop in the back, and in the front end, it was an all-purpose household consignment shop. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/38 "2015-11-15T20:31:52Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > I’ve seen ads on TV for some personal injury lawyer who is also a doctor. It’s not clear from the ads though whether he practices law and medicine out of the same office. Threadjack: It’s very common for medical malpractice attorneys to also have an MD or DO degree. ---
**Author:** ![jsquire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ce73a5/32.png) [@jsquire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsquire)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/39 "2015-11-15T23:25:49Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > Marriage counselor, upholstery. This one struck me as the funniest, I don’t know why. Back in the 80s I picked up fireworks for Independence Day at a place that also sold fish (the kind people keep in aquariums). I asked him why that particular combination and he said they were right next to each other in the phone book. Sounds legit. ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2015, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627/40 "2015-11-15T23:51:41Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > When I was in college, there was a chain of laundromats that also sold beer called Duds & Suds. I see they’re down to a single location now. > > [http://dudsnsudscr.com/](http://dudsnsudscr.com/) > > During this time, I met a pharmacist who had graduated around 1960, and for several years, she worked at a business with the husband’s business - the pharmacy - in the back end, and the wife’s business - pet care supplies - in the front end. Right now, there’s an independent pharmacy in one of my city’s bedroom communities that doubles as a Christian bookstore. > > I lived briefly in a small town in the Ozarks, and there were all kinds of unusual combo businesses there. Probably the most unusual in that town was a vacuum clean repair shop in the back, and in the front end, it was an all-purpose household consignment shop. I’ve been to a lot of laundromats that had a bar or liquor store next door. You have to have something to do while the clothes are inthe dryer. 😃 I just thought of another. Aa boyfriend and I went up to the mountains a few years ago and stopped at a military surplus store. Roaming around we found a curtained off back room that was limited to 21 and up. It was an adult toystore. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-business-combinations-youve-ever-seen/737627.md?page=3)