Provisions Mercantile

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Shaking Hands and Kissing Babies

Yesterday we did one of my favorite things… We went shop to shop, neighbor to neighbor, and delivered small goodie baskets while we got to “shake hands and kiss babies”. I looked up the origin of this saying, and it looks like the phrase was coined back in the 1830’s. Politicians would literally go door-to-door shaking hands and kissing babies while asking for votes.

I guess we did a bit of the same yesterday. I love that Southerners still welcome you at the door and will never turn down a savory treat. We introduced ourselves, exchanged pleasantries, and let everyone know that we offer grab-n-go bites, drinks, and charcuterie boards at our Biltmore Village store. We are excited about it and wanted to tell the neighborhood.

Much of our job at both stores is playing tour guide. Oddly enough, we love it. We get to promote small (and big) businesses that make Asheville such an amazing place that we call home. We beam with pride when a traveler walks into the store and says they were told to stop by our store from another shop owner or AirBnB host.

By the way, it’s September 23rd and 53 degrees out. It’s sweater weather y’all! Check out the shops for our Y’all sweatshirts. They are luxuriously cozy! And watch out if you bring a baby into the store, you may just see us in action “shaking hands and kissing babies” (COVID safe, of course).

Come see us soon!

Matt and Heather