Small business profile: Mrs. DeHaven's and The Gadget Co.

BY LAURIE WINSLOW World Staff Writer
Tuesday, August 07, 2012
8/07/12 at 8:28 AM

In August 2009, Amy Adkins became the owner of two very different stores: Mrs. DeHaven's Flower Shop and The Gadget Co.

Many people are familiar with the shops, which sit next to each other on the southeast corner of 15th Street and Boston Avenue.

One is a florist and gift shop, and the other is touted as a "guys' toy store" filled with sundry items, including fly-fishing equipment, custom knives and gadgets.

Adkins' idea for becoming dual owner of the shops developed after a conversation between her husband and the former owner, Jerry Parkhurst, who are close friends.

The idea snowballed from there, she said.

Adkins bought both stores from Parkhurst, who founded The Gadget Co. in 1986 and inherited Mrs. DeHaven's from his grandmother, Trula Austin.

Before becoming owner of the stores, Adkins was a stay-at-home mom for four years caring for her daughter, Paige. Prior to that, she was an outside sales representative for a home medical equipment company.

Adkins answered a few questions posed by the Tulsa World:

How do you juggle the responsibilities that come with owning two businesses, especially two shops that are entirely different from each other?

I have two wonderful managers for both stores. It's not uncommon for me to go from taking a corporate flower order to selling a fly-fishing rod in the span of five minutes. It has made me quite the multitasker. I try to have a daily agenda but have learned to allow for many adjustments in that schedule along the way. My day rarely goes as "planned." Just having a reliable staff and supportive husband helps me do it. Also, my wonderful mother helping with my daughter.

What brings you the greatest satisfaction of being your own boss?

Hearing back from people who have loved their beautiful flowers or seeing the satisfied look on the face of a Gadget customer who came in with no idea what to get his or her special someone and leave with the "perfect gift." Also, time flexibility for me is wonderful! To be honest, I work many more hours than in my previous career, but I do have the flexibility to attend school functions for my daughter and to work a lighter schedule when she is out of school.

What are the advantages or disadvantages of having your businesses located near downtown? Have you ever considered relocation? Why or why not?

We love the downtown location. Downtown Tulsa is really starting to come alive, and it's exciting to be a part of it.

The foot traffic is not the same as a strip mall; we really are a "destination" store, so we rely heavily on advertising and public relations. We would love to consider additional south Tulsa locations at some point.

Mrs. DeHaven's Flower Shop and The Gadget Co.

Owner: Amy Adkins

Date established: Mrs. DeHaven's, 1905; The Gadget Co., 1986

Number of employees: Nine

Description: Mrs. DeHaven's is a florist and gift shop. The Gadget Co. is a guys' "toy store" with fly-fishing equipment, custom knives and gadgets, and is the only Orvis dealer in Oklahoma.

Web: mrsdehavens.com, thegadgetcompany.com

Small, but significant

Despite having a number of large employers, Tulsa actually is a small-business town. About 94 percent of all employment in the metro area is at businesses that have 100 or fewer employees, according to the Tulsa Metro Chamber. And, many of those firms are very small. Approximately 80 percent of total employment is at businesses with 10 or fewer employees.

From your vantage point as a small business owner, how is Tulsa’s economy doing?

Increasingly becoming stronger. I love that the city government has stressed to “buy local.” Every time I see Mayor Bartlett I tell him “thank you” for stressing that on our behalf. I do think that is one aspect of our economy that we can continue to improve - keeping our money here in Tulsa.

As an owner, what, if anything, did you do differently to help your businesses weather the economic downturn?

Putting money into advertising and public relations definitely helped us weather the storm. Many companies pulled back at that time, but we moved forward and invested in the future.

What are your hopes and dreams for the businesses over the next several years?

To continue to grow and be relevant to our customers. To continue to establish our brand. Add a second location for The Gadget Co. Nine out of 10 guys who come in say it’s their favorite store.

Have you ever considered franchising or branching out into other markets?

Absolutely. We have talked about it many times. The Gadget Co. has loads of potential. Any time we travel to other cities we always say, “Gadget would do great here!”

What’s the next big change or goal you’ve set for yourself?

For The Gadget Co. it’s to continue to grow and expand our product lines. There are so many wonderful gadgets that we would like to bring to Tulsa.

For Mrs. DeHaven’s, we want to continue to be the most celebrated flower shop in Oklahoma. We turned 80 on July 4, and in this day and age there are very few businesses that can say that. Our goal every day is to make life more beautiful with flowers.

Original Print Headline: One owner, two stores

Laurie Winslow 918-581-8466
laurie.winslow@tulsaworld.com

Associated Images:

Amy Adkins is the owner of The Gadget Co. and Mrs. DeHaven's Flower Shop at 15th Street and Boston Avenue. The adjacent stores feature merchandise appealing to both sexes — Gadget Co. generally attracts a male clientele, and Mrs. DeHaven's caters to female tastes. KT KING / Tulsa World

A statue sits in a window display at Mrs. DeHaven's Flower Shop at 106 E. 15th St. The flower and gift shop is owned by Amy Adkins, who also owns an adjacent store geared toward men's tastes. KT KING / Tulsa World

Merchandise geared toward men is displayed at The Gadget Co., a store owned by Amy Adkins at 15th Street and Boston Avenue. She also owns an adjacent store, Mrs. DeHaven's Flower Shop. KT KING / Tulsa World