b'A young girl with bouncy blonde curls isFOOTHILL a brilliant engineer who never cut corners on hugging a zebra, then quickly wrestles a gorilla,remodeling his store or stocking the shelves.tosses that animal aside for a fuzzy blue hippo. NotMERCANTILEan unusual sight when visiting the mezzanineEverything was done right the first time. He of toys at Foothill Mercantile on Mill Street in dealt with people honestly and was greatly respected by the community. Amicks historic downtown Grass Valley. First openedOld New parents also gave the customers a store full in 1976 as a hardware store. of wondrous items they wanted, even candy.The focus of the business has not changedB U S I N E S S E S We currently have 26,000 different items much since 1985, though we now carry fewerin inventory which includes toys, gifts, kitchen items and candy and far more toys,candy, housewares, cards and sundry, she writes owner Susan Amick about the familywrites, which allows us to appeal to a broad base store. Our customers tend to be women and children,of customers. In fact, our slogan is that we are The but we try to cater to everyone. In addition to theBy Heather Macdonald Place for Everything. Amick, her sister Dee and the extensive toy department, which carries items fromstaff keep the customers happy because they believe in dolls to educational adventures for children, quality housewares andgreat customer service. If a customer has a special need, they will collectibles line the shelves. There seems to be a gift for everyone. order it. Also, patrons appreciate the convenience of their gifts being Back when we were a hardware store, there werent many placeswrapped for them.to buy toys in town and we filled that gap, writes Amick, plus weAnd adaptability is critical, she writes. Changing from a hardware have always offered free gift wrapping on in-store purchases. Becausestore to a gift, toy and candy store was the biggest shift. Listening to we have been around for nearly 50 years, we are deeply woven intothe needs and wants of our customers helps us choose what to carry the community. in the store. Then when Covid hit, Amick began selling through Her parents, Ray and Georgia Amick, bought the store in 1976Facebook. Items customers trapped at home especially wanted were then called Hendersons Hardware. A year later he renamed it Foothillpuzzles, so the store sent them out to their homes. Now Foothill Mercantile because they were selling toys and kitchenwares, muchMercantile has a website where customers can order online. However, more than hardware. In fact, the hardware sales stopped in 1985entering this 1940s era building with that old-fashioned feeling is half because there was a shift to toys, gifts, housewares and candy in thethe fun of shopping here.busy downtown.Amick credits her father, Ray Amick, for the stores success. He was 16 Nevada County Business Focus2025'