Big Littleton: How One of America’s Best Main Streets Got Its Groove Back

Meet Barbara Williams and Betty Egan, co-owners of Littleton, NH’s Black Sheep Provisions. The pair opened their “modern vintage” clothing shop in May 2017, riding a new wave of cultural progress fueled by America’s small business economy. Here’s how the two “accidental entrepreneurs” got involved and why they believe Main Street America is having a moment.

So what brought you to Littleton?

Littleton has always been the commercial hub of New Hampshire’s north country, but it’s had ups and downs like any small rural town. Over the past decade, it’s been making a slow comeback, with an innovative artistic community leading the way. There are the mainstays like Chutters, with its legendary “world’s longest” candy counter, Lahout’s for premium outdoor gear and the classic Littleton Diner and Jax Jr. theater. But now there’s Just L, a true mecca of midcentury modern living; Bella Funk for fashion-forward women’s apparel with a boho vibe; Chickaroo, a fun contemporary gift shop; and The Little Herb Shoppe, which dispenses high-quality herbs and homeopathic advice in equal measure. Then around the corner there’s Bad Art, a gallery specializing in eclectic, affordable art, and The Loading Dock, a community artspace. And, of course, there’s Schilling’s, a hip-and-happening brewery in the old Littleton Grist Mill building down on the riverfront.

We both feel privileged to be launching our business in Littleton. It has such a cool, creative vibe and is so ready to own the title of New Hampshire’s hippest town. Between its music and art scene, all you have to do is look around to notice how important self-expression is. So it just feels like the perfect match.

Why vintage? Why now?

Well, there seems to be a bit of a fast fashion backlash these days. Millennials, in particular, are more conscious of where their clothing comes from and folks in general are choosing quality over quantity. That’s one of the reasons vintage clothing has made such a resurgence. The truth is, they just don’t make clothing like they used to. These days unless you can afford to spend thousands on high-end designer pieces, it’s impossible to encounter that luxury. Vintage levels the playing field. We think of it as a sort of fashion democracy where everyone can wear beautiful, well-made clothing, if they know where to shop.

The definition of vintage has also expanded, and the Internet has heightened awareness. Now, clothing from the ’90s is considered vintage, and the whole wide world is clued in. It’s a sign of the times when a town like Littleton gets not one, but two vintage clothing shops.

Vintage is a sort of fashion democracy where everyone can wear beautiful, well-made clothing.

Okay, let's hear more about your vintage shop and the other one.

Yes, well, there’s us on Main St. And there’s Cash Only Vintage just down the block on Mill St. We like to say Cash Only is the brother to our sister. Joel (Storella) is a great guy with an amazing eye and the design cred to go with it. And he’s the best – he sends the ladies over to us and we send the dudes to him.

That’s just smart business. So Betty, let's hear about your background.

When I was a kid, my grandmother took me to flea markets every weekend. She called it “flea marketing.” She was very chic and wore a silver charm bracelet that had a lovely jangle. She was a seamstress and taught me how to sew when I was 13. I desperately wanted to learn to sew, because I loved fashion but I couldn’t afford it. So once I learned, I was really pretty prolific. I stapled swatches of the first dozen or so pieces I made to index cards. I still have them, and it’s funny to look back. It was the ’70s, so it’s pretty much all polyester.

Anyway, all the women on my mother’s side were very stylish and they were my style icons growing up. I didn’t go to college for fashion, mainly because of its cutthroat reputation. I pursued journalism instead, because it seemed more practical. But just a few years into my career, I quit to freelance and apply to fashion design school. I only applied to one school, Parsons in New York, and I got in, but I couldn’t afford to go. So I went to work for one of the edgiest boutiques in Boston instead, Alan Bilzerian on Newbury Street. They had all the Japanese designers and a big celebrity following. It was the best education I could have asked for.

There’s nothing like hands-on learning from the best in the business. And Barbara, what about you?

Like Betty, the stylish women in my life inspired my passion for fashion, too. My mom, grandmother and a few crazy aunts all had incredible personal style and taught me that individuality and confidence are so much more important than deep pockets.

Individuality and confidence are so much more important than deep pockets.

We didn’t have much money growing up so my mom would make a lot of my clothing. I remember she and I whipping up the perfect prom dress out of a cool top I found. I certainly didn’t have to worry about “twinning” that year. My mom’s in her 70s now and still spends a lot of her time at the sewing machine. We recruit her every once in a while to do some mending for the shop.

Luckily, creativity was always celebrated in our house. Everyone had a hobby – knitting, crocheting, sewing. Because of that, I was encouraged to pursue a studio art degree and later an MFA from Emerson College in Boston. After graduation, I landed a job in the creative department of an ad agency and met Betty. We’ve been friends ever since and joke that we should’ve called the business Two Recovering Ad Chicks.

Why Black Sheep Provisions?

We wanted our name to speak to why you wear vintage clothing: to stand out. Black sheep don’t follow the herd. They never blend. We celebrate that. Uniqueness. Creativity. Black Sheep Provisions is essentially all about celebrating individual style – every piece in the shop has a soul, a story.

Black sheep never blend. We celebrate that.

What exactly is “modern vintage”?

To us, this concept means wearing vintage clothing in a contemporary way. Every piece in our shop is one-of-a-kind and has been carefully curated with this filter in mind. There are silhouettes from as far back as the 30s that are completely relevant today.

Who’s your customer?

Men and women who want to express their individuality whether they’re shopping for themselves or purchasing gifts for others. Thoughtful consumers who understand the benefits of buying local and feel good about wearing recycled clothing. It’s not all about new-new-new. Very often, the story behind the find is as important as the item itself.

How did you build your collection? What do you look for when you’re shopping?

Auctions, picking, collectors, a few pieces from our own closets. We do big seasonal buys, then go out picking to fill in the gaps. It’s one part knowing what customers want, one part instinct and one part serendipity. We’re still learning all the time.

Denim seems to be a focus for you. What’s special about your denim collection?

Denim is hot right now, but it really always has been if you think about it. All the way back to when it was first mass-produced at the turn of the century. The town of Manchester, NH, was a major producer of denim and the Amoskeag mills churned out some of the finest selvedge denim ever made. They made a lot of denim for Levi Strauss throughout the early 1900s. Some of that stuff goes for thousands of dollars now, if you’re lucky enough to find it.

What we’re doing with denim is our own quirky version of redone. We’re taking some of our favorite print patterns and integrating them with denim, mostly Levi’s. We have a pretty sizable collection of vintage Marimekko fabric, so we’re using a lot of that. It started with making patches to cover up holes, and we’ve moved on to pockets and insets from there.

That’s so cool. So let’s talk about how you built your business. You both have day jobs. How did you do it?

Yeah, it’s been challenging, but we’re making it work. It took about eight months to get to the point where we could open the doors. Eight months of acquiring inventory, finding a location, renovating, setting up the POS system – it was a lot of nights and weekends. And it wasn’t just us – our families gave up a lot of weekends to help. We also turned to other shop owners here in Littleton and elsewhere and got a ton of great advice and support from them. Still do.

Who or what has inspired you?

It was partly just the time period we grew up in. Think about the evolution of fashion from the ’60s to the ’90s. There was so much experimentation going on – the hippies, British mod, rock ’n roll, disco, grunge. There were so many incredible icons and not just in fashion, but in the movies and music, too. Marilyn, Elvis, Audrey Hepburn, Katherine Hepburn, Cary Grant, James Dean, Barbara Streisand, Diane Keaton, David Bowie, David Byrne, Blondie, Grace Jones – the list goes on and on. In fashion, there was Coco Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent, Miucca Prada, Alexander McQueen, Yohji Yamamato, Calvin Klein, Todd Oldham – amazing innovators!

We’ve also had the good fortune to work with many talented graphic designers and style setters in their own right. And we’ve learned from studying the best in the business. Like Eileen Fisher and Sophia Amoruso, two women who built fashion empires using sustainability as a business model. And from the vintage world, the legendary Bobby Garnett of Bobby from Boston fame. We’ve also learned from the stories of independent thinkers like Blake Mycoskie, who started TOMS shoes, and Sara Blakely, who invented Spanx. There are so many inspiring stories of business leaders who trusted their instincts, followed their passion and dared to take risks, many of them accidental entrepreneurs like us – and some of them right here in Littleton.

So besides scratching your fashion itch, why are you doing this?

Because sustainability is a good business model. We feel good about it, and our customers do, too. We get to be part of the solution to all the waste in the fashion industry. Every time we give a garment a new life, we feel like we’re doing something positive for the planet.

Every time we give a garment a new life, we feel like we’re doing something positive for the planet.

What’s been the reaction from the community so far?

They’re excited! We knew there was pent-up demand, but we had no idea how warm the reception would be. This community is amazing. We can’t wait to see what happens as the seasons unfold.

Headed north? Check out the neighborhood and pop into Black Sheep Provisions at 15 Main Street, Littleton, NH. For hours and directions, visit facebook.com/blacksheepnh.