Seeking Chameleon Owner Catherine Richmond, left, with her assistant inside her shop Tuesday at 35H Rover Blvd. is offering 60 percent discounts on all merchandise until her store closes for good at the end of the day Monday, July 31. Photo by Carol A. Clark/ladailypost.com
By KIRSTEN LASKEY
Los Alamos Daily Post
kirsten@ladailypost.com
The last day to shop at Seeking Chameleon at 35H Rover Blvd. in White Rock is Monday, July 31 and thousands of items are still available and on sale at 60 percent off.
Owner Catherine Richmond explained that her mother, Helen Finney, recently died from pancreatic cancer, and caring for her father, Henry, while also operating her store just got to be too much.
“I just haven’t been able to give it (the store) the attention it deserves,” she said.
Richmond has been holding a business closing sale on everything from the fixtures to the merchandise. Inventory is new and old. There is jewelry, an extensive collection of rocks and minerals, antiques and paintings, beads and every type of knick-knack imaginable – on sale at a 60 percent discount as the store’s closure approaches.
After eight and a half years, closing her store was a tough decision for Richmond. She explained it was her love of cool things and shopping that led her to open the store.
“I opened the shop because I had too much stuff and I love stuff … I love treasure hunting,” Richmond said. “There are so many different kinds of things that I love.”
So, opening the store at its original location next door to the Jemez House thrift store was a great decision. In fact, Richmond said when she opened the store she thought, “Why didn’t I do this 20 years ago?”
Seven-and-a-half years ago she relocated Seeking Chameleon to its current location at 35H Rover Blvd. One of the things Richmond said she will miss is sharing the store’s treasures with her customers.
“I’m going to miss getting to know these people in our community, learning their names … and sharing the treasures I love so much with everyone has absolutely been the joy,” she said.
To find her store merchandise, Richmond said initially she scoured thrift stores, flea markets and yard sales but as more and more people met her and knew her, they would come to her with items to sell. In fact, she said she stopped needing to go out looking for merchandise because it was brought to her.
The store has always been a successful business, Richmond pointed out, partly because “there’s literally something for everyone.”
This includes some truly unique items such as a mummified pig fetus.
“I was so sad when it sold,” she said.
Another thing Richmond said she will miss is interacting with the public through her store.
“I’m going to miss the entire experience,” she said. “This was my connection to the entire community. There are so many regular customers. I am going to miss all of it. It is an extensive amount of work but it’s worth it.”
A thing Richmond said she will not miss so much is the financial side of the business.
“Bookkeeping is a very painful ordeal,” she said.
Despite the sadness of closing the store, Richmond said she is looking forward to new opportunities. She explained that her recently retired husband, Scott, and she hope to be able to travel more. Plus, Richmond said she has a long list of hobbies including making jewelry, enameling, sewing and producing fused glass.
Seeking Chameleon may be closing but something else may be taking its place. Richmond said Christa Tyler, who owns 420 TeaTime LLC next door to Seeking Chameleon, is interested in opening her own store in the same spot. Richmond said she is hopeful Tyler will be able to take over the space.
In the meantime, Seeking Chameleon is open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday with the final day being Monday, July 31.
