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Hello Windmill City Super #1

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Shop and Style Locally at Windmill City Super #1

By Kevin Perry

Hometown pride is a valuable commodity. It shapes who we are and how we see the world. But we often take our origins for granted, opting instead to flaunt souvenirs from exotic vacation spots that we have been fortunate enough to visit.

But now, our adventurous spirit and fierce loyalty are colliding, and this stylish symbiosis is happening at Windmill City Super #1. “The whole vibe around the shop is just kind of like a gift shop for locals,” explains Glen Coy, who co-owns the hip enclave with his wife, Ashley. “We want people that live here to walk in and be happy to wear something. But, we also want tourists that are visiting to kind of get excited about the same thing.”

Windmill City Super #1 store Palm Springs

Reiterating his slogan (because it’s way awesome), Coy declares, “So, we like to describe it as a gift shop for locals.”

Desert warmth courses through Coy’s veins. He is a prince of the Inland Empire, recounting his lineage proudly. “I’ve been here since 1984. My family moved here when we were babies. So I’ve pretty much lived in the city of Palm Springs forever, but my wife is from Vancouver, British Columbia. She’s been here for ten years now.”

The creative duo gleaned inspiration for their deceptively simple concept from every corner of the globe. “We spent a lot of time traveling the last couple of years, pre-pandemic. And every time we go to a big city, we’d noticed that there’d be a cool version of a tourist gift shop. And we just felt like Palm Springs was missing that. We always kind of played around with the idea of making our own version of that for Palm Springs. Our friends opened Las Palmas Brewing, which is downtown on the strip as well. They had mentioned to us that a space next door was opening up. So, we kind of just jumped at the opportunity.”

Windmill City Super #1 store Palm Springs

Indeed, friendship is the lifeblood of Windmill City Super #1. In addition to the nudge from their brewery pals, Glen and Ashley conceived of their store as a collective for likeminded visionaries. “Artists and people that make products can have a place to sell their products and sell their art. We just found there was a lack of it. There’s really nowhere for that to be done. And we’re kind of hoping to be that spot in Palm Springs.”

Windmill City Super #1 store Palm Springs

The passion project is paying off, populating the space with equal parts retail appeal and gallery esteem. “I’ll kind of break down the product mix,” announces Coy. “Our whole business idea behind it is: one-third products that we’ve designed that are ideas that we came up with and produced, and have been doing for the last five years since we’ve had the print shop. Another third is collaborations with local artists, friends of ours. We have a lot of friends that do art. So we’ve kind of reached out to them to do collaborative projects and products with them. And, we feature them around the shop. We put their name on every piece that they design and we give money back to them at the end of every month, based on sales. Then the other third is just friends’ products. Whether it’s a local pottery person or somebody that makes local coffee beans. We sell that in there as well. So we say it’s equal thirds, our stuff, friends’ stuff, and stuff that we’ve made with friends.”

Windmill City Super #1 store Palm Springs

The collaboration is surprisingly cohesive, spawning apparel that captures Palm Springs’ resort vibes while resonating with authentic hometown bona fides. The ubiquitous Windmill City logo resembles a Rastafarian palm tree, chillaxing on the lapel of their enticing array of shirts and sweats.

Windmill City Super #1 store Palm Springs

Customers can peruse various clothing items alongside bags, posters, keychains, drinkware, and other party accessories. Truly, the store’s inventory is fueled by the Coys’ endless curiosity. “We’re always looking for designs,” invites Glen. “So, if anybody has any product ideas or design ideas that they want to send us, I just tell them to reach out to our Instagram, because that’s kind of the whole idea behind it. I think sometimes people are intimidated by approaching us with ideas, but the ones we’ve done have worked so well and they’re really simple. So we’re kind of always looking for new product ideas and new designs. So people can always reach out.”

Accessible, inviting, and imaginative. What a perfect reflection of Palm Springs: the gift that keeps on giving.

463 N Palm Canyon

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