Shellito adds a second location to her DL store

By Robert Williams

Editor

Frazee will have a new retail store opening Thursday, Sept. 5 in Katie Shellito’s Funky Junk Thrift & Consignment Store on West Main Avenue next to the Palace Cafe.

Shellito saw an opportunity in downtown Frazee and she had the backing of her own support cast that has made the Detroit Lakes location a success.

“There’s nothing like it over here,” she said. “All my vendors said, yeah, do it.”

Shellito rents out space to vendors with products that range from jellies and jams to freeze-dried lotions, organic products, clothing and more trending items.

“You never know what you’re going to get and they restock weekly,” said Shellito.

The Detroit Lakes location has a larger focus on consignment clothing that takes up 500-600-feet of that store.

“I’m going to offer that over here,” Scelitto said.

Managing two stores and working two other jobs keeps Shellito on her toes. She plans to be in the Frazee store on Thursdays and will be accepting consignment drop offs each Thursday from 12-4 p.m.

As part of the vendor deal, vendors work one day a month at the store, which allows Shellito to keep her prices down with low overhead costs.

“That covers the rest of the work shifts and then I can keep my other jobs,” she said.

Shellito likes to stay busy. She bartends at Riverside in Hawley and is a hair stylist when she’s not junkin’.

“If I have a day off I go to Fargo and I go shopping and junkin’,” she said. “I’ve got my little honey holes and I call it hitting my circuit, my hot spots.”

The original Funky Junk opened in Hawley in a much larger venue, but the business was short-lived, lasting only five months, before the owner of the building sold the building forcing Shellito to move. The store was 4,500-square feet and full of vendors. The store allowed Shellito to work full-time, but upon closing it meant back to part-time and moving meant downsizing.

“With the smaller buildings I just can’t,” she said. 

She shut down a year before moving to Detroit Lakes where Funky Junk has been in operation for two years at the intersection of U.S. Highway 10 and Summit Avenue.

The business is also a family tradition. Shellito’s mother owned Thrifts and Gifts in Holland, Mich., and got Katie started in the consignment and thrift business.

“Junkin’s just always been in our blood,” she said. “I buy and resell. I don’t have time for refurbishing and I don’t have the room for furniture.”

Shellito’s stores consist of a continually evolving inventory with items that are priced to move. If something sits on the shelf for two months it’s gone and the frequency with how often products come in and out of the store makes it easy for shoppers who like to actually shop rather than check off a list. Each trip to the store is an adventure, not a task.

“It’s what you find,” she said. “And we’re going to keep our prices affordable over here. It’s small town affordable.”

Funky Junk also continued the momentum that has been progressing down West Main Avenue from when the Streiffs opened up Palace Cafe, leading to The Healthy Hornet and The Monarch Coffee House. Mainstay Roger Boe said he had his busiest Saturday of the year last weekend at The Backyard Station. Rumors continue to swirl about new businesses moving into the former bowling alley and the downtown retail center as more businesses look to ride the wave of momentum in Frazee heading into 2025.

Shellito has already had some early negotiations with the owners of bigger buildings downtown that she could move her business to after assessing next week’s opening and the first few months of being open.

Funky Junk is also a full-cycle shop in that items that do not sell and are taken off the retail shelf are donated locally. In Frazee, those items will be donated to Twice Blessed. Shellito also has a designated room for local consignments only. Consignment clothing must be less than three years old, not stained and in good condition. An item is priced and the sale split 50/50. Checks are distributed monthly.

Vendor space is available for $3 per square foot with a minimum charge of $50, along with working the store one day per month.

Unlike some businesses, the thrift and consignment store has been a success in the face of continually rising inflation.

“Everybody is out looking for a deal,” she said. 

Along with reasonable prices, Shellito specialized in utilizing space wisely.

“Wait until you see how much stuff is in there,” she said.

Funky Junk is located at 109 West Main Avenue in Frazee. Initial hours of operation will be Thursday, Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., with consignment drop offs accepted from 12-4 p.m., on Thursdays only.  

Saturday hours may be variable depending on the season of the year.

More information can be found on social media. Katie has a Funky Junk Thrift & Consignment Store page on Facebook.