LUTHER BUSINESS SERIES | How CD Harris Design Co is weathering the storm

When the February winter storm swept through Luther, creating hazardous roads and keeping most folks hunkered indoors, local businesses had to make tough calls about whether to stay open or close up shop. CD Design Co., one of the newest additions to Luther’s business scene at 122 S. Main Street, decided to put safety first—but that decision, like for many small businesses, came with financial challenges.

In this Q&A, CD Design Co. owner Cindy Harris Baker, ASID, NCIDQ, shares why they closed, how they’re keeping business alive in the meantime, and what it takes to sustain a small-town shop. Plus, they offer a glimpse into their efforts to help Luther’s historic downtown thrive—because weather aside, every local business needs support to keep our community growing.

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This is the first in a series of articles about Luther’s businesses.

LRN: Was closing a tough decision?

Cindy Harris Baker: Closing was a tough decision for us since we are a new business, but our customer’s safety (between the roads and icy sidewalks) is number one. Also, because we are not an “essential” business, we projected that people were likely not going to get out to browse for gifts in the sub-zero temps and ice. Since I also work out of there for my design business, I have the option to keep revenue alive by working from home for my design clients. I’ve kept our customers up to date on social media and opened our online store with a free shipping link so they can shop from home.

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LRN: How can we support you after the roads are clear, the temperatures rise above single digits, and you reopen?

Cindy Harris Baker: Every downtown business needs support in Luther. If any of us are to stay open, we need traffic and sales to do so. Supporting all your locally owned businesses is crucial to our survival and, ultimately, our town’s survival. Encouraging people to visit the downtown area and buy local goods when they can is critical. We’ve told our customers to let us know what they’d like us to carry so we can save them a trip to OKC or Edmond for something. Some have spoken up and so we added/delivered greeting cards and gifts (two of the biggest requests).

LRN: Please remind us of your hours, upcoming events or sales, or other information about your business and how you serve our community.

Cindy Harris Baker: Our normal store hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 10 to 5pm. We are having a Happy Hour-Open House next Thursday, February 27th, from 5-7pm. This will be the first of a monthly night market/event we will be hosting. We’ve encouraged people to follow us on social media for more events, including a farmer’s market one Saturday a month when the weather calms down and gets warm. We are active in helping our town grow, including starting a downtown alliance for local businesses to get to know and support each other, serving on the Luther Planning Commission (and upcoming Board of Trustees) and Luther Historical Society, and contributing our help to the Main Street Project. We have been brainstorming additional ways we can get involved, including some future special events to encourage growth and community in Downtown Luther.

LRN: What’s something folks should know about the challenges and blessings of running your business in a small town like Luther?

Cindy Harris Baker: This is our first venture into small-town living and starting a business here. I’m very blessed to be able to work out of our store on my interior design business with projects located all over the country so that we are able to pay the bills to have a small business downtown. However, the community wants to support small and local businesses, and they have rolled out in numbers with their support and sales in our store. We’ve really enjoyed getting to know our customers personally, something that I’ve rarely seen in a large city setting. I love that our customers will drop by just to say hi or tell us about something cool in their lives and that they reach out by phone and text to check on things.

The challenge is the foot traffic needed to support a small business and get people to our downtown area. A new interesting restaurant/pub (on Main Street) would help get people here so they can stop by and shop before or after they eat. Having multiple reasons (restaurants, shopping and entertainment/history) to draw people to downtown Luther is critical for our growth. People like coming to a historic town and seeing the history and pride that its residents take in historically preserving but modernizing amenities and sidewalks.

Streetlights, planters, cleaned-up storefronts, and multiple things to do and see are so important. I do believe we have great potential in building this town but keeping it small and historic, especially with our Route 66 signage coming and the 100th anniversary of Route 66 next year. There are positive ways to grow and some not so much. Like I’ve said to many people, let’s all get ahead of the growth that is inevitably coming and control the growth ourselves in a very positive way honoring our Luther history and small-town vibe.