It is with gut-wrenching sadness and overwhelming
regret that we announce that on December 14, Evermore
Nevermore will be nevermore. While we feel
we still have so much to give, and that we're just
getting started, we simply don't have the financial
means to continue this venture. Over the next two
weeks we will be selling-off either the EN business
as a whole, or our merchandise and fixtures, and closing
our doors for the last time.
In
some respects Evermore Nevermore has been successful
beyond our wildest imagination. We’ve won
three “Best of the Valley”
awards, we were even considered a “local
treasure” by the East Valley Tribune!
It has been so rewarding to have people who “get”
what we’re doing come into EN on a daily basis
and tell us how much they love our shop.
Our
friends & supporters have been so very good
to us, many of them often making purchases they
could ill afford to make, just to help our cause,
and we are forever grateful. It's great to be loved,
but businesses are able to stay open based on financial
success and we have been unable to turn the immense
moral support we've received into dollars desperately
needed so we could continue to operate.
We
started Evermore Nevermore with very meager finances
and on a wing and a prayer, and we’ve been
up against obstacles that the best conceived businesses
in the world would have trouble overcoming, including
the recession and poor economy, downtown Mesa corruption
& collusion, politics and pettiness, imitators
and thieves, halfway-house bums and addicts, and
a location that often resembled a ghost town. With
stubborn determination we’ve given this venture
absolutely everything we have, including our life-savings,
thousands of unpaid hours, the happiness and well-being
of our family, our health, and we’ve incurred
an enormous amount of debt that will haunt us for
many years beyond our closing.
When
looking at locations for Evermore Nevermore, downtown
Mesa just seemed to be the perfect fit for us. We
could never imagine EN anywhere else but 127 West
Main Street in Mesa. From the first moment we saw
our location, we knew this was it. We’ve never
regretted selecting downtown Mesa as our home and
as we started our business we were very excited
about potentially being a part of revitalizing the
area and changing it up. In fact, the challenge
of bringing a new vibe to downtown Mesa was part
of the appeal of this location. We are immensely
proud of our efforts in helping to reinvigorate
downtown, and as we make our exit, our hope is that
the area will continue to move in a positive direction.
We
ask all of our friends and fans to please continue
to support the downtown Mesa merchants and events.
They face an uphill battle and they need your dollars
as well as your good wishes and moral support in
order to survive. As for us, we intend to continue
to try and do our part to keep things going. We
will continue to organize the Steampunk Street events
and to help support 2nd Fridays and other efforts
to try and keep people coming downtown. We’ll
also do what we can to continue to help support
the artists who made up Evermore Nevermore.
Through
our web pages and the social media resources we’ve
accumulated, our hope is to continue to support
downtown Mesa by listing events, blogging about
downtown, and promoting our friends and neighbors.
We hope to also continue to coordinate and grow
the Steampunk Street event we created, in hopes
of turning it into a full-on convention style extravaganza.
While
we thank ALL of our many friends for your
support this past two years, there are a few that
will forever wear the EN Badge of Honor
and deserve special recognition and gratitude for
their selfless service to Evermore Nevermore:
Suzanne
Woodford – 2ND Friday is the
one night every month that has always saved our
butts and allowed us to pay our bills. Without Suzanne,
there would be no 2ND Friday, and without 2ND Fridays
EN would have suffered a painful death long ago.
Thanks Suzanne, and we'll continue to do everything
we can to try and help support your efforts. We
challenge the other downtown merchants to participate
and help out as well.
Wynter
Holden – Wynter gave EN their
very first press coverage with the headline, “Move
Over, Mormons! Mesa's Going Punk!” It's funny
to look back on now, but we were certain that header
was going to get us ran out of town on a rail. Wynter
has been a tireless supporter of EN from the beginning
and we certainly would have never received the attention
we have without her efforts! Wynter, you'll always
be the coolest chick we know!
Jayson
Peters – Jayson wrote for the
Tribune and the NERDVANA Geek Culture column, and
he gave us our first printed article about the store,
with the headline, “Downtown Mesa Boring?
Nevermore!” We don't know if anyone else ever
saw this article, as we must have grabbed every
copy of the Tribune in the valley that day, we were
so excited! Jayson has been a huge supporter of
EN, our events, and our efforts to change-up the
downtown area. Jayson has just left the Tribune,
and the local geek community will never be the same.
We wish him luck in his new position in Colorado
and we're forever grateful for the attention he
gave our humble little shop.
Russ Kazmierczak, Jr.
- Russ is one of the most talented and versatile
artists we've had the pleasure to be associated
with and he has been an enthusiastic supporter of
EN since he stumbled across our shop while performing
one night at Queens Pizzeria. Russ never fails to
get a plug in for the store at any opportunity.
He's hosted some of our coolest events and was the
co-creator of our ENCREDICON show. Thanks a million
Russ, we hope to continue to collaborate on some
cool creations down the road.
Bob
Nelson & Sharon Skinner –
From the beginning of our journey we don't think
we've had any bigger supporters than Bob & Sharon.
While EN has sometimes been credited with paving
the way for the eccentric culture downtown Mesa
now portrays, Bob & Sharon started this long,
long ago with their short-lived Anthology coffee
shop and have kept the ball rolling with their tireless
efforts on the Mesa Poetry Slam and other events
downtown. In fact, one of the deciding factors in
going forward with our business was in seeing the
fabulous poet Lauren Perry performing at the Poetry
Slam at Queen's Pizzeria. We saw her and knew we
had at least one person that fit our demographic.
Thank you Bob & Sharon for always stepping up
to help out and for your endless optimism!
Bill Mullins – Bill
is one of EN's oldest friends and is a humble and
exceptional artist that has stepped up to help us
out on many occasions. Bill has always seemed to
be there as an extra set of eyes, or to ensure patrons
didn't trip themselves going in & out of the
event room. Although he keeps a crazy schedule,
Bill has always found time to help us out, and we're
forever grateful.
David St. Albans –
We've only known David for a few short months but
he has been a big supporter of our efforts. He is
an extremely talented artist and is a long-time
retailer, he has given us huge encouragement over
the past few months, as well as helping out during
ENCREDICON and our Hallowversary event. David graciously
donated his time and talent for our Zombie Bob Ross
charity show. Thanks David and here's hoping you
continue to stay in the game and get your incredible
art out to the people!
Martha Palacios –
Martha is one of the coolest, cutest and geekiest
models we've had the pleasure of working with here
at EN. She's always been willing to give us a hand,
and on top of that has been a great customer as
well, often purchasing her own props and clothing
she's then used to help us with our events. She's
an undiscovered superstar and we know all her hard
work will eventually pay off. Thanks Martha for
all your support!
Marco Turrubiartes (El Vaquero Muerto)
– Marco has been a fixture in EN on 2nd Friday's
and several EN Art Shows. He's been a huge supporter
of Evermore Nevermore and has sent patrons our way
from the beginning. He was part of one of the first
shows we ever had at EN, a risque fashion show called
“Midnight in a Winter Horrorland!” Another
show that we figured would get us tossed out of
town. Marco started his own gallery in Phoenix and
we don't see as much of him as we did early on,
but he's always remained a big supporter of us and
our efforts and we wish him continued success with
his Galeria de los Muertos.
Aleta Welling & Jenny Fontana –
Aleta & Jenny are two of the valley's best and
most creative & fun artists. EN was lucky enough
to have them in our shop early on and to be able
to have several art shows showcasing their talent.
Jenny's “Whisper Between the Shadows”
piece has been our Facebook profile picture since
the day she brought it into the shop. We wish them
continued success with their art and thank them
for being such a big part of the look and feel of
EN.
The Brose Brothers
– Evermore Nevermore has become synonymous
with Steampunk in the valley, and it certainly has
been one of our favorite genres of art & fashion.
The Brose Brothers were with us from the very beginning
to help promote our events and the steampunk genre
as a whole. You won't find a more talented or better
group of guys anywhere. We're so honored to consider
them friends and we know that there are big things
ahead for them in the world of Steam! Keep up the
cause fellas! You're awesome!
Shelly Brooks –
You know Shelly as the master craftswoman behind
Mystic Pieces Jewelry. She has been one of EN's
most popular artisans and also one of our biggest
and most ardent supporters. Shelly never fails to
mention EN in any of her well-deserved press coverage
for her incredible jewelry pieces. She’s a
savvy businesswoman and a genuinely sweet lady that
we will miss immensely. Thanks for everything Shelly!
Rusty
Schmidt – Our good friend Rusty
has been with us since EN was just a pipe dream
that was conceived as just a little comic book shop.
He said he'd show up and support us and he kept
his promise. He's been with us to lend a helping
hand for nearly every event we've ever had and routinely
spends his money at EN, often on items that he doesn't
necessarily want or need, but just to help us out
financially. He's never been paid a thing but has
donated countless hours to our cause. We'll never
be able to repay him for his efforts and support!
Thanks Red Avenger!
Daniel Langhans –
Daniel is the amazing artist who painted the steampunk
mural you see on our South wall as you walk into
EN. He spent every free minute he had in the evenings
for the first month we were open painting this masterpiece
and we'll be forever in his debt. The life-sized
monsters that have resided inside EN and in our
display windows were also the creation of Daniel
Langhans. It's not too late to adopt one of these
creatures and give them a good home – and
give Daniel a little repayment for all his efforts
at EN!
Shelby Robertson –
Shelby is a long time veteran of EN's misadventures
and sometimes misguided - but always well intentioned
efforts. Shelby has always been receptive to our
crazy ideas and for the past year has dedicated
an exclusive art print every month to EN & 2ND
Friday. We appreciate his commitment to EN and his
promotion of our shop, and we were thrilled to see
Shelby get his well deserved recognition as the
New Times 2011 Best Comic Book Artist!
Congrats again Shelby and thanks for everything!
Queens Pizzeria –
There have been many long days here at EN, we're
talking 12+ hour days for over two years, and
there were many times that we could ill afford to
splurge on a pizza or any food other than a peanut
butter sandwich. Queens Pizzeria has often fed us
for little or nothing in return, and they have really
been the best neighbors we could have asked for.
We implore you to support these very good people
and we thank them from the bottom of our hearts.
We'll miss you guys!
Lisa McMann – Lisa
McMann walked in and befriended our little shop
and took us national by allowing us to be the “official”
point of purchase for autographed copies of her
best-selling books. As a tribute to EN, she even
included Evermore Nevermore as a secret spell in
her current book The Unwanteds. Thank you
Lisa for all of your support and for letting us
be a part of your world, both in reality & fiction.
Wailing Bansidhes –
Our good friends Katie Mullaly & J. Patrick
Ohlde of the Wailing Bansidhes, together with their
friends and families, have been wonderfully good
to us, taking our experiences here at EN into their
confidence and helping us to have fun with the strange
happenings we've endured. You guys are the best
there is at what you do and we'll never forget our
otherworldly adventures together. Our prayers will
continue to be with Patrick as he recovers from
his recent accident.
Mystic Paper – Many
thanks to our friend Jennifer Wyatt of Mystic Paper.
We've been partners in sharing supplies and fixturing
and we couldn't have asked for a more fun Main Street
partner. Mystic Paper was an old timer
on Main when we came along, and Jennifer taught
us many of the ins & outs of being a Main Street
merchant! We wish her many years of continued success!
Chris Burkhart, James Hiralez, Steven
Gomez, Jason Mandell
(Oddity Commodity) – The merry
men of Odd have been a staple in EN from our very
beginning. Although their roster has changed over
the years, they are still producing amazing art
on the fly, and they made EN the cool place to be
on 2nd Fridays. We are especially thrilled to see
Chris Burkhart now working as a professional artist
and getting paid for what he was born to do. You
guys will always have a special place in our hearts
and thanks for all the support and fun the past
couple of years.
Amanda Tucker –
Last and certainly not the least, we can't close
things without mentioning Amanda. Although there
has been serious damage between us, our daughter/step-daughter
dedicated countless unpaid hours and contributed
her limitless talent to the successes of Evermore
Nevermore. Although EN was always a family business
with equal efforts from all, for most of its life
Amanda was the face of EN. We thank Amanda and we're
proud of her contributions to this venture. It never
would have been what it was without her, but it
never was what it could have been had she chose
to stick it out. We'll always regret her departure,
and shame on those who have presumed to have the
right to weigh in on our personal family issues.
To
Our Artists & Consignors: EN never
would have existed without the extremely talented
artists and crafts people that we've represented
the past two years. We thank all of you for giving
us a chance to promote and sell your amazing wares.
You made us look good, and we've tried the best
we could to return the favor. Please do not fret
over your items still in the shop and payment for
items we've sold. We're not that kind of shop
and we're not those kind of people. Everyone's
unsold items will be returned to them and you will
receive your due payment for items sold. This closure
decision is under our terms and no one else's, and
we have everyone and everything covered –
so please don't panic.
Regardless of any sales/discounts we have going
forward, you will still receive your agreed upon
consignment terms. Please contact us to make arrangements
to pick-up your merchandise (by appointment
only please – no exceptions).
If
you have ever thought about owning your own business,
and if you have the means to pick up the ball and
keep EN running, we'd love to talk to you as soon
as possible. This would be an excellent turn-key
opportunity to the right person with the means and
the passion to take it on. Serious inquires only
please!
Our
schedule for closing will be as follows:
November
25 – December 9 (2nd Friday)
– Everything in EN will be on sale at 25%
discount. Please come in an take advantage of these
savings, buy unique Christmas presents and support
the local arts community and over 150 artists that
make up EN. December 9th (2nd Friday) will be
our last day open for merchandise sales.
We
will also be selling all of our store fixtures and
equipment at very reasonable low prices. If you
are looking for the pieces you need to begin your
own business, this is the time to take advantage.
Please ask for prices about any fixtures or items
you see in the store.
From
December 10 – 14, we will be
cleaning, moving any remaining equipment and merchandise
out of the shop, and finalizing any outstanding
consignment business.
December 14th will be our last day
at 127 West Main in Mesa.
Thanks
again to all the the friends and supporters we've
met on this incredible ride. Our hearts are broken
at the thought of walking away from this monster
we've created, but we feel we must - before it destroys
us.
Bob
& Debbie Leeper
Evermore Nevermore
11/25/11
