This article appeared in the July 23rd Issue of TV Times
- Back to Business Profiles Index -

By David Maull
TV Times

When searching for merchandise to stock her Sugar and Spice Collection gifts shops in Lewes and Bethany Beach, Amanda Lucks follows a strict purchasing guideline.

"I want it to be something that I would have in my house," she said. "I don't like junk."

In that case, Lucks' home must be a wonderful place.

In Lewes, Lucks has filled 8,000 square feet of store space with some of the most unique gift items in Delaware. Her inventory includes candles, cards, bath and body items, tea, coffee, gourmet foods, toys and bird feeders.

The store is so large it has entrances off Second Street, Front Street and Savannah Road. Enthusiastic customers could easily spend an hour browsing the aisles.

"I like to find things that are unusual and different," Lucks said. "I wanted the store to be accessible to everyone."

Her strategy has worked. In 1996, Sugar and Spice was named by Delaware Today magazine as one of the best "shopoholic" stores at the beach. This year, the magazine ranked it as one of the top 10 stores in Delaware.

Lucks also has a seasonal location in Bethany Beach and an on-line catalog (www.sugarandspicecoll.com).

Perhaps the shop's main specialty is candles. The Lewes location has enough candles to stock a separate store.

The selection includes Yankee, colonial, scented, shaped, beeswax and aroma therapy candles.

"We have all kinds of different candles," Lucks said. "Nearly everyone uses candles in one way or another almost everyday."

The increasing popularity of aroma therapy has not only stimulated candle sales, but also given rise to the store's bath and body section.

Sugar and Spice offers a wide variety of soaps, lotions and bath salts, many of which have therapeutic benefits, Lucks said.

Ironically, Sugar and Spice didn't start as a gift shop.

"A small gourmet (food) market is what we started with," Lucks said.

That market opened in 1987 at Canal Square on Front Street in Lewes. Each morning, Lucks served coffee, tea and croissants to her customers and stocked gourmet jams and cheeses.

The inventory slowly grew to include kitchen items, cards and candles.

Finally in 1993, after relocating to a number of spaces within Canal Square, Amanda and her husband Bill decided to move Sugar and Spice to Second Street.

"I think the exposure was little better for us on Second Street," Lucks said.

She was right. In the five years since the move, the store has expanded by 3,000 square feet and now occupies space once filled by Graves Men's Store.

In stocking her shelves, Lucks deals with 85 different vendors and has found Christmas to be her busiest time.

Along with a few other businesses, Lucks helped start Lewes' annual "Hospitality Night" during the Christmas season. Held on the first Thursday in December, the event is a town open house in which merchants open their doors in the evening and serve food and drinks.

It's just one of many days during the year that Sugar and Spice is packed with customers.

"I want people to feel comfortable when they come in the store," Lucks said.

Visit us on the web at www.sugarandspicecoll.com