Contributor: Jamie Richardson
This winner of multiple Independent Tribune Best of Cabarrus County awards is helping make Downtown Mount Pleasant a must visit destination in Cabarrus County.
The popular home décor shop, Down South on Main, is celebrating its two-year anniversary this weekend with a party you “donut want to miss!” Owner Melissa Lemmond and her employees (who are more like family) make this store a place that is warm, inviting, and full of laughter.
Melissa grew up in Cabarrus County and went to Mount Pleasant High School where she met her husband Jeff, and the pair live and work here still with their three children. Prior to owning their store, both worked in the corporate world, until a sudden change took them in a different direction.
- Jeff had always been in the “buy, sell, trade” business and decided to open an online commerce business, which transitioned into a brick-and-mortar location in a small building off HWY 49.
He opened Down South Deals in August 2019 which featured mostly antiques, collectibles, and “man cave” items. Melissa noticed that there were a lot of women coming in to shop so she started adding home décor and furniture to the inventory. Then the pandemic hit, and they had to close their doors.
When it was time to open her own shop, Melissa said God placed her store directly into her hands. She had been looking at a different location for Down South on Main, but the deal fell through.
- That very same day, the people in their current location moved out and she knew that was the spot God had chosen for her. After moving in, the business grew quickly, and she knocked out a wall and expanded into the space next store within two months.
A Social Media Personality Is Born
Melissa first started doing Facebook Lives to sell her home décor items out of necessity during the pandemic. The Lives were like a favorite TV show to her followers, and she found a way to connect with people when connecting was hard. She was open, raw, and real and people really connected with her at a time when connecting with people was hard.
- Now people will literally call each other up and say, “you’re watching Melissa on Down South, right”? She also has a fantastic TikTok. We are obsessed with the one of Melissa sharing a pro tip on how to hang your pictures. But the ones that feature #GettingDownWithNanny are the ones that have us smiling from ear to ear!
You’ll Find Household Treasures and an Owner with a Huge Heart
The items in Melissa’s store are a mixture of her personal preferences, and things that she loves and is passionate about, but she also listens and learns about customers’ interests. She enjoys helping customers select items to style their homes and often helps bring a vision to life.
She’ll assist customers in creating the perfect mantle or table centerpiece or in picking out the perfect gift. Down South on Main offers more than just great customer service, it’s an experience and it’s personalized.
- It’s more about creating relationships than it is about sales. She strives to keep the small-town feel in her store and her customers love it! She has a couple that comes in EVERY Wednesday night, just to see what’s new, and to visit with Melissa.
“Love, love, love Down South on Main.
Always an amazingly beautiful, curated collection of gift items, furniture, wall art, and decor. It is our FAVORITE local shop. Top-notch customer service, to boot!”
– Diane Benzie
For Melissa, Down South on Main has also become her ministry platform. When she shared on a Facebook Live that her “doors were always open,” a woman showed up that night needing a safe place. She stayed for over an hour while Melissa talked and prayed with her.
A Special Place to Work
Melissa refers to Down South on Main as “our store” when she talks about her and her staff. Her employees work with her, not for her. There is always music and dancing going on in the store. They like to have FUN! And when they have events, people are lined up down the road!
- When employee Susan Furr’s father Tom Joyner (and husband of their beloved TikTok “Nanny”) passed away, the store donated 30% of sales in January back to the community in his memory.
Why Should You Make a Day of It in Mount Pleasant?
Melissa says, “Mount Pleasant is full of nostalgia. It’s home. It’s historic. And while it’s growing, it’s growing at a ‘Mount Pleasant pace,’ not the pace of neighboring cities and towns. It’s bringing the old to life but keeping it authentic.”
- Susan Furr says, “Mount Pleasant is just different, it’s truly unexplainable.” Melissa is part of the small business association in Mount Pleasant. She does have partnerships with other local businesses, the hutch in the lobby and the dough bowls that are used at 73 & Main come from her store.
And we’re not the only ones who are noticing all that Mount Pleasant has to offer Cabarrus County residents! WBTV just released a wonderful feature on QC Life this week. Watch the video on their website.
Melissa has BIG plans in the works for Down South on Main, so be sure and follow her on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. Her website is coming soon.
And be sure and join them this Saturday, Feb 18th, as they celebrate their 2nd anniversary!
Planning to visit? Tell ’em Cabarrus Weekly sent ya!
