On the second day of the Main Street Mavericks road trip, we talked to five small businesses about triumphs, challenges, and advice for new entrepreneurs.
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On day two of the Main Street Mavericks road trip across Oregon, Kendall and I made our way to the North Coast of Oregon. Most of our scheduled businesses were in Cannon Beach, the iconic town with the giant Haystack Rock as its landmark. These businesses provided a lens of what it’s like to work in a tourist town and the specific challenges related to the ebb and flow of tourism.
To learn who the Main Street Mavericks are and what road trip we’re on, head on over to our Day One Main Street Mavericks Blog to learn all about us and our adventures around Oregon! We are on a mission to meet as many small businesses in Oregon as possible on a six-day road trip across Oregon. We’re coming to Cannon Beach from Portland.
Our first stop of the day was at High Life Adventures in Warrenton, just south of Astoria, Oregon — the northernmost tip of Oregon. This family-run zipline park is a true testament to bringing your vision to life. Kendall and I got to hop on a cart and get a tour, although, we’ll have to come back to try the ziplines.
Read and watch our High Life Adventure spotlight.
As recommended by High Life, we ventured into Seaside to have lunch at Tsunami Sandwich Company. Warm and toasty sandwiches just one block from the ocean.
An iconic staple of Cannon Beach, we were so excited to be invited to the actual candy kitchen to watch third-generation candy makers at Bruce’s Candy Kitchen in their element.
Read and watch our Bruce’s Candy Kitchen spotlight.
Recommended to us by Bruce’s, we then ventured to the brand new Bodega Taproom to meet the owner there and have a quick mid-day refreshment.
Next, we met small business owner Egrane Brown who took over running Cannon Beach Leather from her mother, who had built quite a business and a following over the years.
After that, we popped over to the adorable and eclectic Basalt Studio to chat with owner Michelle Valigura. We learned that her most-asked question is, “Where is your kiln?” So, she had stickers made that say, “My kiln is offsite,” so she can provide a quick answer.
We went to Shelbi’s favorite late night spot in Cannon Beach for dinner, the Driftwood Restaurant and Lounge.
It’s easy to stay small in Cannon Beach as the city doesn’t have any big corporate chains encroaching on their space. We stayed at the family-run Tolovana Inn. Kendall’s room had a gorgeous view of the ocean! (Shelbi’s room was still nice but had a view of the pet relief area.)
Next up, we’re headed to Corvallis.
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