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Trejsi Mulac comes from a long line of entrepreneurs, including her grandmother, Roberta “Bertie” Ballinger.
Bertie ran a gas station and convenience mart that sold penny candy (when it was penny candy) and sweets with such enthusiasm that it inspired her granddaughter to open a shop of her own.
Mulac opened Bertie’s Vintage and Sugar Shack this week at in Arcadia 40th Street and Thomas with an assortment of vintage apparel and sweet treats.
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Mulac’s daughter, Chelsea Winkel, says her mom’s no stranger to running her own business.
“My mom is an entrepreneur just like her mom, my grandmother, my great grandmother and my great, great grandmother,” says Winkel, who designed the Bertie’s Vintage website and graphics. “I can count the number of times on one hand that she has worked for someone else when she didn’t have her own business.”
Bertie’s combines the nostalgia of classic American five-and-dime store Woolworth’s (which Winkel says her mother was inspired by) with Mulac’s style. She serves up milkshakes, ice cream cones, and candy by the pound from her soda fountain while shoppers sort through old-school purses and dresses as well as vintage menswear.
Bertie’s of Arcadia is Tuesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and are open until 9 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. For more info, check out Bertie’s Vintage Facebook page and website or call 602-955-0079
