Did you know that some of your favorite Mast Store brands are the products of small businesses? That’s right. Mast Store supports local small businesses and artists and prides itself on sharing great products and talent with our customers. For this year’s SBS, we’d like to highlight a few of those wonderful brands that bring us all such great quality products right in our own backyards!

One of our newest additions to Mast Stores is the Knife Shop. There’s a great demand for quality craftsmanship in the knife trade, and we bring you quality that’s above and beyond in the industry. One local master craftsman is Mark Hazen based in Monroe, NC. He’s been making custom Hazen Knives for over 30 years with high demand for both the artistry and the quality of his knives. Mark’s knives are used by military, law enforcement, sportsmen, and avid collectors.

All his knives are one-off, that means no two will be the same as he hand crafts these works of art without the use of jigs for the blades! He still uses a hammer to shape the blades! They are designed for performance and comfort. And his knives are much sought after, so much so that you may want to get your hands on one soon because he’s retiring from his trade within a year’s time. To get a one-of-a-kind knife from a true forge master, you can find a selection of his knives in the Knife shop.

Huffman Mills is a local hosiery company that makes the cotton casual socks in fun prints and colors you will find in all Mast Store locations.  Located in Granite Falls, NC, Huffman has manufactured quality socks for over 50 years. Boasting state-of-the-art manufacturing, finishing, and distribution facilities, Huffman continues to be a leader in quality craftsmanship and more importantly, in customer satisfaction.  The socks Huffman makes for Mast Store will help you support your team, show your USA pride, and focus on your favorite food. You can find these fun, fashionable, quality socks in all stores and online.

And we don’t want to leave out the PAWesome products we carry for our furry friends!  Barley Bones, hand-crafted in Chattanooga, TN are famous for homemade and high-quality treats which are also proud to boast locally-sourced ingredients. Your pup can enjoy delicious flavors like Biscuits & Gravy and Chicken & Waffles cooked up just for them using spent barley from local breweries and other ingredients that are good for their digestive systems.

In Blue Handmade: Handmade in Asheville, NC these leather goods include journals, bags, and wrapped flasks that are made from responsibly-sourced, top grain cowhides. They are soft, beautiful, and very reasonably priced.

Mast Store Coffee is roasted by West End Coffee Roasters, one of the oldest and largest specialty coffee roasters in the Carolinas. Located locally in Greenville, SC, West End Coffee Roasters have been small-batch roasting since 1992 and have provided our private-labeled coffees since 2011. Try the blends and flavors, including a few made especially for the holiday season.

No Kidding, a brand made in Davidson, North Carolina produces handmade goat’s milk soaps, a craft they’ve excelled at for over 23 years. Mark Roberts is the owner we’ve worked with for at least ten years. He crafts several soaps, and Mast Store carries eight (8) of those scents: Honey Oatmeal, Lavender, Patchouli, Peppermint Rosemary Poppyseed, Honeysuckle, Citrus, Tea Tree and the newest Thai Basil. The top three favorites are, in order, Lavender, Peppermint Rosemary Poppyseed, and Patchouli. The soaps are hand-cut, then hand-wrapped in colorful fabric. Goats milk is a very good moisturizing soap, and it is filled with vitamins and hydroxy acids that are healing and soothing to your skin.

Perry Enterprises makes our beautiful yet functional hummingbird feeders in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. It’s the perfect gift for the bird lover in your life or for the gardener to have a beautiful, functional piece of art that also draws in a pollinator. Perry Enterprises is owned by Tim Perry, who crafts the feeders.

He offers several styles, from the basic mason jar style to a more ornate Ruby Red Fountain, and all incorporate the signature copper piping and beautiful metal blooms.

Triplett’s Toys makes our Folk Toys in Granite Falls, North Carolina. Triplett’s Toys owner Chad Triplett produces our wooden Folk Toys like the Gee Haw Whimmy Diddle, Climbing Kitty, Ball Tosser, Idiot stick, Jumping Jig, Lumber Jack, Dancing Man, and more.  These toys were made for children long before you could shop from the Sears catalog and still provide hours of old-fashioned entertainment.

If you are as big a fan as we are of Made in USA and, even closer, Made in North Carolina, our sister store Rivercross Made in USA is one you must shop! Rivercross only carries Made in USA goods, local, artisan pieces with many made just a stone’s throw from the front door. From jewelry to house goods to clothing and more, Rivercross is a one-stop shop for unique and locally-crafted items that are one of a kind. We want to call out three such amazing artists. Cindy Long, fiber artist; Beth Shuford, stained glass artist; and Don Haywood, jewelry artist.

Cindy Long has been a weaver in the High Country for 18 years. She even sources her yarn exclusively from yarn mills in North and South Carolinas. Her goal is to create wearable art and to educate others on the art form. She’s also the designer for Pisgah Yarn and Dyeing in Old Fort, NC. Shop Cindy’s beautiful, wearable art designs at Rivercross.

Stained Glass artist Beth Shuford lives in Valle Crucis not far from the Original Store. Beth’s interest in glass started over 30 years ago. She passes on the skills of the trade to others through classes she teaches at ASU, in the Craft Enrichment Department. Beth takes commissioned orders as well as providing beautiful, original pieces to Rivercross.

If you love stunning jewelry, then look no further for an original, gorgeous piece than Don Haywood’s jewelry. Having learned the trade at age 17 from his older brother, Don began designing, creating, and selling his sterling silver and gemstone jewelry with the mission of getting each piece to its rightful owner. “I feel each piece has an owner,” Haywood mused. “It may take a while for them to find one another, but every piece I have made has been sold—even if it takes a couple of years before they meet.” With that philosophy, we encourage you to come find the piece made just for you right here at Rivercross, located right beside the Original Store in Valle Crucis and open seven days a week.

These are just a few of the small businesses with whom we partner to both bring you the best and most innovative products and to support our communities and the amazing craftspeople, artists, and businesses that call them home. We encourage everyone to Shop Small this Saturday and every day because you never know what amazing things you’ll find locally—and of course in our own Mast Stores!