Laughter and friendship brings Serendipity Manjimup gift shop into 40th year

A “quirky” Manjimup shop turned 40 last week with the previous and current owner in store to celebrate. Owner Vickie Stone said the flow of customers coming through Serendipity Manjimup for the anniversary last week was a testament to the success of the shop and what former owner Betty Namnik had built. Customers were invited to visit the store across Friday and Saturday to celebrate, and share stories about the history. Ms Stone said among the customers, some had travelled as far as Nannup to join the celebrations. “I had one comment, ‘I hope you do another 40 years’,” she said. “Lovely comments, just beautiful, reminiscing about old times and what Betty used to sell, and now.” Ms Namnik said when the shop first started, half the store was “army clothes”. “That used to just sell and sell and sell,” she said. Gradually, the shop evolved into a colourful and vibrant collection of gifts and clothing, and a bookstore towards the back. Ms Stone told Manjimup-Bridgetown Times she never imagined running a shop in her “wildest dreams”. The pair worked together for 20 years, with Ms Stone an employee of Ms Namnik’s. Ms Namnik said she decided to retire at 70 years old to pursue other things, with Ms Stone taking ownership in 2017. “I didn’t want to see Serendipity close,” Ms Stone said. “It’s a quirky shop. And serendipity means the unexpected, and that’s how it is.” Ms Stone said the relationship between the two was more that of a friendship than employee and boss — and with Ms Namnik still regularly “hanging out” at the store, the friendship continues. “I don’t think we’ve had an argument ever,” Ms Namnik said. “We laugh a lot.” Ms Stone said laughter and “holding in” have helped the business succeed over 40 years — even with hard times, including the timber industry closing.