I think a lot of people liked seeing them there, whether they thought about it consciously or not. So when we came along and said we wanted to preserve the silos as the landmark they are and to turn this property into something that could serve as a vibrant centerpiece for the whole community, he was interested.
Chip was still skeptical, though. He said, “Jo, this is a big project, and I don’t want to get in the same place we were in with the Villas.”
“Chip, I just feel like this is right. This is our next step.”
Part of me wondered if maybe we could make some money by tearing the giant silos down and selling them for scrap metal. I kept joking with Jo and teasing her about it. But she put together a drawing of the whole space and how she envisioned it coming together. And once I took one look at that, once I truly saw her vision for this retail center and new headquarters for our company, I was 100 percent on board. This place was Jo, no doubt about it.
I just kept thinking back to all those years ago to our honeymoon, how she would have me pull over anytime we’d see silos or an abandoned grain barn. It just made sense, like it was all part of the plan.
I let Chip handle all the negotiations because that’s always been his thing. And we were able to make a deal. Once again, just as with the shop on Bosque, just as with the farm we now call home, the seemingly impossible and out of reach became real. In fact, it seemed very meant to be.
Thousands of people showed up when we opened Magnolia Market at the Silos in October of 2015, and they haven’t stopped coming ever since. The store has sixteen thousand square feet of floor space, and it’s constantly filled with people, inside and out. This rusty old place that some people considered an eyesore is now a viable part of our downtown district. It’s also providing jobs to dozens upon dozens of new and longtime Magnolia employees.
Talk about coming full circle. If I ever needed proof that I should trust God with my dreams, this was certainly it. He turned my little dream, my mustard seed of faith, into all this. Not even a decade after I made that difficult decision to close my shop to stay home with my babies, God delivered on the promise of making my dreams come true in ways that were bigger than I ever imagined.
The best part of all of this growth is that we’ve been able to channel it right back into the town we love. We’re both proud of the work our friends and fellow business owners do—the local craftsmen and craftswomen who’ve dedicated their time and energy to making the beautiful items we showcase, from jewelry to furniture to handmade signs and pottery.
Who knows? Maybe someday soon we’ll find a way to bring Magnolia Market to other cities. How cool would it be to feature local artists and craftsmen and to bring this wonderful thing that’s happened in our hometown to hometowns all over America?
Look at what Chip unleashed by encouraging me to go open my little shop way back in 2003. Look at what that turned into. I am so grateful for that. I’m not sure if any of these big plans will ever happen, but I sure like to dream about them. And as I’ve learned, when I speak my dreams out loud to Chip—and to God—those dreams have a way of becoming attainable.
Life changes quickly. Overnight, your whole world can change. Chip and I have already experienced that time and time again. And in this season we’re in now, which is by far the busiest season of our lives, the changes that have happened are things no one can prepare for.
I’m an introvert by nature. Yet now, everywhere I go, people seem to know me and come up to me and want to talk to me—and it’s beautiful. I’m so grateful. And Chip—Chip just loves it. I think he’d like to be president of the United States someday, so he’s out there shaking everybody’s hand and kissing babies and waving to everybody.
We’ve simply had to adjust to a new way of living, that’s all.
Chip and I both work hard. We continue to make mistakes, and these days we work even harder to learn from them and get better. If I had planned my life, it never would have ended up like this. So maybe it’s kind of fun not to plan. Maybe it’s more fun just to see where life takes you. After all, we’re living proof that sometimes even the messiest stuff and the biggest mistakes can take you someplace wonderful.
Speaking of which, we finally sold that old houseboat. We never did get it in the water. That thing just sat there until the summer of 2015, when we finally found a buyer who was willing to devote the time and energy that boat needed to come back to life.
I was mad at Chip when he bought that houseboat. I think I had every right to be mad. But the point is that it turned out okay. It turned out better than okay. That stupid houseboat was the catalyst that got us to where we are now.
And no, the dream isn’t about fame and fortune. For me, the dream is that I get to wake up every morning and do what I love with the ones I love.
When Chip is out in the field herding the goats or working the cows, he gets that same feeling—because back when he was little he said to himself, “One day I want to do what my granddad does.”
Being on a farm is something we both dreamed about, and in the hustle and bustle of our busy life, when I come back here to this place I love, it always takes me back to the basics. That’s why I go into that garden and I work with my hands. That’s why I think it’s important that Chip works with those animals. There’s something about doing things the way our ancestors used to do them that kind of puts your heart back into the rhythm of this thing called life. It’s why I think cooking for my family is important. It’s why I love making things with my hands, designing with my hands, and gardening with my hands.
I think it’s important to reiterate here that I didn’t start out wanting to be a gardener, or a designer for that matter. It was all trial and error and figuring things out. And sometimes you’ve got to try something outside of your comfort zone to figure out what it is that you truly love.
Well, you could say that about you and me right from the start. You were never looking for the loud guy, and I certainly wasn’t looking for the quiet girl.
Now I look back and go, “If I would’ve ended up with that quiet guy or that stable guy or that safe guy, I would never have been able to pursue any of these dreams, because no one would have pushed me to these new places I discovered in myself.” Those other types of guys might have allowed me to stay in that safe place.
They wouldn’t have drawn you out. That’s interesting. And if I had wound up with some cheerleader who was always the life of the party, I don’t think I would have found my way, either. I needed you for that.
Nowadays when I think about the name Magnolia, I think about it in terms that refer to much more than the blossoming of our business. I think about the buds on the tree, and how they really are just the tightest buds—they look like rocks, almost. And I feel like when Chip and I met, that tight little bud was me. I was risk averse, and in some ways, I don’t think I saw the beauty or the potential in myself. Then I wound up with Chip Gaines and—
You bloomed?
I did. If I hadn’t married Chip, I might not have ever bloomed.
I can’t imagine what my life would be if we hadn’t traveled this road. We celebrated our twelfth anniversary recently, and my dad said something that I thought was really beautiful. He said, “Chip, I always thought, when I was out on the baseball field hitting you those grounders, that I was training you to be the next greatest baseball player. But now, looking back and seeing the person you’ve become, I was really training you to be the next greatest dad.”