Zook, 35, works two other jobs to support her store. She takes 11-hour road trips to find odd items in tiny haunts of forgotten Indiana towns. She washes, steam cleans, measures, sizes and prices the clothing she collects. Her store is filled with mid-century furniture, dishware, knickknacks and clothes. Some of it is kooky, some more conservative — but Zook said each piece speaks to her in some way.
Antiques are in her blood, she said, but she can’t do it anymore.
“It’s been physically and emotionally stressful trying to maintain that much stuff,” she said. “It takes a lot to run a small business.”
Zook said heightening taxes combined with the vast online market and big chain stores have made it hard for her to succeed. The same factors pose challenges to all of Bloomington’s small businesses, Zook said.
“It’s maddening, and it’s frustrating,” she said. “I don’t have corporate support. None of the small, independent businesses do.”
AZ Vintage is carefully curated, Zook said. She said she worked hard on it, and she only buys what she likes.
“It’s a different type of store. It’s not cut and dry,” Zook said. “It appeals to lots of different people for lots of different reasons.”
Janani Krishnan, an IU sophomore and Bloomington native, said AZ Vintage is one of her favorite stores in Bloomington. It’s clean, affordable and well-organized. The employees are helpful, and there are always new treasures to be found Krishnan said.
“It’s run by dedicated and passionate people,” she said.
Zook said the store attracts college kids and young professionals who are into vintage, people looking for retro costumes, tourists just poking around and old ladies seeking the type of blouse they can’t find anywhere else. People ask her about specific things in the shop and often share memories with her. She said she always found that sweet and endearing.
“I knew there would be an emotional connection,” she said, but she wasn’t expecting how deep that connection would be. Zook said she’s enjoyed the conversations she got into with customers, but often they took her time without buying anything. She said she sometimes has felt like she is running a museum.
“I’ve been amazed at this business, how much ‘looky-loo’ kind of stuff happens,” she said. “If it’s a busy day, it’s no big deal. But if it’s a slow day, and that’s all the traffic I have, I want to put a can up that says, ‘Museum donations $5!’”
Zook has just one employee. The business rested on her shoulders, and while she said she was thankful for the friends she made running A.Z. Vintage, she’s eager to move on.
“Anybody that does this, it takes guts to do this,” she said. “You’re taking what is your hobby, and you’re trying to turn it into a living, which can either go brilliantly or terribly.”
Zook isn’t sure what the future holds. She’s moving to a full-time position at Cardinal Spirits, but in the meantime, she’s trying to sell everything in the store and find someone to sublease the space. She said she needs at least a year-long break before she does anything with vintage again. But she’ll never quit vintage.
“I’ll never stop doing this,” she said. “It’s in my blood.”
