Ten years ago, four Montgomery County women started a business at High Hill that sells new, used and antique items.

Cindy Branstetter, Lori Stathem, Susie Keithley and Susan Russell found a small building along Booneslick Road and opened The Shop at High Hill, which is nicknamed “The Cutest Little Shop Off I-70.”

“We found out that a shop that was previously there was going to be vacating,” Stathem said. “We decided that we were going to go ahead and make a run at it. All of us were artists of some form. We just like to create. We were able to create and sell.”

Now, the shop is celebrating its 10th anniversary in business and is now owned by the mother and daughter duo of Branstetter and Stathem.

“Our neighbors have come and gone and they had businesses come and go in the 10 years that we have been there,” Stathem said. “It’s a little bit harder when we’re the only business (in town).”

Branstetter and Stathem moved to Montgomery County during the 1980s. Before she became co-owner of The Shop At High Hill, Branstetter worked in real estate.

“My mom has made wonderful creations ever since I was a little girl and beyond,” Stathem said. “She had a wonderful history with sewing and she often does music. It’s a blessing to be her daughter growing up with all of that creativity and being able to have the freedom to put that in the shop. It’s good. We really enjoyed it.”

Branstetter was also on the first board of directors for the Montgomery County Arts Council after it was founded in 2013. She said she joined the Arts Council so she could help advertise the shop.

“When we did art shows and things like that, I could take my things and we could put signs up,” Branstetter said.

Branstetter said the shop’s building was first owned by Darren Brookman.

“They rented it to us for $200 a month,” Branstetter said. “It’s a cheap place to run. The electricity and water are all we have here as far as utilities.”

Stathem’s specialty is crocheting and knitting items.

“I’ve been crocheting since I was 9,” Stathem said. “One of my grandmothers taught me how to do that. When I was 24 and pregnant with my second child, I decided that I was going to do knitting. I picked that up. So that’s two of the crafts that I picked up over the years and sold quite a bit in the shop and outside of the shop. I set up the shows. I sold off Facebook as well.”

Stathem said business at the shop slowed down during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

“We were doing appointments,” Stathem said. “I offered free delivery from the shop all of the way up north where I live. There were a lot of people who have seen what I have posted on our Facebook page and said, ‘I want that. I’ll have the cash ready for you if you drop it off at my porch.’ We were able to offer those services for anybody who was not comfortable enough to come to the store.”

Stathem said she enjoys working with her mother at the shop.

“My mom and I get along well,” said Stathem, who lives in Laddonia. “The policy between me and mom is when we’re in the shop, it’s business and we’re partners. When we’re not in the shop, she’s my momma. I don’t have the business authority outside of the shop with her. It’s been a joy.”

The Shop At High Hill is open from 10am-5pm Wednesday through Friday and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturday. For more information, contact Branstetter at 636-359-2389 or Stathem at 573-721-2252.