Non-Pagans At The Pagan Store
While Pagan-owned shops often act as meeting places and central hubs for the local Pagan community, many of them depend heavily on the curious non-Pagan shopper to pay the rent and keep their lights on. Author and blogger Cintra Wilson does a nice write-up of how New York’s Enchantments (the oldest Witchcraft store in the city) caters to those just looking for a little magic now and then.
“Nancy and I were shopping for luck for our literary projects. “If you’re a writer, Mercury is your patron god,” Ricky said. “He’s all about speed, speech and commerce. New York is his city. There’s a big statue of Mercury at Grand Central station.” Our candles were selected by color, then spoonfuls of powdered incense were burned in the glass candleholders while Kathy and Ricky took out their daggers and carved “magickal seals” into our candles from a guidebook of drawings kept in plastic sleeves in a three-ring binder. Once the candles were carved, they put on latex gloves and rubbed custom oils and glitter into our candles.”
An employee at Enchantments also explains that despite the recent economic downturn, they haven’t seen any sharp decreases in business.
“A financial crash, Kathy agreed, is a good time to be in the occult business: ‘We’re always asked to do love stuff, but lately, it has been way more about jobs — people looking for work and protection of their monies.’”
These Witch/occult shops essentially fulfill the same function that botanicas do for Latino communities. They provide a way to exercise some control over forces in your life that can sometimes seem uncontrollable, and provide consolation and empowerment when you feel you have nowhere else to turn.
“I went. First I got a tarot reading from this absolutely stunning witch, with big blue eyes, tons of black hair, a thick Bronx accent and a huge pentagram necklace. I was weeping, and she was so comforting! So maternal! … This witch gave me an object to project power on, but what the experience really gave me was the ability to see how much power I had on my own. I didn’t need the guy. I got an idea of how to confront my own pain and darkness, and transform it into something positive.”
Let’s hope that all our little Pagan shops find themselves as resistant to our ongoing economic turmoil, and continue to service the needs of their communities, Pagan and non-Pagan alike.
3 responses so far
I wouldn’t really extrapolate too much about Pagan shops from the sad, sorry state of Enchantments. For starters, it’s been there for 20+ years, and is probably one of the oldest shops in the country. But the reason business hasn’t decreased there is because no actual Pagans have shopped there in years. Management has been one series of epic fail ever since the original owners sold it and moved. Extremely knowledgeable community fixtures getting fired over trifling, stupid drama, a joke of a selection, I could go on and on. The last time I went there, it looked like half the very meager shelf space was devoted to random crap someone was trying to get rid of (including used manga of all things). The only people who still shop there are Edina Monsoon types buying Catch a Rich Husband oil, thrill seeking yuppie Muggles, and newbies who still find the address in the back of Scott Cunningham books.
Lest you think I’m just being a hater, I used to work there many moons ago, and it guided me on my first steps on this path, when it was still a valuable resource. It’s really painful to see that place’s sharp decline, and I hope the situation improves. I am not terribly hopeful though.
I haven’t been to Enchantments in at least 15 years. I used to save my dollars for months to be able to afford a little spending spree there and loved coming home with candles and oils and their loose incenses.
Lest you think I’m just being a hater, I used to work there many moons ago
Ah. So your motivation is vengeance, then? Always a crowd-pleaser.