Beach Mart — Local services in Shallotte

I went in to get four things. I could have stopped anywhere. But as a longtime HB lover and family house owner of over 28 years. I always try to use the Beach Mart. As I young child it was one of my favorite places to go. Just like the fishing pier with the game room. I loved eating at the counter and meeting the locals. But like the pier, most good things have come to an end. I went in the Beach Mart to get some kind of cold tea. None! No Coke products or Pepsi in the cold cooler either. I only saw in the cooler single small water bottles for .98$. And werid name brands drinks. This was on a Friday afternoon in August. I finally found a big case of individual bottles on the floor in the aisle. With no price to be found. I bought a small water anyway. I wanted a gallon. They didn’t have any. I wanted something with HB on it. They used to have plenty of what I wanted. Bought the same one for years. At least I was able to find a gift I needed. Cost a lot but very nice present. I didn’t make it upstairs. I had to go.

So I want to sum it up with this. The BM is still the same inside. Nothing has changed. It should be a historical site. I was not impressed with the drinks or food stuff. But it has some great Holden Beach merchandise in it. Actually some just really cool different things. These are great gifts for a special someone. They might cost a little more than the box store on the corner. But the quality is so much better. So even though I didn’t get my water. That I wanted or my other things. I consider my stop a success because I needed a special gift. I did spend the bucks though in my opinion. But it’s nice and not junk. They are getting a 4 because I found a present there that I needed. In about 5 minutes. Not for a good selection of drinks...

If you are looking to visit a beach store, forget Wings and head to Beach Mart. They have been open for 50 years and is family owned. They also carry just about anything you might want or need, from beach towels and tee shirts to tools and knee pads, and their pricing is a lot better than the typical beach store. A fun fact: they asked how long we had been coming to Holden Beach. When they opened, there were no credit cards, so they would take cash or check. If you paid with a check, they would fill out an index card with name, address, etc. Served 2 purposes: they had your info in case you gave them a rubber check, and second, if you were short on cash, you could cash a personal check there to help you get by. They still have the index cards kept in an index filing cabinet, probably a couple of thousand cards at least. They will look to see if your family had visited way back when they...

There were multiple Confederate flag displays and misinformation/propaganda for sale including a glass case of bumper stickers at checkout that said "America love it it leave it" and "Trump won you know it I know it".

In a city that's 96.6% white and 0.511% Black or African American with 0% of families reported using a non-English language at home (according to the Holden Beach 2020 Census), "family owned and operated since 1974" has a decidedly less wholesome connotation when paired with this blatant racism.

To be clear: all citizens have the right to vote for whomever they like. The shop also sells Trump campaign flags and such and their right to do so should be supported by all Americans. This isn't about politics; it's about character. There are better ways...