The Shade Tree — Local services in Town of Minoqua

As an employee at this store, I would like to point out a few things to our fellow customers and reviewers. As all of you have publicly reviewed your side as a customer, I would like to review my side as an employee, and I do hope you read and consider everything I say to everything you say next time you go into a business.

Everybody is allowed to have their own beliefs and opinions. No one is ever going to be the SAME. And that’s ok. People are meant to be different and their own individual. It’s what makes every human unique. If you have a problem with how a business chooses to operate, you can by all means, choose to spend your money elsewhere. We do not ever wish to force you into anything. People have threatened me that they will never come back ever again and whether I want that or not. It’s your money, I’m simply there to pay my bills. No need to come in to any business, yell at the staff and HARRASS them. Too many times people have come in and said extremely horrible things to my face while I do not talk back for the sake of kind customer service and as someone who struggles a lot with mental health, your choices of how some of you treat me personally despite my kindness and my smile never helps with me trying to get better. It is hard to straighten up everyday with a smile and kindness when I also have to deal with people’s cruel words everyday. Personally for me I actually do have reasons to not wear one for 8-9 hours a day. And when you call me a liar, murderer, everything else, you need to understand that words hurt people and I personally have broke down crying when I get into my car, anxiety attacks when I’m home, and heavy depression all in between. All bc of how some choose to treat people.

Just as you wish for everybody to pay mind to physical health, I only wish and ask that everybody to also pay mind to mental health. You never know what someone is going through and struggling with.

I am not posting this to call anybody stupid or dumb or anything. I am posting simply in the hopes that people will think about how they choose to use their words to a stranger who they do not know, and how their words could heavily affect them and their mental health. And this goes towards any business and any employee. We are all human. All equal. All loved. But my heart continues to break and shatter at the words people use and how it has caused division among everyone in the world.

Have courage and be kind...

The bookstore in Minocqua has been a favorite family treat for many years, through two sets of owners. However, we’ve made our last purchase there.

We were shocked to walk in yesterday to purchase some books and see neither of the store clerks wearing masks. Upon paying for our purchase and leaving the store, I looked up the reviews on Google to see the Owners Response attacking a customer as “stupid” for questioning their failure to adhere to mask guidelines.

There is no legitimate scientific debate on masks, period. Even as young, healthy people, we have a responsibility to protect our friends, family, and neighbors by wearing a mask and maintaining good hygiene. Beyond that, the owner was just rude. We also have the ability to vote with our dollars, and that’s what I will be doing in the future.

I find the setting of this debate to be incredibly ironic - the owner of a small, independent book store calling her customers “stupid” for believing in scientifically and experientially-proven practices. It doesn’t seem like a smart fight to pick; I will be spending my money at at local businesses in the Northwoods going forward.

UPDATE AUG 2022: We are all trying to move past COVID, we had company in town, and I thought I’d give the Shade Tree another try while shopping in town. I walked in carrying two prior purchases- a shopping bag and an UNOPENED box of donuts from the new donut store on the street. Upon walking in, the young man behind the counter immediately told me I couldn’t come in with “leftovers”. I told him it was just donuts, untouched and unopened. He still insisted I couldn’t come in, that “we consider donuts leftovers!” I asked if I could set them on the shelf in the window while I shopped, not near any books. He said no, I needed to be outside. Other customers around me stared in disbelief at the absurdity of the situation, then laughed. My family, company, and I left. Clearly, The Shade Tree STILL has no consideration for others, including their customers and fellow shops. I could certainly understand not allowing people in the store with open containers, ice cream cones, etc. But when there are two candy shops, a popcorn shop, the donut shop, and others that make their living by selling take-away / take-home food that’s packaged in closed containers for transport, their decision-making is either completely self-serving or poorly considered, neither of which I’m interested...

What a nightmare of an experience I had here as a mom with young kids. The owner has already responded to a previous review stating all of her justifications for why she treated me poorly. I want to say, yes, she's totally right in some respects. I had small kids, put my 1 year old down to glance through a book and see if it would be appropriate for a gift, and in that time I was looking at the book, my one year old went down the aisle to be near his older sister (which I knew) and then he stepped up on the bottom shelf (attached to the wall) and pulled out a lightbulb. Unsafe? Yes. Did the store owner see it before I did? Also yes. Did she call my attention to it? Yes. And I responded and picked him up. I wasn't looking at that moment. Anyone with small kids knows they can get into something in an instant when they previously were just fine. She said I refused to pay for damages? I am unaware of damages and she TOSSED my credit card at me when I tried to pay for the items I was buying. At that point after some back and forth (mostly her telling me I don't care about my kids and my husband should be ashamed to have married me and had kids with me) she yelled at me to leave her store and continued yelling while I was in tears leaving her store. My "rude" comments were telling her she was being rude, saying "wow now you're shaming me" and "I'm trying to buy $60 worth of items from you". My tone wasn't kind, I'll own that. But honestly who can be kind to someone when they're publicly shaming you and your parenting and saying you don't care about your kids? So yes, I looked away for a minute too long. I let him walk down the aisle. I didn't see the lightbulb incident and stop it before it happened. Mistakes happen in parenting. A simple "uhoh miss it looks like your boy is getting into something and I worry that's not safe" is way different than the tone and shame I received. Shame on you, store owner. Be kind. Give people the benefit of the doubt. Don't shame parents...