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Andersonville's Presence Turns 46, Will Celebrate With Sales and Cupcakes

By Josh McGhee | November 6, 2015 5:44am
 Joanna Miner, of Lincoln Square, took over the store from her mother about 10 years ago, she said.
Joanna Miner, of Lincoln Square, took over the store from her mother about 10 years ago, she said.
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DNAinfo/Josh McGhee

ANDERSONVILLE — Forty-six years ago, Presence wasn't a store, it was just an idea from three women fresh out of the Peace Corps looking to turn their skills into profit, said the women's clothing store owner Joanna Miner.

Miner's mother was one of those three women who set up shop in a living room and laid the foundation for the business. About ten years ago, Miner took over the store, now at 5216 N. Clark St., which will celebrate its 46th anniversary with cupcakes and sales this weekend.

"[The anniversary] is something I'm really proud of," said Miner in the shop Thursday night. "It's a family business, so I think that makes us pretty unique and special. We've been able to adapt over the years."

A knack for adaptation was necessary. From the living room, it moved to a storefront on Broadway, then landed in Lincoln Park before opening in Andersonville about 15 years ago. When they began they literally sold granola and tie-dye items, she said.

"It was like really hippie. Someone said granola was going to be big so they started selling it. That's actually how my dad met my mom, he was buying granola," said Miner with a laugh.

In the '70s, the shop began selling furs and ice capade costumes before morphing "into more of a woman's clothing store." But the store is done morphing for now, she said.

"I don't think businesses get to evolve the way they used to and I think we're happy the way it is. But we're a small store, so we can evolve where a big business couldn't," she said adding they don't plan on moving anytime soon either.

"We love Andersonville. We love our customers here. They're really friendly and it really feels like a neighborhood here," she said.

To celebrate the anniversary the store will be offering cupcakes and all their sale items for 46 percent off. Jewelry and dresses will also be on sale, she said.

But the family business may have more to celebrate than just the store. Miner, who admitted the timing is a little "precarious," is expecting her second child "any day now."

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