Longtime Tacoma cards, gift shop coming to an end after 46 years
One of the oldest retail brands in Tacoma is calling it quits, and not because of the pandemic.
Watermark Gifts, 1115 A St., is shutting down after 46 years of doing business downtown.
“ This is not a result of COVID-19,” owner Karen McGrath told The News Tribune in an email this week. “I began to plan last summer and intended to close at this time.”
The closure, though, does come amid announcements from other longtime Tacoma brands who’ve either decided to close or move away from Tacoma as the business landscape continues to shift in the pandemic, including Bertolino’s Espresso and Urban Xchange.
Though the pandemic didn’t spur McGrath’s decision, it has affected the process.
McGrath said she’s been selling inventory and store fixtures to customers by appointment since April.
“The store is not open to the public, and with the current worries about COVID-19 I don’t plan to open, but will continue on with appointments until mid- to end of July,” she wrote.
McGrath says she began planning her retirement last summer, “wanting to go through Mother’s Day 2020, and then close down.”
“I own my building with my ex-husband, and we listed it for sale in 2019,” she said.
That was part of the retirement plan, McGrath added.
The pandemic did get in the way of those plans “when I had to shut down in March.”
“The building sale went completely on hold. After being home for six weeks, I was a bit worried how to deal with the inventory....”
“So I decided to open to my customers on a very limited, appointment only, basis.”
Those interested in setting up an appointment can go to watermarkgifts.com/find-us.html for more information.
In an interview with The News Tribune in 2014, McGrath compared owning a business to taking a turn on a carnival ride with its ups and downs.
“It’s a constant slow roller coaster,” she said then. “As soon as we get a wonderful uptick, then something happens.”
The key to surviving recessions and the rotation in and out of major employers as a customer base through the years, she noted then, was that one thing remained a certainty: “People will often give a greeting card even when they can’t give a gift.”
Fast forward to now, and she’s directing fans of her store to another locally-owned shop, Paper Luxe Stationery and Gifts, 2053 Mildred St. W., Fircrest.
Jennifer Luna, owner of Paper Luxe, told The News Tribune via email that Watermark was among the retailers instrumental in her own career path and interest in the industry.
“What I loved the most about Watermark was Karen’s large curation of greeting cards,” she wrote. “In our digital age, there is just something so special about receiving a handwritten note from a loved one. Karen had so many wonderful cards to choose from to help celebrate any event or person, from so many wonderful artists.”
She added, “Karen was also very kind and let us take a 12-foot vintage shelving unit back to our new store, The Crest Home.”
The Crest Home, 2057 Mildred St. W., Fircrest, is a home goods store next to Paper Luxe.
“We’re honored to have a little piece of Watermark and downtown Tacoma history living in our space,” Luna said.
Luna also applauded McGrath’s tenure running her own business.
“It is a true testament to Karen’s business savvy and character that she owned and operated a successful retail business for over 40 years in Tacoma and that she is closing on her terms,” wrote Luna. “In an industry where we see shops come and go every day, it is very inspiring to see a woman-owned business thrive for so long.”
McGrath is ready for a new chapter.
“People keep asking what I plan to do next. My best answer is simply not having to work every day. Being self-employed is really being ‘on’ 24/7,” McGrath told The News Tribune.
“I’m looking forward to being ‘off’ for awhile.”
News Tribune archives contributed to this report.
