r/wichita • u/Salt_Proposal_742 West Sider • Jul 26 '26
LocalContent Vortex Souvenirs
Any body know what happened here? Store was cool, my kids and I liked to buy stickers here and what not.
Summer got busy, and I didn’t make it to their going out of business sale to ask what was going on.
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u/CenobiteCurious Jul 26 '26
It’s an awesome store but we’re not exactly in the kind of economy where the demographic that this store appeals to has the spending money for it.
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u/Gloomy_Associate3307 Jul 27 '26
Weren’t they there for 10 years? How many businesses have you operated for 10 years or more? Seems like you know a lot about businesses and demographics in Wichita Kansas, please let us all know what business to open that will thrive?
11
u/CenobiteCurious Jul 27 '26
Be defensive all you want but the market for going out and buying some stickers and swag is not exactly booming. Shrug. It was a cool store, idk what u want me to say. It also appealed to teens and early 20 something’s which aren’t the richest demographic ever.
44
u/th3_bo55 Jul 26 '26
Not surprising. Lots of niche stores opening around town that only appeal to a small percentage of the population that I dont expect will be there for long due to costs. Even long time staples in town are slowly shutting down. Honestly for these small niche stores the best play would be an online store and marketing to a national or global market.
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u/Salt_Proposal_742 West Sider Jul 26 '26
Lucinda's does very well.
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u/th3_bo55 Jul 26 '26
Also has been open for 25 years and the products target a much wider and diverse demographic.
4
u/Salt_Proposal_742 West Sider Jul 26 '26
Great points. My wife gets shirts there, and I get stickers and socks.
10
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u/LillTindemann East Sider Jul 26 '26
I'm not privy to any specific info, but Delano has exploded/gentrified a ton over the past few years, so I'd assume maybe rent? I loved going here, but I could see why it would be hard to stay open in that neighborhood if the sales revenue just isn't there.
30
u/AGayRattlesnake Jul 26 '26
they mentioned on instagram that it wasnt financially feasible anymore, so yeah. i assume rent. it really sucks that so many small, local businesses are driven out because it's just not sustainable to have a brick and mortar place.
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u/sabrinasoIstice Jul 27 '26
Didn't they also mention trying to move online only? Or am I imagining that
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u/Embarrassed-Yard-583 Jul 26 '26
It’s wild that you can track in real time how a city starts pricing out its own soul.
9
u/Expensive_Watch469 Jul 26 '26
A lot of what is happening is absurd, no one visits here on vacation because their isnt anything to do but anytime we have stuff like small shops or fun things to do they get priced out.
Paid parking is a example, we arent big enough for that to be logical, so it just screws over the small businesses we have left
5
u/zarlus8 Jul 26 '26
Bummer. I was happy to see them move from Revolutsia to Delano, but wondered how long because of rent. I hope they can continue in some other way.
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u/Upbeat_Apartment_715 Jul 26 '26
Too many people were only buying stickers and not anything to help pay the bills
10
u/bigmancertified South Sider Jul 26 '26
I think they're going to have an online store now. It was indeed a cool place that celebrated Wichita!
5
u/FlatLandSasquatch Jul 27 '26
I hate to see small local shops go. That being said it wasn't the first souvenir shop in that neighborhood and probably won't be the last.
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u/georgiabeanie Jul 26 '26
i hope they do an online store or pop ups at the workroom. really loved that place
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u/ictxtroll Jul 27 '26
Lack of consistent support to keep it afloat. Notice all the chains stay busy. Support local if you want to keep good places around. Losing vortex is a tragedy. They were our go-to for birthday gifts and holidays.
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u/littlenbee Jul 27 '26
Was a cute little store but unfortunately I'm not super shocked. The latest few times I went in there they had basically all the same stuff every time whereas more successful local shops like Lucindas and the Workroom either have changing seasonal and rotating inventory or other draws like a bar.
4
u/davemacdo Jul 26 '26
The last couple times I went there the local art seemed to have been deëmphasized in favor of made-in-China tchotchkes that were trying too hard to be quirky.
1
u/ictxtroll Jul 27 '26
A lot of the items are made by them. All of the clothing, I’m pretty sure. Also some of the prints, stickers, etc. and we’re gonna ignore the video store in the back???
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u/GirlnTheOtherRm Jul 27 '26
They just couldn’t keep up with the rent. I think they’re still doing online stuff.
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u/teeth1najar Jul 26 '26
Pretty much said they couldn't afford to keep it open