Kristin Kohn
Owner- Silver In The City
 

Website: http://www.silverinthecity.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/silverinthecity/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/silverinthecity/

History:
1st Location: 715 Mass Ave in July of 2000. 
Opened in that small space that later turned in to the Flying Cupcake and is now the second half of Tini.
Nightlife in the community.  

2nd Location: Moved to the 400 block of Mass Ave in 2001. 
Because of the cafes and coffee shop they now open up earlier then back in the day. 

Kristin moved to Downtown Indianapolis in 1997. 
-Originally from Eastern Pennsylvania, went to Purdue, then moved to Chicago after college, and finally found herself in Indianapolis. 
-Found a job as a Production Artists for a recruitment advertisement agency, but wasn't in love with it. 

"Kristin's Journey into the world of silver"
-Started with $20,000. 
-Found a great space with a great landlord who wanted to help her. ($12sq/ft back in 2000 on Mass Ave)

"At Home in The City" - This was a spin off of Silver in the City for the need of a home goods store in Downtown Indianapolis.  

Questions: 
Who were the major players on Mass Ave back in 2000? 
David Andrichik of Chatterbox Jazz Club and Connie Zeigler of Durwin's Medley (sp?) combined to create the Mass Ave Merchants Association (MAMA), which still exists today.  

Have you seen a change, 'evolution', of the Arts and Cultural aspect of Mass Ave? 
Mass Ave Toys being asked to leave when the building was bought because the new owners wanted a bar or restaurant specific to that space and will not entertain small local businesses.  

Kristin: "Balance out the high dollar rent of some of the bigger players with smaller spaces for a lower price to give people a chance."

How do you feel about Indianapolis as a whole right now? Boom or Bust? 
Human nature to be nervous with change, but it's good. 
Good- Increase the safety of our city with this growth. 
Bad- Prices out long time residents. 

Who and how do you put so many products on the website? 
Sarah Kate: Online Store Manager

Who is in charge of your buying? How often are you using local artisans? 
Source locally all the time.  They challenge the local vendors to bring new things to the table every year. 

How did the Carmel store location come to fruition? 
It all started from a 'pop-up' store in combination with other Mass Ave merchants on Main St. in Carmel, IN. 

Kristin Kohn: "You can't throw a rock without hitting an entrepreneur here in Indianapolis."

Was there ever a time when you didn't think Silver In The City would work? 
The Downtown Indianapolis store has always been great.  However, she did open a store in West Lafayette and it didn't work out so she had to close it up.  

Can you speak about the event that you hosted on Inauguration Day of this year? 
Donated 100% of sales of both stores and the online store to Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky.  In total the community got behind Silver In The City and they made just under $45,000, in which all proceeds were donated.  
https://www.plannedparenthood.org/planned-parenthood-indiana-kentucky/newsroom/local-business-raises-more-than-44k-in-one-day-for-ppink

Who is the Silver In The City team? 
Approximately 30 employees. 
In the Office:
Andrea - Buyer and Merchandiser- She has been with Kristin for 14 years. 
Sarah Kate - Social Media and Online Store
Bee Arthur- Spokes Dog - Golden retriever. 

Mass Ave Floor Team: 
Sarah - Manager who has been with them for 5 years. 
Shea - Assistant Manager
Shift Leader and Sales People

Carmel Team:
Nick - Manager of the Carmel team
Shift Leader and Sales People
Hiring more high school students at Carmel and they have been doing great.  


Tasting Time: 
Ash & Elm: Headlong- Dry Hopped Cider, Mosaic Hops  http://www.ashandelmcider.com/ourciders/
New Day Craft - Johnny Chapman: https://www.newdaycraft.com/on-tap
New Day Craft- South Cider: https://www.newdaycraft.com/on-tap

Rapid Fire Questions: 
Cat or Dog? 
Carmel or Mass Ave Store? 
Go-to spot to grab coffee? 
Favorite restaurant in town? 
Favorite place to grab a drink? 
What are you currently obsessed with? 
 

November 25th: Shop Small Saturday

Our flagship store is located at 434 Massachusetts Avenue, in Downtown Indianapolis.
Store Hours are Mon - Thu 9a - 9p; Fri - Sat 9a - 10p; Sun 10a - 6p

In May of 2015 we opened a 2nd location at 111 W. Main Street, Suite #150, in Carmel, Indiana. 
Store Hours are Mon - Sat 10a - 9p; Sun 11a - 6p