Shirley Bowman and her sister were looking to the future in 1975 when they helped their mother pick a name for her new store on King Street in Preston.
“My sister, Helen, myself and my mom were sitting around trying to come up with a name,” said Bowman.
“We were calling it things like Nanny’s Cranny and just being funny when Helen suggested Etcetera. She was absolutely right, and the name just grew with the store as it changed through the years.”
Bowman has been reflecting a lot on the past in the three weeks since she announced she was closing the shop at the end of the month.
Generations of customers have been returning to browse for gifts and souvenirs, wish her well in retirement and share their memories of shopping at Etcetera with their mothers and grandmothers over the years.
“My grandmother had a shoe store across the road,” said Cheryl Ellis-Legati. “My mom used to work at the Tea Room next door and that’s where my mom and dad met. She used to come in here to browse and visit with your mom. That was a long time ago.”
Bowman clearly enjoys reminiscing with customers but she’s quick to point out that she is not someone who dwells in the past and that the origin story of Etcetera is one of resilience and change.
It was, after all, only two years after Bowman’s father, Harold Thorman, died at the age of 58, that her mother, Marjery Thorman, who was 55 at the time, decided to defy convention and open her own shop.
“My mom ran the cafeteria at the Preston High School for 17 years and when my dad died, she decided she wanted to do something that was just totally different,” said Bowman.
“She didn’t have her driver’s licence because back then your husband always drove you and they only had one car. So, she went out and got her licence and rented this place then she drove to Toronto and bought stuff, came back, and opened up the shop.”
Family and friends pitched in to support and celebrate the new venture.
“When we opened, we had a wine and cheese party in the basement because you weren’t allowed to have liquor upstairs,” said Bowman. “My brother-in-law arranged all that and it was really cool.”
The building was owned by Hespeler entrepreneur Alex Forbes and the previous tenant was the Chamber of Commerce, but Marjery was determined to make the place her own.
“This is the original sign my cousin Alan made for my mom when she opened,” said Bowman.
“She had all her cupboards custom made too and at that time we sold shower curtains, towels, rugs and a little bit of giftware. We eventually went more into gift lines and were able to pivot.”
Bowman worked as a purchasing agent for Genesco and other local business for many years and in 1977 became the Preston Towne Centre Business Investment Area coordinator, a position she holds to this day.
“My mom ran the store for several years then in 1985, I joined her and we worked together,” said Bowman. “She semi-retired and went on to teach quilting and things like that at craft shows. She was pretty talented.”
Marjery Thorman passed away May 1, 2012.
“She was 92,” said Bowman. “She should have gone to 100. She was an amazing person.”
Bowman’s sister Helen Thorman-McLean died July 7, 2002.
Helen never worked in the store. She was superintendent of human resources for the Waterloo Region District School Board after working as an educator.
Bowman and her husband of 54 years, Gary Bowman, have two sons.
“One is Colin and one is Shawn,” she said. “They’re both married, and Colin has two girls, Emma and Sadie and they have been working beside me in the store. That’s why my son Colin told the news, ‘My kids are going to be unemployed’.”
Some people have suggested that Bowman pass the business on to the girls when they are ready.
“They’re 12 and 15 and people say, ‘why don’t they take over’,” Bowman responded. “Well, because their Nana would have to work until she was 100 so, that’s not going to happen.”
Her decision to close Etcetera is not up for debate.
“It’s been 50 years and it’s time,” she said. “I had people that wanted to buy it, but I didn’t really want to sell it because it was our business. Etcetera is Marjery and Shirley so, I just didn’t want to do it.”
Etcetera officially closes its doors on Jan 31, 2025, but at the rate things are going the shelves will be bare well before that and Bowman has no grand finale planned.
“Everyone is asking, ‘Are you going to have another wine and cheese party?’, but I’ve made absolutely no plans,” said Bowman.
“I’m just going to lock the door and leave, however I’m not dying. I’m still going to be here. I’ll be out on the bench or whatever touring the local restaurants and promoting local businesses. As my granddaughter will say, ‘Nana doesn’t know how to not do anything.’“
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