J. Matheson Gifts celebrates 25 years in downtown Everett

  • By Jim Davis The Herald Business Journal
  • Tuesday, March 29, 2016 4:25pm
  • BusinessEverett

EVERETT — It takes a special eye to find the items that line the aisles of J. Matheson Gifts, Kitchen &Gourmet.

It also takes a special ear.

J. Matheson celebrates 25 years in business in early April. The store is a fixture in downtown Everett, offering a mix of gifts and home decor. Shop owner Judy Matheson credits the store’s longevity to listening to what her customers tell her, what they like and what they need.

“I go to gift shows with customers in mind,” Matheson said. “If I see something, I think, ‘Oh Mary or Sue would love this.’”

And Matheson has a special knack for finding what will be popular with her customers, said store planner Galen Spaulding. In fact, that level of customer service is what separates J. Matheson from other shops of its kind around the Puget Sound area, she said.

“The product selection, you can’t argue with, it’s top notch,” Spaulding said. “What puts this store over the top is people enjoy coming in here. It’s a good experience.”

The store at 2615 Colby Ave. plans a two-day anniversary sale Friday and Saturday, giving away merchandise every half hour. Matheson grew up in Everett and has lived almost all of her life in Snohomish County. The exception was a three-year stint in Alaska where her husband, Hugh Matheson, was stationed in the military.

When they returend, Judy Matheson went to work for Jim and Nancy Mitchell of Mitchell’s Pharmacy in Lake Stevens. She spent 18 years at the pharmacy and even became a partner in their Granite Falls store. Still, she wanted to venture out on her own.

In 1991, Matheson opened her store on Colby with the help of the Mitchells. Over the years, J. Matheson Gifts has evolved from offering quality and unusual gifts to a store that features home accessories, kitchen and bake wares, gourmet foods, clothing and accessories, children’s wear and toys, jewelry and more.

“I always wanted to have my own business and dreamed about it being in Everett,” Matheson said.

Need a dragon-shaped children’s backpack? J. Matheson has it. Paper table runners? It’s there. Pots and pans or cocktail shakers or aprons, all are stocked on the shelves.

Customer Kim Lamb has been her customer dating back to when Matheson was at Mitchell’s Pharmacy.

“I was so excited when she started this store because everything she buys, I love …” Lamb said.

To find all her wares, Matheson or one of her employees — she employs two full- and six part-time — heads to gift shows across the U.S. She also spends much of her free time looking for what may be the next hot seller.

“I read every giftware catalog I can get my hands on,” Matheson said. “I really take them to bed and read them at night. I don’t read novels, I read giftware catalogs.”

The holiday season is the busiest time of year, but Matheson also is busy before Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and graduation. She also keeps a selection of cards on hand for every occasion.

Mixed in with her stock are books that she thinks will appeal to her customers. (Celebrity chef Tom Douglas packed the store with people when he showed up to sign one of his cookbooks several years ago.)

Over the years, Matheson said she has chosen only a few duds, remembering a bottle warmer that didn’t do as well as she expected. She said if she really believes in an item and loves it, it’s easier to sell. Besides, most of the stock gets cleared out when she does an annual sale.

“We don’t mark things up to mark them down like the big stores do,” she said.

After 25 years, Matheson has gotten the inevitable question: How much longer will she run the shop? While her husband Hugh has retired, Matheson doesn’t expect to step away any time soon.

“If you love what you’re doing, why quit?” Matheson said. “I enjoy getting up and going to work each day. I can’t ask for anything more.”

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Business

Black Press Media operates Sound Publishing, the largest community news organization in Washington State with dailies and community news outlets in Alaska.
Black Press Media concludes transition of ownership

Black Press Media, which operates Sound Publishing, completed its sale Monday (March 25), following the formerly announced corporate restructuring.

Maygen Hetherington, executive director of the Historic Downtown Snohomish Association, laughs during an interview in her office on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024, in Snohomish, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Maygen Hetherington: tireless advocate for the city of Snohomish

Historic Downtown Snohomish Association receives the Opportunity Lives Here award from Economic Alliance.

FILE - Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs poses in front of photos of the 15 people who previously held the office on Nov. 22, 2021, after he was sworn in at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Hobbs faces several challengers as he runs for election to the office he was appointed to last fall. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
Secretary of State Steve Hobbs: ‘I wanted to serve my country’

Hobbs, a former Lake Stevens senator, is the recipient of the Henry M. Jackson Award from Economic Alliance Snohomish County.

Mark Duffy poses for a photo in his office at the Mountain Pacific Bank headquarters on Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Mark Duffy: Building a hometown bank; giving kids an opportunity

Mountain Pacific Bank’s founder is the recipient of the Fluke Award from Economic Alliance Snohomish County.

Barb Tolbert poses for a photo at Silver Scoop Ice Cream on Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Barb Tolbert: Former mayor piloted Arlington out of economic brink

Tolbert won the Elson S. Floyd Award, honoring a leader who has “created lasting opportunities” for the underserved.

Photo provided by 
Economic Alliance
Economic Alliance presented one of the Washington Rising Stem Awards to Katie Larios, a senior at Mountlake Terrace High School.
Mountlake Terrace High School senior wins state STEM award

Katie Larios was honored at an Economic Alliance gathering: “A champion for other young women of color in STEM.”

The Westwood Rainier is one of the seven ships in the Westwood line. The ships serve ports in the Pacific Northwest and Northeast Asia. (Photo provided by Swire Shipping)
Westwood Shipping Lines, an Everett mainstay, has new name

The four green-hulled Westwood vessels will keep their names, but the ships will display the Swire Shipping flag.

A Keyport ship docked at Lake Union in Seattle in June 2018. The ship spends most of the year in Alaska harvesting Golden King crab in the Bering Sea. During the summer it ties up for maintenance and repairs at Lake Union. (Keyport LLC)
In crabbers’ turbulent moment, Edmonds seafood processor ‘saved our season’

When a processing plant in Alaska closed, Edmonds-based business Keyport stepped up to solve a “no-win situation.”

Angela Harris, Executive Director of the Port of Edmonds, stands at the port’s marina on Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024, in Edmonds, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Leadership, love for the Port of Edmonds got exec the job

Shoring up an aging seawall is the first order of business for Angela Harris, the first woman to lead the Edmonds port.

The Cascade Warbirds fly over Naval Station Everett. (Sue Misao / The Herald file)
Bothell High School senior awarded $2,500 to keep on flying

Cascade Warbirds scholarship helps students 16-21 continue flight training and earn a private pilot’s certificate.

Rachel Gardner, the owner of Musicology Co., a new music boutique record store on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024 in Edmonds, Washington. Musicology Co. will open in February, selling used and new vinyl, CDs and other music-related merchandise. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
New Edmonds record shop intends to be a ‘destination for every musician’

Rachel Gardner opened Musicology Co. this month, filling a record store gap in Edmonds.

MyMyToyStore.com owner Tom Harrison at his brick and mortar storefront on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Burst pipe permanently closes downtown Everett toy store

After a pipe flooded the store, MyMyToystore in downtown Everett closed. Owner Tom Harrison is already on to his next venture.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.