Work begins on Freddy's Frozen Custard site

The site on Woodruff Avenue where Freddy's Frozen Custard is to be built.

For the sake of everyone who has asked about dirt being moved on Woodruff Avenue near WinCo Foods, that site is where Freddy's Frozen Custard and Steakburgers is going.

Freddy's announced last December that it was planning a store in Idaho Falls and filed site plans with the city building office in April.

The company was founded in 2002 by two brothers, Bill and Randy Simon, whose father, Freddy Simon, was the inspiration for the restaurant (and obviously its namesake). The first franchise launched in Hutchinson, Kansas, in 2004 and by October 2013 the company had opened its 100th location, in Bowling Green, Ky.

According to the Web site, Freddy's plans to open 400 more stores over the next 10 to 15 years.

Earlier this year, Freddy's rated No. 9 in a Consumer Reports ranking of hamburgers.

Who's afraid of Shaddow Domain?

Julie Oliver, behind the counter at Shaddow Domain

Julie Oliver recognizes some people are never going to visit her store, Shaddow Domain, 175 S. Eastern Avenue.

Anyone who is freaked out by pentagrams, Wiccan accoutrements and books about the occult (and there are a few) are by and large not her target audience.

Nevertheless, she's not a devil worshiper, just a small retailer and good neighbor who's been in business for 12 year. She would like to encourage anyone with an open mind to stop by for a visit.

"We're not scary," she said. "The hardest thing is to get people in the front door. It's just a fun place."

With Halloween approaching, you might expect a surge in business, but it's not that big a bump. "It's a big time for people to come in who don't normally come in," she said.

Before starting the store, Oliver worked for 20 years at Chesbro Music, on the second floor, where all the sheet music is kept. Working at Shaddow Domain has given her more face time with the public, which she likes.

Nobody has ever given her flak, and obviously there's a market for the shirts, incense, candles, dolls and novelties that Shaddow Domain sells. The store's Facebook page has 1,986 likes.

"People are looking for so much different stuff," Oliver said. She has no aspirations to grow the business to get any bigger than it is.

"If it got huge, it would lose something special," she said.

Nearest Hobby Lobby store remains in Logan, Utah

We're still kind of buzzing from the response the Hobby Lobby story got last week (6,114 page views in two days) and are waiting like everyone else with bated breath for the official announcement. In the meantime, the nearest Hobby Lobby store remains in Logan, Utah. If it's a deal to you, it might be a nice weekend for a drive. Tell them BizMojo Idaho sent you.

Guns and Gear eyes early November opening

Work has been going on at Guns and Gear, on Crane Drive, since April.

With a new business, Guns and Gear, due to open in two months, Shane Murphy thinks he knows his niche fairly well.

Sportsman's Warehouse and the soon-to-be open Cabela's can have the hunters. Guns and Gear is aimed at "couch commandos," the firearms aficionados who can't get enough of gadgets.

"A $3,500 heat sensor comes out and they've got to have it," Murphy said. "It's very interesting to see the level of interest in that high tactical stuff."

Located on Crane Drive, south of Pancheri, Murphy said they are eyeing a soft opening the first week of November and a grand opening Nov. 14. The project got underway in April, and has been smooth sailing since then, he said.

When finished, there will be roughly 15,000 square feet, about one-third of it devoted to retail. On the range, there will be 15 lanes, 8 of them high tactical.

Murphy said they anticipate hiring around 14 people, including an in-house gunsmith who will be licensed to do warranty repairs on major brands. "We want to be able to fix it or modify it on the spot, not send it off for a week or ten days," he said.

For information, call 521-4564. To check them out on Facebook, click here.

Olive Garden debates wisdom of unlimited breadsticks

In three years of blogging eastern Idaho business I have never seen a reaction like the one to Wednesday's post about Hobby Lobby. In two days, BizMojo Idaho got more visitors and pageviews than the entire month of August. It was all due to the way the story got passed around on Facebook.

It's only natural to want to prolong the excitement, so here's a story about Olive Garden, another brand that seems to provoke a passion in these parts. I'm not expecting a Yellowstone Caldera eruption of hits, but I can dream, can't I?

http://www.salon.com/2014/09/12/olive_garden_investors_are_not_pleased_with_the_chains_breadstick_situation/