Pleasant bells, a light fragrant scent and a choice between coffee or tea are the first things that greet customers when they walk into Columbia store The Witching Hour.
The store, located on Rosewood Drive, educates aspiring witches and offers spiritual guidance for customers looking to learn more about magic, according to owner and practicing witch of six years, Kara Smalley.
Smalley uses The Witching Hour as a learning and teaching space. It includes many books and classes on grounding meditation, astrology and more for anyone who is interested in learning more about magic. Smalley said the store allows people to explore their desire to learn.
The store was originally an idea from Smalley, who set out to create a space she needed, to learn about magic and self-acceptance. Smalley said that she, after going through a period of discovery and learning more about witchcraft, decided to create a store that was a place for people to come and learn, while feeling safe and accepted.
Smalley said that while she is the only full-time employee, it has allowed her to develop a closer relationship with her customers. She said she works on maintaining the store and running classes and events, such as Drag Shows, Spells with Tarot on Tarot Tuesdays and Hands On: Water Infusions.
“I built a store based around everything that I believe and just in the aspect of you need a place to come and feel like you're home, and you're cared about and you're loved. And like no matter what comes out of your mouth, like no, we don't think you're crazy,” Smalley said.
Ashley Terry, a volunteer secretary and practicing witch, helps run the growing social media accounts, schedulings and any clerical needs. Terry has worked with The Witching Hour since its opening in April 2022 and said the store has worked to reinforce its belief in its mission.
“The mission of The Witching Hour is to reach out to the community and to educate," Terry said. "Our mission is to love and to accept all walks of life, no matter who you are, what you identify as or where you are in your practice. We welcome everyone and we will, we are willing to teach everyone."
Smalley said she has been suprised by The Witching Hour's growth in the past year. The store sometimes has a hard time keeping certain products, such as oracle and tarot cards, in stock with its increasing customer base, she said.
“The community has built so much over the last year and a half. It's insane. I've had what I guess would be my regulars and then my regulars, we don't even consider them regulars anymore. We just consider them family,” Smalley said. “I know you by your name when you come through the door. We're just like, 'Hey, how's the kids?' And that's exactly how I wanted the store to be, and it makes me so happy.”
Local artist Alicia Stuart is a regular customer at the Witching Hour. The store has done many things for her, including being a quiet and relaxing place to eat lunch, she said. Smalley and Terry have made her feel comfortable while selling her homemade oils and candles at The Witching Hour.
“I feel like Ashley and Cara try and actually get to know you on a personal level. That's how I feel about them, and that's what made me return because I've didn't experienced that before,” Stuart said. “And with them, like I said, it just felt like it was so welcoming, and like I could go over there and I can actually just sit down and talk with them.”
Stuart has been working with the store since last year. In the time she has been working with Smalley, Stuart said she has found a community in The Witching Hour unlike any she has had before.
The Witching Hour aims to create a safe space for members of the LGBTQIA+ community, according to Smalley. Stuart said she has seen this reflected in the store as she said members from a variety of communities come to the store wanting to learn.
For her, The Witching Hour has been able to embed "self-love" into its store by throwing away any stigmatism surrounding witchcraft.
The Witching Hour not only offers spiritual services but also aims to provide guests with unique opportunities to make their visit to the shop special, Smalley said. One way they do this is by hiding ceramic frogs for customers to find, creating a competition between guests.
“We hide little 3D-printed wizard frogs around the shop. We have three of them: Melvin, Maven and Morticia. And if you find a frog while you're out on the floor, you get a discount off an item if you decide to buy something, but you also get to re-hide the frogs and it has gotten so competitive,” Smalley said.
The Witching Hour hopes to continue expanding and growing its customer base by making its services and products available online, Smalley said. The store will debut a website later in October.
Smalley said it will be beneficial to the store in making its products more accessible to customers, as well as growing people's knowledge.
“There's general things for your practice, there's going to be like really cool incense burners, herbs that you can order," Smalley said. "The biggest thing is my tarot and oracle decks because they never stay in stock … But the books, the oracle and the tarot will always be available online now and that makes me really happy.”
The Witching Hour offers Tarot Tuesdays, drag shows and tea parties. The store has two upcoming events, Hands On: Water Infusions on Oct. 24. and Tarot Tuesday: Tarot Curses on Oct. 17, that is open to anyone in the community. More information can be found on The Witching Hour's website.
The Witching Hour is located on 2763 Rosewood Drive and is open from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, as well as 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.