At age 60, Susan Troller, an accomplished journalist and author, could have retired.
Instead, she’s hatched a second career devoted to chickens and the people who love them.
After her book Cluck: From Jungle Fowl to City Chicks was published in 2011, she realized there was a sizable but underserved backyard chicken contingent anxious for information and camaraderie. Troller and her husband, Howard Cosgrove, who live on a small Green County farm, pecked into their retirement next egg to open Cluck: The Chicken Store last August. The Paoli shop is dedicated to everything chicken … supplies, chicken gifts, and just outside the door, chicken coops – including one currently housing four of her 12 pet chickens.
“I’m a chicken enthusiast, not an expert,” she admits, though she’s learning quickly.
The couple spent $20,000 in start-up costs, not including inventory, and restored a building owned by her parents. Despite the quirky collection of chicken-related gifts and artwork, the store’s mission is a serious one – to be a resource and promote the healthy and safe practice of raising backyard chickens. The store does not sell chickens, but offers backyard chicken feed – including an exclusive organic mixture – and schedules educational seminars on everything from winterizing live birds to basic Chickens 101.
The chicken coops on display outside the shop range from practical to artistic and are offered for sale on consignment. They vary in cost from about $450 and up, depending on size and design.
Backyard chickens are not a fad, in her mind. “I think it’s all part of a larger trend toward being more interested in and mindful of the quality of our food, and I don’t believe that will change. The benefits are so tremendous.”
Troller eats the eggs her hens lay, and while she does not raise her chickens for meat, she also doesn’t chastise those who do. “I buy humane-certified chicken at the grocery store,” she said, “or whole chickens from friends. It’s not having a humane death that’s a problem [for the birds], but having an inhumane life.”
She also discourages people who may not be well suited for backyard chickens, since the birds require daily care and are always at risk from the elements or predators. “Everything likes chickens,” Troller lamented, admitting she lost two to raccoons last year.
To date, Cluck has made most of its money from sales of books and gifts, and is holding its own on supply sales. Troller remains unruffled. “I had no retail experience,” she admitted. “It’s like toddlers running a store, but I’ve had such great help from [other business owners] and the Paoli merchants group.”
The goal, she explained, was to break even in the store’s first six months, and thus far, it’s on track. Sales have been higher than projected, but so have expenses. “We’re sorting through that,” she said, adding that another goal is to offer some of the store’s unique items online.
“I’d like to see us reach six figures in sales by the end of our first year.”
Cluck: The Chicken Store
6904 Paoli Road, Paoli, WI 53508
608.848.1200 | cluckthechickenstore.com
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