Fare thee well
Longtime Animas Trading Co. owner Cathy Wakeman sells to local couple

After May 31, Cathy Wakeman will be truckin’ on. The longtime owner of Animas Trading Co. – Durango’s mainstay for everything from festival wear and Grateful Dead memorabilia to cards, accessories and skivvies – is going down the road feeling, well, pretty good.

“I’m so excited. But, it’s kind of crazy,” said Wakeman, 65, who has been involved in the store for 32 years. “I’ve spent half my life working here.”

Wakeman announced last week that, after two years of looking for a suitable buyer, she had sold the store to Amanda and Wes Bierma, of Durango. The Biermas own two other stores on Main Avenue: Out of the Blue, 645 Main, and the Mountain Marketplace, 713 Main (formerly Stuart’s and the Old Barrel Tea Co., which recently moved to 680 Main.)

For Wakeman, who first started working for former Animas Trading owner Ron Kirschnick in 1993, it has been a bit of a long, strange – but fun – trip. And, in case you can’t tell, she owes it all to Jerry and company.

“Ron was a deadhead and so was I,” Wakeman, who moved from the Front Range to Durango in 1990 with husband, Doug. “I would come in and talk to him all the time, and we traded tapes. He had the Grateful Dead’s tour schedule on a chalkboard in the store.”

(That’s right, kids – no Spotify to download songs from, and no social media or websites to tell you where and when your favorite band was playing. Just a good-old fashioned tape deck and Deadhead grapevine.)

The two became quick friends, and eventually, Kirschnick offered her a job.

“He said if you ever want to work here, let me know,” Wakeman recalled.

Even though retail wasn’t exactly what she set out to do in life – up until then, Wakeman had been working at KSUT – she decided to take the chance. 

“I just kind of stumbled into it,” she said. 

When the store’s manager quit a few months after she started, she moved into that role. Fourteen years later, in 2007, when Kirschnick wanted to sell the store, Wakeman was the natural choice – and she has owned it since.

“It’s been amazing. I’ve traveled all over the world and met great people,” she said, referring to her annual trips to Thailand, where she buys much of the funky clothing, tapestries and knick knacks for the store.

In her time at Animas Trading, the store has gone through a few iterations, from digs in the mall where Father’s Daughters Pizza is to 1015 Main (most recently home to Create Art and Tea). Animas Trading moved to its current spot at 742 Main in 2018.

Wakeman began looking for a buyer for the popular store a few years ago, and eventually, her broker led her to Bierma. Prior to that, she had some offers, but none felt quite right – they were either low balls or out-of-towners who wanted to change the vibe of the store drastically.

“It’s a perfect fit,” she said of the Biermas. “They love retail and want to keep the store the same. And they want to keep it local. It feels good, because they’re good people.”

And speaking of locals, Wakeman would like to thank all her faithful supporters and wish the new buyers well with a  party this Thurs., May 29, from 4-9 p.m. at the store. There will be apps, good memories and live music from all-female local band Galavant.

As for Wakeman, a common sight on her cruiser bike riding to and from work (and arguably one of the best-dressed women in Durango), she plans to fill her days the same way she always has: skiing, camping, festivaling and travelling. “Except now, it will be guilt-free,” she said.