Published On: 01.22.25 | 

By: Amber Sutton

This store sells only Alabama-made goods, and it’s got just about everything

The Everything Alabama shop on Main Street in Prattville carries about 100 Alabama-made brands, including food, clothing, décor, art and skincare products. (Tillie Jones / Everything Alabama)

Tucked away along downtown Prattville’s charming Main Street is the Everything Alabama gift shop, a store that offers, well, a little bit of everything – from art to gourmet foods to skincare, clothing and glassware – and it all has one thing in common: It’s made right here in the Yellowhammer State.

Tillie Jones, owner of Everything Alabama, said though she isn’t originally from Alabama, she has called Prattville her home for more than 30 years. “I like to say that I often feel as though I have been on my way to Alabama my whole life,” Jones said. “My late dad was an Air Force man from Tallassee, Alabama.”

Jones said she first came up with the idea for a store that sold only local goods more than a decade ago after she tried to help her son’s friend find a T-shirt sporting the town’s name and realized how difficult it was to do so.

“I had the idea while my son was still in college,” she said. “He brought an international student home to visit, and all she wanted was a Prattville T-shirt. We looked everywhere. I know you can find them now, but at the time, we looked around, and you couldn’t even find a Prattville T-shirt anywhere local, and that’s when I began to notice that there really was a need going unmet. I thought, ‘Boy, that would really be a great idea to, you know, have something like a local store that was geared entirely toward Alabama items.’”

Jones, who worked in public relations and mass communication for 30 years before opening the store, didn’t pursue her idea immediately but said it remained with her until she reached a point where she was ready to take on something new – and when that time came, she couldn’t help but come back to the idea of a little shop geared toward Alabama.

The Everything Alabama gift shop in Prattville. (contributed)

In 2015, Jones started selling goods made by about half a dozen Alabama brands in a small booth at Amy’s Antiques in Montgomery. Over time, she was able to grow the size of her booth, as well as the number of brands she sold, until it ultimately made more sense to open her own storefront in 2019. And as luck would have it, the ideal space was available.

“By the time I got to that point, I had already been thinking about getting back in my own community of Prattville, especially the Main Street downtown area, which was where I really wanted to be, and so I just had to grow into that. It was a matter of the right time and place presenting itself.”

Today, the Everything Alabama gift shop has partnered with about 100 brands and makers from all over the state that offer a wide range of products, including well-recognized ones associated with Southern Makers and Sweet Grown Alabama.

“I really wanted to offer solid Alabama brands with a proven track record and a certain amount of brand recognition. It was on my heart to represent the state well,” Jones said. “I also had some local brand favorites of my own that I had used and thought to myself, ‘Gee, if I ever start doing this, I want to make sure I include those brands.’”

Alabama Clay is among the brands sold at the Everything Alabama gift shop in Prattville. (contributed)

Among the display shelves of Everything Alabama, you’ll find skincare products by 1818 Farms, Forage Farmstead and Aqualime, gourmet foods from Fairhope Snack Co., Dayspring Dairy and Hornsby Farms as well as candles by South, Zkano socks, décor pieces by Alabama Clay and Prodigal Pottery, and teas by Piper and Leaf.

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“It’s funny because I kind of sell a little bit of everything,” Jones said. “I kind of mix it up between gourmet food items, art and décor, bath and body items and so on. I want customers to feel like anybody that comes in my store could find something, from simple souvenirs and postcards or magnets to art pieces, which are at a little bit higher end. I want it to feel like anyone can come in and find something and feel like they came away with a special piece of Alabama.”

With Everything Alabama celebrating 10 years in business this year, Jones said she feels her customers – ranging from locals who come in regularly to visitors from all over the state and country – have grown to appreciate and see the true value in buying from Alabama’s small businesses and learning about their stories and the missions behind their brands. She’s excited for what the future of the store could be.

“I think more and more people are making a point of looking for local and want to support our Alabama small businesses,” Jones said. “I feel like what we’re doing really resonates.”

See more of the goods offered at the Everything Alabama store by visiting its Facebook page or dropping in at 183 West Main St. in Prattville.

This story was previously published by This is Alabama. Want to read more good news about Alabama? Sign up for the This is Alabama newsletter here.