Kaleidoscope builds business on alternative wares, service

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Tom and Pam Pierson aren't your typical business owners, nor do they want to be. When payday rolls around at Kaleido-scope, the Springfield gift shop they founded in 1972, each of their 10 employees calculates their earnings for the week minus state and federal taxes and fills out their own paycheck. The amount is never questioned. |ret||ret||tab|

Both of the Piersons dislike paperwork, so they have an ac-countant keep the shop's books and do their taxes. The rest of the duties are divided up ac-cording to their individual interests. |ret||ret||tab|

Pam Pierson enjoys dealing with the employees, so she makes out the weekly work schedules. She also orders and tracks the shop's inventory. Tom Pierson pays the bills, handles advertising for the shop and does other activities he finds en-joyable. |ret||ret||tab|

Their 26-year-old daughter, Whitney Pierson, a graduate of Drury University in Springfield, manages the first floor of the two-story shop. Her boyfriend, Ben Creehan, is in charge of op-erations upstairs.|ret||ret||tab|

"We've surrounded ourselves with family and people we truly like and trust," said Tom Pier-son. "Our goal isn't to make a lot of money. Our goal, believe it or not, is to have a good time." |ret||ret||tab|

While this business philosophy may seem a bit unorthodox to some, it certainly hasn't hurt the shop's profit margin. |ret||ret||tab|

Last year, Kaleidoscope did more than $1 million in retail sales, according to Tom Pierson. That's pretty impressive, if you stop to consider Kaleidoscope only has 1,600 square feet of sales space. |ret||ret||tab|

In addition, sales made through the store's Web site www.kscope4fun.com helped push profits even higher. The Web site, which was launched in 2000, has helped expand Kal-eidoscope's customer base, and the shop now ships merchandise to customers throughout the United States. |ret||ret||tab|

Customers who visit Kaleido-scope's online store or its brick-and-mortar shop, located in an old house at 1416 E. Sunshine, quickly realize they're not at an ordinary gift shop. Kaleido-scope, which bills itself as one of the pillars of Springfield's alternative community, is a source for concert tickets, local event information, jewelry, cards, smoking accessories, novelty items, body jewelry, professional party equipment and just about anything else that's cool, hip, funky or fun. |ret||ret||tab|

Kaleidoscope also is home to one of the top-rated body piercing studios in the Midwest and employs three professional pier-cers, all of whom have been professionally trained at the Gauntlet School (now Gotham) in San Francisco. |ret||ret||tab|

"Right now, the state of Mis-souri doesn't regulate body piercing," said Tom Pierson. "We follow strict standards here, though. We're one of the only fully insured, certified hospital-sterilized body-piercing studios in the Midwest. One of the requirements of being in-sured is that we are regularly inspected in order to maintain our certification."|ret||ret||tab|

Body piercing is just one of the many services and products offered by Kaleidoscope, which has continued to evolve over the years. Since founding Kaleido-scope 29 years ago on Oct. 9, which also happens to be John Lennon's birthday, the Piersons have worked hard to keep the shop filled with cutting-edge products of interest to their customers. |ret||ret||tab|

During the first 10 years Kal-eidoscope was in business, it sold records. In 1980, the Piersons opened a second store on the corner of Kearney and National streets. By 1982, however, the Piersons determined that the second shop wasn't helping them expand their customer base, so they closed it. That same year, they began carrying products of interest to people in Springfield's alternative community, and eventually, they stopped selling records altogether.|ret||ret||tab|

Initially, the Piersons traveled to trade shows to find their merchandise. These days, however, they rely on the shop's employees and salespeople to keep them abreast of the latest trends.|ret||ret||tab|

In addition, the Piersons' management style has helped create an atmosphere where employees feel comfortable suggesting what direction the business should take. For example, Qui Qui (aka Q2), who has worked at Kaleidoscope for more than 12 years, is responsible for starting the shop's Web site, which he also manages.|ret||ret||tab|

"We rely on our employees to help bridge the generation gap," said Tom Pierson. "I'm 57 years old now. I rely on them to keep me current."|ret||ret||tab|

Still, Kaleidoscope's clientele covers the spectrum, and there are customers of all ages and all walks of life browsing through the shop. Many of these customers have been shopping at Kaleidoscope since it opened. |ret||ret||tab|

Currently, the Piersons are looking to expand operations, and they're making plans to move Kaleidoscope to a larger location. According to Tom Pierson, the move will mark the end of an era.|ret||ret||tab|

"We've been in this house on East Sunshine for 29 years," he said. "I don't really want to leave, but we need to expand and take things to the next level. There are a lot of items we could carry, but we just don't have the space. Once we move and get more retail space, I'd like to start carrying things like T-shirts and clothes." [[In-content Ad]]