A taste of the past
In today’s economy, small businesses are struggling to meet the demands of their convenience driven customers against their large monopolized competitors. New River General Store, located in Briceville, is no exception to this struggle.
Originally opened in 1937 by W.L. Coker, the country general store was the heart of New River and served a population of nearly 800 hard working folks with all of their grocery and convenience needs.
Coker lived the average American dream when he originally opened the general store’s doors and provided services to the coal mining community during its prime time.
It was in 1981 that Coker’s grandson, Scottie Phillips took over the business.
Though the population in New River has dramatically decreased since its coal mining days, plummeting to barely 200, Scottie has brought New River General Store into its 80-year anniversary with the same commitment to his community as his grandfather.
And after 80 years, Scottie still holds his business to the same standard that his grandfather did by serving his community and providing their convenience needs in spite of his large competitors.
New River General Store provides its customers the opportunity to shop for groceries and gas in a small country setting that has stood through the changes of time.
Though plans have not been established by Scottie to pass his business down to anyone just yet, it is safe to say that the little taste of the past with this general store will be standing for many years to come.