Erik Youngquist’s quirky, off-beat sense of humor continues to serve him well. Some of the retro merchandise he stocks in his Purely Michigan store in the 400 block of State Street in downtown St. Joseph would be a head-scratcher for some retailers, yet he regularly strikes gold with some of the unique and unusual things he elects to stock and sell.
One thing is certain. His newest idea is truly a one-of-a-kind offer that I can guarantee nobody else has in stock anywhere in the world. It’s a line-art rendition of a recent photo of yours truly with a handcrafted collar designed to match a more famous — or infamous — graphic of Bill Murray.
Erik tells me that he was driving home from work several weeks back when he noticed a car in front of him “had a Bill Murray sticker on its rear bumper.” As Erik puts it, “That got me thinking about who is the most iconic character in St. Joseph, Michigan.” He arrived at the conclusion that said character was likely me — Pat Moody.
He worked with a design/printing company to craft the Pat Moody Sticker, after reaching out to me for a recent head shot image he could use for the project. He offered to “cut me in” on the deal, but I deferred, telling him if he wanted to create one he would need to offer up half of the sales price as a donation to the Humane Society of Southwest Michigan to help get their shelter in Royalton Township built. He agreed to do so.
Erik says “Moody on the Market and Moody in the Morning can now be Moody on anything — cars, laptops, boats, whatever…and the best part is that half the proceeds will go to Pat’s favorite charity — the Humane Society.”
The stickers are $8 each with $4 from every sale going directly to the Humane Society of SWM. The stickers are available exclusively at Purely Michigan which can be found at 406 State Street in downtown St. Joseph.
Erik’s brainstorm got me to wondering about the origin of the Bill Murray Sticker phenomenon. Art Director and Author Craig Weiland reported a couple of years ago, “Bill Murray is the hero of the popular website theCHIVE, and they sell his likeness on shirts, stickers and other assorted merchandise. The story is, Murray granted the site founders express permission to do whatever they want with his photograph, because he liked what they were doing with their charities.” He tells us, “When you see a Bill Murray sticker on a car, you’re likely looking at someone who is a fan of said website.”
So, thanks to Erik’s eclectic sense of humor and his willingness to invest in the inventory, we can all help get the new animal shelter built for the Humane Society of SWM. The timing of Mr. Youngquist’s new venture is impeccable inasmuch as the board of directors of the Humane Society will be breaking ground tomorrow afternoon and I have the pleasure of serving as emcee for the proceedings. I would be forever grateful to anybody willing to lay some cash on the line for a Moody sticker to help our furry friends get into considerably improved surroundings by sometime around the holiday season ahead.
In the photo accompanying this story on Moody on the Market.com, Erik and his wife Demhry are shown offering up the new Pat Moody Sticker at their store in downtown St. Joseph. Despite the fact that I routinely “pop” my collar, Erik insisted on replicating the Bill Murray collar as a nod to the original sticker star.
St. Joseph School Superintendent Ann Cardon was one of the first to purchase the new sticker, but you won’t find it on her car — she’s putting on her office window with her Chamber of Commerce sticker and other organizational affiliations. Oh well…at least she didn’t put it at the center of red and white circles for target practice!
