From Homeland to New Hope: Shop of India Celebrates 50 Years
Since 1971, the Jain family has been running Shop of India in the quaint town of New Hope, Pennsylvania. Recently, the store celebrated 50 years of business. Jamie Brooke, from Space On Space Magazine, met with owner Neelam Jain to discuss her experience immigrating to the United States from India, raising a family, running a business, and her philosophy on the objects she collects and sells in her store. For context, Jamie is in a long term relationship with Neelam’s son, Kamal. There is a familiar tone to the text. Below are Neelam’s responses that have been edited for length.
In India, we get arranged marriages. Arranged marriage was challenging. It was a trust and respect with my parents for their judgment. I married Arvind Jain, a Hindu Jain boy. We hardly knew each other, maybe for five days. My parents said, “This is a suitable boy for you.” And I said, “Okay, if you say so,” and we got married.
I think he was a good pick because we were happily married for 24 years. Unfortunately, he died [in 2010]. But I think that he was a good pick. We got married in India, and we came to the US with my eldest daughter Hindi when she was 16 days old.
Two and a half years after we got married, my husband had his first heart attack. I had a choice: Either I returned to India, or stayed here to curate my own pieces [for the shop]. I thought of it as a challenge. I learned to drive. I learned what people were wearing and how to talk to people by watching English movies and watching my husband talk to customers.
“I had a choice: Either I returned to India, or stayed here to curate my own pieces.”
Neelam and Kamal Jain inside Shop of India | All photographs courtesy of Jamie Brooke
Hindi was my first language. When people first talked to me in America, I got scared. I could not make eye contact with them. But slowly, I watched people's lips and how they talked. I started picking up small words. Today, I don’t speak perfect English, but I can communicate with people. I'm learning Spanish, too.
[The first few years were] a challenge. My husband was sick, and he knew that one day I would have to do everything. He was trying to teach me where and how to buy merchandise, how to handle the bank, and how to manage the books. He taught me something new every day. He said that I would run back to India if he told me everything at once.
My husband trusted me. I asked what would happen if I bought the wrong merchandise. He said, “What can happen? Maybe 20 pieces will go to waste, but I have to give you room to try on your own.” When I bought [my first piece], it sold in the store. He gave me a compliment: “Your judgment is good! What you bought is selling.”
Clothing is exactly like art. When you’re [curating] a store, you’re putting color combinations together, matching a skirt to a blouse. Then you display it and decide what jewelry goes with it. Instead of a canvas, we’re decorating the store walls and the window displays. It was a learning curve. We watched other stores in the US—how they displayed stuff. I learned from a mix of immigrant families and retailers.
When I'm in India, with my purchasing power, I don't go to big factories. I want to buy clothes from the local people who need support. I hand-pick pieces and go on a spiritual journey. I find people sitting in small shops. People are waiting for somebody to come buy stuff. If I find that I can use a product, I buy it from them, not the big factory.
“Clothing is exactly like art.”
When our customers come into our store, sometimes they don't need anything. They come in just to feel good because the energy is good. Even if they spend a small amount of money, they come in maybe once a year just to see us. They say, "Neelam, we just want to see that you are still in business." In the same way, I want to keep my vendors in India in business.
We don't sell traditional clothes from India, like a saree or Salwar Kameez. It's modified. It's made in India, but for American people. We sell dressy clothes and casual clothes, and for youngsters and the going-out night crowd. It is a challenge for us, but the fabrication is good in India. The colors are good. The embroidery is beautiful. [American] people don't usually see these items in other stores, so they feel like they have to buy our products.
Somebody just wrote on Yelp, “If you go to New Hope and you don't go to Shop of India, you did not really go to New Hope.” They said, “Shop of India is like a trinket box…You can't just spend 10 minutes in the shop, you end up spending three or four hours enjoying the inside.” These compliments are worth more than a million dollars. New Hope has a sort of diversity. When I'm behind the counter, it doesn't matter to me [who is] in front of me. They are a person and I cater to their personality. I want to put them in the right clothes and do a good job.
“If you go to New Hope and you don't go to Shop of India, you did not really go to New Hope.”
My family was very supportive. In the summer—peak business time—my mother-in-law came [from India] and stayed with us to support us. She would handle the house so I could work in the store. And my neighbors are so nice. They know when I need a helping hand. They would help after school and take the kids roller skating or take them to a game. They knew I couldn't do it all myself because my husband was sick. They always said, "Mrs. Jain, we can help you out. Don't hesitate to ask." I'm very fortunate. Without them, I don't think we could do what we're doing today.
I treated my kids exactly like I would if we lived in India. I said, "It doesn't matter that you live in America. You will have an Indian background. I'm going to raise you the way I was raised." If Mom is doing the dishes, they have to do the dishes. If I'm working in the store, somebody had to run the vacuum because the money was only coming through one way. I'm proud. My three kids are doing very well. They learned all these things growing up. They have business and math skills. My son, Kamal—he was only eight years old when we had him counting the money in the store. Everybody asked how he learned to do that. I said, "Money teaches everything, and he'll get a $2 tip after!" Now, my three kids are grown up. I haven’t offered for any of them to take my business [when I retire]. They don't want to take the business because they work for big companies.
I'm a very spiritual person and sometimes people [in the community] need my help. People sometimes fall into depression and get anxiety and [feel like] there's nothing left. Then they turn to seek answers through spirituality. Shop of India sells crystals, mala beads, and spiritual things. People love it. People can pick up a Buddha and Ganesh statue from our shop. When people come and ask me to tell them about all these statues, I can tell them the story of it. As soon as they hear the story they say, "I want to take Ganesh with me" or "I want to take Buddha with me." You can't tell people any wrong thing because there is the Internet. Google Baba [Father Google] is there.
Ganesh [one of the statues in Shop of India] is the remover of obstacles. We call it in India, siddhi vinayak, or Ganesh who grants your wish. Ganesh knows before and after what will happen, so he's protecting us. That’s my perspective. It is a silent friend, like a best friend who is walking with you and guiding you with what is good and what is wrong. In my faith there is a supreme power and I think it could be anyone. It could be Jesus, it could be Ganesh, it could be Buddha. It just depends on whom you choose as your best friend. Sometimes I am home alone, and I think, “Oh my gosh, I am alone.” But I am not alone. You can do prayer, you can do meditation, you can talk to them. I only tell them [customers] about it if they ask. It’s their own judgment and choice.
One of the display cases in Shop of India.
When I am in the shop I really enjoy it. I have music on, I feel at home. I feel like I am in the biggest living room where everyone is welcome; everyone can chat. I am not a close-minded woman. I chat with people about anything. Someone said to me, “When we walked in the store, we smelled incense. There is a special energy here.” I say, “Everything’s from India, including the Indian woman.”
If you find yourself in New Hope, PA, stop by Neelam Jain’s Shop of India, and she will give you free incense.
There is a special energy here.” I say, “Everything’s from India, including the Indian woman.”
Follow @shop_of_india on Instagram
Shop of India address —> 76 South Main St. A, New Hope, PA 18938
Jamie Brooke is a Higher Council advisor for Space On Space Magazine. During the Summer of 2015, Brooke took a trip to India to study cultural anthropology with an emphasis on performance and poetry. Currently, Brooke works full time at the New Conservatory Theatre Center as the Education Program Administrator and she resides in San Francisco, California.
