About Merk & Tilley's

John & Jo Williams - Owners

Welcome! We are John & Jo Williams. We have known each other for many years but reconnected in 2011 and fell in love! We blended our families on December 17, 2011 and have been happily juggling the crazy ever since! Together we have 5 amazing kids, one fabulous Son-in-Law, a Soon-to-Be Daughter-in-Law & our first grandbaby due in September! We BOTH have a great love for family, friends, fashion and fun!

Gma Linda aka The Bag Lady

Gma Linda (Jo's Mom) has been a behind the scenes "employee" from the beginning! Stamping every clothing tag, adding every piece of jute string, every safety pin and adding the fun little shop local touches to our amazing bags that make your check out just as fun as the shopping you did! We couldn't do it without her & wouldn't have it any other way!

He's our Huckleberry

Grandpa Jack (Jo's Dad) has been a HUGE support from day one! He has owned the building at 402 S. Live Oak for over 20 years. During that time he has seen restaurants come and go, his financial office (which was on the second floor) close as he retired and has "happily" turned over the space to what he thought would be a small boutique ;) 7000 sq ft later! Today his portrait proudly hangs in his old office (M&T Mens Section)

About our adventure

And so it Began...

After over 20 years of loving this beautiful building on the Downtown Square as a family, it was finally Jo's turn to create something fun in the space. That is when the idea of Merk & Tilley's came to life, a fun play on the word Mercantile. We began in two small rooms on June 29th, 2019. Since then we have expanded and taken over both floors, all 7000 sq ft!

If you Build it...

We have enjoyed the journey every step of the way! Our goal was to create Small Town Charm, while bringing in Big City Appeal. We have found some amazing brands to date and we hope to continue bringing in new familiar favorites. As we grow we are constantly on the hunt for new companies, fun finds and products to stay up on current trends!

Ready, Set, Grow!

Over the last 4 years we have really enjoyed expanding our original space! We have met some great small business owners, worked with some amazing vendors and added 2 floors of new, trendy and affordable products. Changing with every season (and every time we find something new) helps us keep Merk & Tilley's an exciting and enticing place to shop.