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 grand baby, Delilah Jo was born this 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) was a HUGE support from day one! He owned the building at 402 S. Live Oak Street for over 25 years. During that time he has seen restaurants come and go, his financial office close (which was on the second floor) and retired. He "happily" turned over the space to the next generation. Today his portrait still proudly hangs in his old office upstairs.

About our adventure

And so it Began...

After over 25 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.

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. We are constantly on the hunt for new companies, fun finds and products to stay up on current trends!