From California to the town of Banks, Maurice Thompson and Marcellus Hunter opened up Sullec Dollar Shop in Banks on June 19, 2021. Both have families that reside in Banks.
Hunter’s uncle, Jeff Strong, owns the property on 119 East Buck Fever Highway in Banks where the store is located. Strong also owns the body shop in Banks.
Before being turned into Sullec, the property was a gas station.
Hunter played football in school. After he graduated, while visiting family, his grandmother Edith Mae Strong from Warren, told him to reach out to his uncle Jeff Strong and his grandfather. He inquired about the gas station and that’s where the idea started. Hunter realized they would be the only store 13 miles east and west of Banks.
Thompson said the building wasn’t being used by Hunter’s uncle. Hunter had the idea to start a business there. The store was originally going to be a gas station, but Hunter said he ran into funding problems about six to seven months in. He began looking for additional funding or a business partner. He found one with his friend Thompson.
“I presented him my business plan and he loved it,” said Hunter. “Ever since then he has been my business partner.”
Strong gave them permission to use the property and allowed them to register their company name on the property with the state of Arkansas. Thompson said they did that first to legitimize the business. They signed the deed in their name.
Hunter sent Thompson videos of the property where the gas station used to be and what is now Sullec, which was at the time an abandoned building. Thompson asked what could the building be utilized for.
“We decided to bring something to the community and offer the people a more convenient way to get household items and food so they don’t have to go all the way to Warren,” said Thompson. “We wanted something to add to the community.”
Thompson did his research on the store. They found a regional company to help them called Liberty Opportunities. Liberty Opportunities helps establish dollar stores. Thompson and Hunter reached out to them and told them they were interested in their program. Liberty Opportunities came and inspected the space. They told the business partners the cost to get the space up and running with dollar items. Thompson said they added more items later on that include school supplies, candy bars, house décor, party supplies, and other stuff.
Odis Purifoy, a local Banks resident, helped Thompson and Hunter paint and get the flooring done. He also helped with other necessities that were needed to fix up the building. Thompson said Purifoy runs the day-to-day operations while they live in California. He gave a special thanks to Purifoy for all he does.
Thompson and Hunter visit every two to three months from California.
The process took a few months from March until they opened in June of 2021. Thompson and Hunter formed the company in California in 2020.
Like with every business, there are challenges. Thompson said they have regular small business challenges such as not enough sales. They attempted to offer the lottery at Sullec, but Thompson said it was more than they could handle. They realized they had to let that go.
The store had to close at times due to COVID in 2021 and 2022. Thompson commented 2023 so far has been good for them.
Hunter said another challenge is getting a feel for the community and finding out what they like and don’t like.
“They live a lot different than people in California,” said Hunter. “But luckily, everyone is very welcoming and very patient. We’ve had our ups and downs, but for the most part everything is going really good.”
Sullec has made changes along the way with new products. They now offer pizza from Hunt Brothers Pizza. One of their employees said business picked up since they began to offer pizza.
Thompson and Hunter have future plans for the store. They are working on establishing a gas station there with a regular and diesel gas pump.
They also hope to add more items to the store.
Both business partners said the Banks community has been supportive since day one. Thompson said they are open to requests on items that are needed. He encouraged the community to continue to communicate with them.
“We listen to the community,” said Thompson. “We want to make sure that we’re offering the community the best service and the best products that we can afford.”
Thompson thanked all the Banks residents and those outside of Banks who have supported them. Hunter said he has nothing but love and respect for the community. Hunter thanked Banks Mayor Keeton Hudson and his uncle Strong.
“I can say nothing but thank you [to the community],” said Hunter. “We really, really appreciate all the love and support from day one. We can’t thank you enough. We appreciate everything.”
