Our visit to Mim's new shop...

What a fun day! My husband and I were in Charlotte for a bit of Big City life and had arranged to visit Mim and try some ukes on our way home. She has closed down her ice cream shop, which had been her hard-copy venue for selling ukes. She has moved everything to her home, and we were the first in-person visitors to her home-based business. She has an office/shop/warehouse/jamming center in one large room with orange walls.

Lots of you know Mim's reputation for good setups and customer service. I'll tell you she's also a super-high-energy person who loves to talk ukes. Check out her YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/MimOnTheUke

I wanted to see some Ohanas because I hadn't played them before, and she pulled out several for me, tuning up each one before handing it over. I thought the sopranino was adorable--a little thing with a very big voice. I also liked in person the PK-25G, a pineapple with a wild-haircut headstock, and the SK-50WG, a lovely cedar/willow combo.
She also got out some solid-wood Makais for me to compare to Ohanas. I wish I could remember all the models I got to play (especially that beauty with the rosewood back and sides).

Simultaneously, she was showing my husband a series of Riptides, which were new to him, and plugging a tenor Eleuke into her big amp for him to riff on. He also test-drove an 8-string Kanele'a tenor.

Mim admits to being very picky about what she sells. You can find the thread about the Eleuke Peanuts that she returned, and she's returned items at other times for not being good enough or finished well enough.

If you have a couple ukes you're trying to decide between, she's going to start talking to customers via Skype and she will comparison-play them for you. (Call in, Australia and Germany!) She's keeping her ebay sales, and she's also aiming to have a cart-style website to buy items from. She says UU is awesome, and UU members are welcome to stop by--email her for the address. She's also going to Tampa Bay Uke Getaway in November, so look for her there.

It was mad fun visiting Mim in her orange "shop" and hearing about her life in ukedom. If you want to consult her about a uke and can't visit in person, call or email her--you'll feel energized all day.

Aloha Mim,
If you see this, Congratulations on your new business endeavors..and wish you much luck and may you business flourish and prosper....Happy Strummings..MM Stan

I wanted to add a couple of my impressions about our visit to Mim's.

I was looking forward to trying out some Riptide ukes and Mim didn't disappoint. She had a number of sizes and styles that I played. I was impressed with the quality of them and the sound was very pleasant. Having a side port <does> change your perception of what you're doing and gives you an idea of what the listeners are hearing. I found the tenor and concert sizes very easy to play (I think both had Aquilas) with a good balance of high to low. The quality was very good in construction, clean and sharp.
She had a Kanilea 8-string in stock and let me play it. I had never even touched an 8 string before: it's a lot of instrument! Fretting double strings I would have to get used to, but the sound is wonderfully full in strumming, and Kanile'a quality and finish is amazing.
I also really enjoyed playing an Eleuke. Mim had a wonderful all black model tenor that she hooked up to an amp for me. You have to understand: I idolized Pete Townshend and the Who in my younger years and so there was a bit of a dreamlike quality to all of this. The action and playability was so much fun, and talk about enjoying bending notes! I wouldn't normally try to play too much pop or rock on a standard acoustic uke, but on these it could be so cool. The weight of an Eleuke tenor is solid and really cries out for a good length strap. Amazing variety of sounds. I hooked up some cheap earbuds I normally use with my iPod touch: very enjoyable. I wonder what I might get for Christmas this year?!
Mim was a delight and full of knowledge about her stock. Her commitment to quality and service is clear and we really enjoyed our visit.

Thanks for the review of the new Mimshop! I liked your description of her Mimitude! That sounds like Mim!

A little bump to help Mim's new shop get 200 views this weekend.

GT

I think today was the last day for Aloha Snow. Now Mim is concetrating 100% on ukuleles.

chindog said:

I think today was the last day for Aloha Snow. Now Mim is concetrating 100% on ukuleles.

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Maybe we can take a S E Uker field trip to visit Mim. Sounds like a worthwhile outing.

Susie A said:

Maybe we can take a S E Uker field trip to visit Mim. Sounds like a worthwhile outing.

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For sure! That would be a fun trip!

CONGRATULATIONS to Mim!!!! Bye bye Aloha Snow and thank you. Without you we wouldn't have Mim's Ukes.

Best of luck in your new setting, Mim! Mim's Ukes lives on.

Wow...I live in NC, so I'll have to go visit Mim one day.

Congrats to Mim! I was able to visit her in Aloha Snow a few months ago and talk ukes, and it was one great experience. I've bought a couple of ukes from her and look forward to buying more, and maybe someday getting to vist her new shop, but I will miss the snowballs!

PurpleHaze said:

Wow...I live in NC, so I'll have to go visit Mim one day.

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Yes, Yes you should! I have RH sopranos... just sayin'!

Thanks for the shout out! It was a fun visit and just what the doctor ordered. I had been elbow deep in closing the ice cream shop that I needed to get back to talking ukes.

Today is my first official day of uke only! I caught up on e-mails and PMs (and sorry to the people who somehow got lost in the pile). My inboxes are cleaned out, my ukes are organized on the shelves at home, I have about 350+ in stock currently, and I am ready for this new phase. Aloha Snow just was not making it, and it was like running on a treadmill, a lot of work and getting nowhere.

So, if yall are in Charlotte, come on down!

My goal is to be as much like a local uke shop, just on-line. So I am also now able to do skype appointments. Yes, yes, I know you can hear the true tone of a uke on-line, but you can COMPARE against tonewoods you may know. It is going to be an adventure!!!