Partners in business, partners in crime, Jeremy Edwards and Jason Niaura have been living in North Hobart for half of their lives. Just like being a superhero, it’s in their blood. Over numerous bottles of buttery chardy, Jeremy and Jason would come up with weird and wonderful concepts. From these late nights (working) grew the Concept Trust, which is where local businesses including Popcorn Street, Fusion Hairdressing (a few doors up), and Raw Threads Design have evolved.  While Jason spends his time between going snippety-snip at Fusion and developing designs in the studio of Raw Threads, Jeremy juggles a career in HR with being tangled in ribbon and wrap at Popcorn Street.

Tell us the background of Popcorn Street?
Popcorn Street has been years in the making. We originally started as Tusk, and from there Popcorn Street grew. It was pretty much a natural transition. Imagine putting a bag of popcorn in the microwave; once it starts you can’t stop it. It just grows and pops. Buttery goodness!

Where did the name come from?
When we first started many years ago as Tusk, French-inspired homewares and
shabby chic was very much on trend. It was a truly different store. As time passed our customers grew, and so did we. The name Popcorn Street came about a few years ago. It began with the nickname we gave the strip in North Hobart, which is full of different colourful personalities, boutiques, food, wine, and then of course the cinema. We believe the new branding and name truly represent us, our quirkiness, and our customers, and we love how much it has been embraced. We actually began trialling the name via our online store some time back, and the popularity gave us the confidence to fully launch under the new name during Easter 2018.

How do you choose the eclectic mix that makes Popcorn Street so colourful and special?
It’s a team effort, really. Our team have been with us from the start and we’re all involved in the process. This formula ensures that we remain eclectic and colourful, which is what we’re known for. We love quirky, unusual, and tongue in cheek. We love change and taking risks, and I think customers come to us as a result. We find the weird, wacky, wonderful and luxurious from all around the globe, but also source amazing products from creative Tasmanians. It’s a nice mix. Like a rainbow cake!

People come to you to purchase gifts for loved ones – is it satisfying when they find the perfect fit?
Something that remains our favourite thing about working at Popcorn Street is
the laughter and happiness you hear. We have incredible loyalty from our  customers, who come in for their Popcorn fix. We’ve created an environment for our customer that’s a kind of pick-me-up for a bad day. Some of our regulars come in during their lunch hour to play at Popcorn Street, laugh at the cards and pick something to take back to work. It’s like a little therapy to get them through their day. We love watching customers bring in their friends to show them around. They introduce Popcorn Street as their own special place – they truly take a sense of pride and ownership. This is amazing for us to experience and makes us feel very proud of what we’re doing. I guess what we are trying to create is an experience. We want the experience and high that the buyer receives to be just as wonderful as the one the receiver of the gift gets. Basically, we’re all about pure buttery goodness!

VISIT: 319 Elizabeth Street, North Hobart
WEB: www.popcornstreet.com.au/