Tennessee Dead Head Finds Refuge in Capitola Village

A walk inside the Capitola Mercantile can be a great way to find exotic house decor at  and a sweet tooth filling at the Carousel Taffy. But a little deeper into the mini-mall and you will find a place that will reconnect with an outtasight and far-out era.

Grateful Tie Dyes opened up to the public at the start of April and is the most recent addition to the Capitola Mercantile. 

Originally from Tennessee, owner Angela Snyder still has a heavy southern accent. It was her goal to get to the Golden State since she was 16-years-old and Snyder has finally found her spot on the Monterey Bay.

Although there are many bigger locales to choose from all over Santa Cruz County, she picked Capitola Village for her new establishment and Snyder because it fit her needs perfectly.

“[It has the right] feel I guess,” said Snyder. “I went to the Boardwalk and it was just so carnival-ish. Then I went down to Pacific but it was so New York City-ish to me. It just seemed kind of sketchy. ... But the Village is beautiful. it’s just so clean and quiet. Plus the architecture is awesome.”         

The store is decorated with an array of famous music artists like Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley, and of course The Grateful Dead. Throughout the store is an array of colors that splash against the walls and racks filled with tie dye shirts, tie dye baby outfits, posters, screen printed t-shirts, blankets, books, flip-flops, bags, ponchos, hats, incense sticks, bamboo curtains,and other small knick knacks.

Snyder is no rookie when it comes to running a business, especially one that specializes in Grateful Dead merchandise. Her first crack in retail started about ten years ago in Clarksville, Tennessee, when she opened her first store named The Shakedown Shop and an E-Bay store called Dead Head Outfitters.

“I traveled to North Carolina and saw all these different stores with different merchandise,” said Snyder. “So I tried to open a store with all of that merchandise in one store.”

Then she pursued her lifelong dream of coming to California and arrived to the area just weeks ago. Although she's new to town, she said everything has been "pretty good" so far.

“[It's been] Better than I thought for the tourist season not to be kicked in yet," she said. "And the Dead shirts are actually selling, so we've got a big order coming in next week. ... I’m just kind of scoping out what people are wanting, trying to add a few beach items. Trying to get a feel of the area cause it’s way different than Tennessee. way different.”

Have you been to Grateful Tie Dyes yet? What do you think of the new addition to Capitola Village? Tell us in the comments!

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