Member Profiles

“I’m a custom tailor by trade,” says Kevin Koch of Koch House of Design, 211 E. Washington St., Goshen. “We make custom suits from scratch, we do custom clothes and design blue jeans and quite a variety of things. We also do embroidery, and we do a lot of handwork.

“I do varsity jackets for the local high schools, and that’s one way I’m able to do custom things for the community, because a lot of my clientele are on the East Coast or down south,” he adds. “With the varsity jackets, the students come in and get to experience what it is to stand in front of the mirror and get fitted and measured.”

Kevin and his wife, Jeannie, purchased the historic church at Washington and Sixth streets – long known informally in Goshen as The Chouse – five years ago. They’ve restored it into both their home and the Koch House of Design workspace and showroom.

“We’re stuck with it – which is good,” Kevin says of the Chouse moniker. “We’re endeared to it now.”

Kevin is a fan of architecture and old buildings. He also enjoys Goshen’s downtown.

“I love the atmosphere of the creative district here, the other artists in town,” he says. “It just has that multicultural, artisan feel to it. I love living in town. …I just love the camaraderie, the atmosphere, the way stores and merchants work together down here. I’m excited to be here.”

“Mighty Mics is a music technology company,” said Phil Miller, who operates the business along with David Krabill. “We work with a lot of the churches and schools around. Musicians and podcasters are also important to us. We have a full range of audio products for recording, reproductions, speakers. We’ve got interfaces to go to computers, things like that.”

Mighty Mics has been at its retail location at 117 S. Fifth St., Goshen, for around two and a half years.

“We love being in Goshen because it’s such a dynamic and creative community,” Miller said. “We’ve got a lot of years in the audio business. We’ve done audio contracting, and opening a retail store seemed like a natural way for us to participate in the artistic community here.”

“I feel so incredibly lucky to own a business (Common Spirits) in Goshen,” said Jami Hawkins. “I love collaborating with other businesses, and helping promote events downtown by making drink specials/menus that tie in with what’s happening in our community.”

When she’s not working, Jami enjoys eating and drinking in downtown Goshen, too.

“There are SO many favorites that my list is long,” she said. “South Side Soda Shop or Maple Indian Cuisine for lunch. Constant Spring, Pizzeria Venturi, or Goshen Brewing Company for dinner. Also, we have so many great Mexican restaurants, and there’s nothing better than a late-night Gin & Campari at Elephant Bar.”

“I love working with the customers,” said Jasmine Wall of The Imagination Spot, which has been at its retail location at 108 E. Washington St. since June. “I find people will come back. They kind of tend to get to know you and they’ll talk about things. …The other businesses around help you out as well.

I’ve had great connection with Soapy Gnome and some other businesses. They’re always helpful, and we’re trying to come up with things together to work on. It’s a good community.”

“We’re an eclectic mix of things that we love,” said Keith Graber Miller of downtown’s Found a carefully curated international art gallery and mid-century modern shop.

“We travel and bring things back from Latin America, Africa, eastern Europe, and Asia, buying directly from artisans, doing direct trade,” he said. “We also buy a lot of mid-century modern in the U.S.”

Found has been around since 2000, and has been at its South Main Street location since 2008.

“Downtown has really experienced a significant renaissance, as anyone who’s been here for 20 or 30 years knows, and we’re very happy to be a part of that renaissance,” Graber Miller. “It’s a delightful place to come, and we know people from all surrounding areas of Michigan, Indiana, Chicago come regularly. It’s great to be part of that downtown fun. I think in general we’re a great place for people to shop and enjoy a day out.”