Barn Wired Given Small Business of the Week Award by Senator Ernst

SIGOURNEY – As ranking member of the Senate Small Business Committee, Iowa Senator Joni Ernst is allowed to nominate businesses for the Small Business of the Week Award. In July, Ernst gave this award to Amanda Snakenberg, owner of Barn Wired, a home decor and coffee shop on the Sigourney square. Ernst presented the award in person on Oct. 9.

“We are so happy to be able to present this to you,” said Ernst. “We do look for those small businesses that really do contribute back to their communities, and you do. You don’t just try, you do.”

Snakenberg started selling home decor out of her garage and at flea markets and craft shows in 2014. She began renting space in a salon in 2015, a storefront on the north side of the square in 2016, and moved to her current larger location in 2017. When Ragbrai came to Sigourney in 2018, Snakenberg added a coffee bar and kitchen, after realizing there was no coffee shop in town. She stated that 2020 was a challenge, but that business was finally starting to come back, although finding employees was difficult. She stated that she wants to expand Barn Wired more, but that she’s already running out of space in Barn Wired.

“I do try to keep our community in mind. So like trying to keep things at a price point that is suitable for our area, versus things Des Moines, Iowa City, things like that. That’s hard as a home decor retailer,” said Snakenberg.

Snakenberg noted that, since opening Barn Wired, other home decor businesses have opened in Sigourney. She feels that she has set a good example and shown people they could do the same. “I always say, what’s good for me is good for them,” said Snakenberg. “What’s good for them is good for me, and it’s all good for our community...That was always my goal, to make Sigourney a destination, not just a spot on the map, is what I always used to say.”

After presenting the award, Ernst was given a tour of the store. She called the growth in Sigourney “fantastic.”

“It takes a while. It’s a long game, but we’re starting to get there,” said KCED Executive Director Gary Iosbaker. “We know what we have to do. We need about 3% per year just to keep up.”

“I think there’s a lot of small communities that can drive towards the future, and then there are some that are very resistant to change and new ideas, and they don’t get very far...To be a destination, the more shops you have, the more opportunities for people to look around town, the more people are going to travel to here,” said Ernst.

“We want this to be a good place to live,” said Iosbaker. “The people who want to flee the cities, and there is a cohort who wants to do that, we want them to come live here.”

“They gotta know there are certain amenities. You know, you want to drop in and have a coffee somewhere, and you’ve got it,” concluded Ernst.