Feed store expands into fashion

DEMING - The latest western fashions are available in Deming, but it wasn’t always so. Christi Escarcega (née de la Ree) is the newest employee at Mimbres Valley Feed’s newly-opened Western Wear store located at 1410 Columbus Rd., and she is also its most enthusiastic booster. 

“I know from growing up in this town, we’d always get the fashion, but we’d get it two or three years later,” Escarcega said. “It’s amazing to be able to go into a business and find something that’s a new arrival…and it’s accessible for people, so they don’t have to drive to Las Cruces. They have it right here: lots of good name brands and a beautiful selection to choose from.”

The bright, freshly painted room that features the newest western clothing styles, bling, and home decor is a long way from the traditional feed store that Greg and Wendy Church bought from Kyle and Linda Reid in 2013. It all started after Wendy had three surgeries over four years and decided that her career training horses and giving riding lessons was over. She needed a new focus and Mimbres Valley Feed seemed to be just the right thing.

Over the years, the business evolved as Wendy gradually added new products.

“We started off with just picture frames, home décor, and jewelry. Customers were asking for more, and I listened; we kept remodeling the store, and it just kept growing!” 

The business grew so big that in July the business literally burst through the wall when the Churches acquired the space next door. The south side of the building had previously housed a real estate office but had been vacant for a year. While the north side of the store is still stocked with the usual feed and farm supplies, the new addition is filled with a wide variety of clothing for men, women, and children.

“My goal is to carry what the others don’t have. I want to stay more into the fashion, western wear,” Wendy said, “but I have Dickies [work wear] coming in the spring. I will have work clothes, but nobody in Deming has Dickies.” 

In addition, Tony Lama boots — that have been popular for decades — are now available in Deming for the first time. One thing you will not find at MVF is Wrangler jeans, since they are available elsewhere in town; but they have plenty to choose from, including a full line of Cowgirl Tuff products. According to Escarcega, they carry “over 15 different styles of women’s jeans, and every single style and every single item in here goes all the way up to XX.”

During the recent Southwestern New Mexico State Fair, Wendy outfitted several members of Deming’s younger set.

“She went out and helped kids with their outfits. . . they looked like they just walked off the runway.  We also sponsored the Fair Queen, Makayla Robinson. Everything she was wearing was from here. She looked beautiful up there,” said Escarcega.

While the store has come a long way, Wendy still has plans for the future, including an online store and gift registry; and with Christmas only a few months away, they offer layaways with a 10% down payment.

“We’re just trying to broaden the horizons and give the customers exactly what they need and want, to offer superior customer service,” she said.

Kara Naber is a frequent contributor to the Headlight.

If you go…

What: Mimbres Valley Feed and Western Wear

Who: Greg and Wendy Church

Where: 1410 Columbus Rd. (corner of Columbus Rd. and Florida St.)

When: Monday - Friday 8:00 a.m. to 5:50 p.m.; Saturday 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Contact: (575) 544-8131, mimbresvalleyfeed@yahoo.com

More information: http://www.mimbresvalleyfeeds.com/