STORY BY SANDRA S. SORIA ✷ PHOTOGRAPHS BY DAVID ENGELHARDT
When Paul Budslick took over his family’s carwash 10 years ago, it became clear to him and his wife Allison Duke Budslick that the business itself could use a bit of polish.
First opened in 1987, the White Bridge Auto Wash is itself a kind of bridge to the past. “Our car wash is one of the only full-service car washes left in Nashville,” Allison says. “It might be the only one left actually. It’s kind of a dying model.”
You probably know that model (especially if you’re of a certain vintage yourself): Hand off your car to the waiting attendant, walk down a hallway, and watch along (if you walk slowly enough) as your car is pulled through its spa treatment by a conveyor belt. Then pay at the end of the line. Sure, there might be a kind of gift shop surrounding the cashier, with greeting card spinners, air fresheners shaped like evergreens, and stale popcorn. But they’re nothing to write home (or magazine articles) about.
The couple once had one of those types of outposts too. But Allison, a publicist by trade, saw a chance to rev things up a bit when the company did a remodel in 2018. “We had built-in foot traffic,” she says. “It was just a matter of finding interesting lines and merchandising the space.”
So, they retooled the lobby with pale woods and happy paper lanterns that float from the ceiling like soap suds (brilliant!), then filled the space with cool stuff. “It’s kind of random,” Allison says. “I don’t really have much of a rhyme or reason to what I pick. But we have all kinds of people from all parts of the city come through, so I came up with this general store concept to carry a little something for everybody.”
Many items are Nashville-focused and/or Tennessee-made, but that’s not a dealbreaker. Interesting “giftables” move well, so good packaging is always a plus. Allison also likes the “surprise factor”—whether it’s simply a unique product or the surprise is that you find it at a car wash.
The biggest eye-opener on both counts? The success of her well-curated cookbook line. Allison started adding them to the shelves just because she loves them, she says. “Now, I know of some Nashville chefs that come in here to shop for cookbooks.”
And presumably, they’ll also have their car washed. Allison and Paul have seen an uptick in their core business since they’ve upgraded their shop. But, regardless, they’re having fun sharing what they love—or at least get a kick out of. Paul gets a weigh-in on items (especially old-fashioned toys and gag gifts), but he mostly trusts Allison’s knack for attracting destination shoppers and impulse buyers alike.
And while you won’t find air freshener cutouts here, you will find greeting cards—two walls of them. Just not from Hallmark. “We carry small independent maker lines that you can’t find other places—they’re so fun to pick out,” Allison says. “And I just have an obsession with any paper products.”
We asked Allison to tell us about some of her other obsessions. Next time you find yourself in Music City with a grungy ride, swing in for more of her fab finds. (If you don’t find yourself in Nash, you can shop these items online—but you will not have had as much fun and your car will still be dirty.)
I wish I’d thought of this teether-necklace. The maker is Jenny Luckett, a Nashville-based designer with a background in fine jewelry who founded January Moon. When she had her first child, he was obsessed with tugging on her necklace. So, she created one that’s a safe teether, but is so stylish you would wear it even if you didn’t have a kid.
This Nashville company’s claim to fame is that they were the world’s first combination—or multiple ingredient—candy bar, the Goo Goo Cluster. But then they came out with Lil’ Goos, miniature Goo Goos in a resealable bag, and it’s my favorite thing because a full Goo Goo can be a little much.
These are so, so good. Olive and Sinclair is Tennessee’s first bean-to-bar chocolate company. They make everything out of their factory/shop in East Nashville. I carry most of their products, but these are a personal favorite. You won’t taste anything like them.
There’s a candle company based in Nashville called Paddywax that you can find all over the country, so I was trying to find a line that was Nashville-based that wasn’t as common. That’s when I fell in love with Ranger Station. They’re actually whiskey glasses, so you can reuse them once the candle is burned out.
The Tennessee Peanut Company is a small-batch business based in Nashville [that’s bringing back Tennessee-grown peanut varietals]. They have gorgeous packaging, so they make a great gift—but they’re also addictive.
AILA nail lacquer is Nashville-based as well, and it’s an all-natural nail polish that’s free of chemicals. They come in very, very pretty colors. I have a natural beauty section—which is random in my store, I know—and these are my favorite items from that section.
Curator’s Choice Fine Wood Polish is a new item for me. It’s made from an old family recipe by a woman in Nashville named Mary Spotswood. She’s from Virginia, and it’s really popular among historic preservationists and antique furniture lovers. It truly can bring wood furniture back to life. And the packaging’s gorgeous.
