About Us
Hello everyone and welcome to Elsie Grace’s online store! We are super excited to FINALLY step outside the box and get ourselves on the internet! Let me tell you a little bit about who we are and how we started the crazy journey of retail.
My name is Nan Lisher and I am the owner of Elsie Grace’s Gift Shoppe.
My co-worker, Sara Colvin and I go back a long ways…first off; we’re cousins! We dreamed when we were little that we would have a restaurant someday, and we did from 1986-1992 called "Nan’s Cookin’ Nook”. After '92, life changed and we each did our own thing for a while…but we always ended up creating something. In 1993 I started “creating” dry food mixes and Sara, again, was part of the creating.
My Grandma Elsie Grace Tilley was a big part of my life growing up and taught me a lot about baking/cooking.
It seemed only fitting to name the company Elsie Grace’s. We peddled the mixes on Saturdays, and we were like a couple of young school girls every time we took an order! After some time, we finally had enough confidence to try the Kansas City Wholesale Market and BOOM! A whole new audience appeared! So, 27 years later we are still mixing, packaging and selling wholesale.
In 1999, I was working as the Dietary Manager at the nursing home in Frankfort. I enjoyed it, but always thought a gift shop with a little dining area would be exciting and I since I loved to cook I knew I could do that and sell gifts as well! Marge Haecker owned The Gift Box in Frankfort, and she was famous for the FUDGE FACTORY.
I always enjoyed going to her shop and visiting with her. So, one day in May of 1999, I stopped by to visit and mentioned I would be interested in her shop, should she ever decide to sell it. Well, on July 1, 1999, I owned a gift shop, and the famous Fudge Factory! I opened ELSIE GRACE’S GIFT SHOPPE on August 31, 1999.
However, sometimes life throws you curve balls you never saw coming. On April 7, 2002, my Dad, my Mom, my husband, Ron, and myself were traveling to Topeka, KS for my Grandson’s 4th birthday party. In an instant, life as we knew it was changed forever. We were hit by a drunk driver a couple of miles outside Frankfort and my husband and my Mom were killed instantly. My Dad and I were critically injured, but I come from the most caring community you will ever find! Friends and family put their arms around us and held onto us tight and we both survived...and so did Elsie Grace’s.
You’ll see “Elsie Grace’s Family and Friends Cookbook” as one of our products. This was a “therapy” project for me after the accident. Be sure to check it out as it has some of the best recipes you’ll ever find!
We’ve expanded the size of the shop over the years, and we are pretty sure there are no more nooks and crannies for us to fill! I’m still cooking/baking and as such we serve a noon meal every Monday – Friday. Our Building is massive, you can’t miss it…we set on the corner of Highway 9/99 in Downtown Frankfort, KS.
Sara is still working with me…34 years later!
Having an online store is going to be fun, but if you’re ever in Frankfort, KS…stop by and see us! And if you happen to see me running around town with my LCGRACE License Plate be sure to wave!
-Nan
