By Andrew Rocha

Downtown Stockton’s atmosphere attracts entrepreneurial people both near and far. Many business owners from other cities are recognizing downtown Stockton’s value and potential, and they are taking the steps to not only grow their businesses in the area, but also to help downtown Stockton thrive. Most Modest is the latest evidence of increasing outside interest in downtown Stockton.

Product Design in Downtown

Most Modest is a product design, manufacturer, and accessory brand that has opened a studio on E. Weber Avenue in downtown Stockton. Most Modest produces unique and minimalistic products that are perfect for any office or work space. This includes products like: Cody, a desktop organizer that combines a pencil cup with a wood tray; Niko, a wood form power strip combined with a knitted mesh power cable; and Simon, a cable organizer that’s simple but keeps cables from making a mess and tangling. These are just a few of their products; there are more coming soon. 

Founder of Most Modest, Justin Champaign, explained the meaning behind “Most Modest” and the origins of the business. “Most Modest, the name, comes from the Emily Post Book of Etiquette, which I found at a flea market. There is a chapter on how to be a most modest host, and that really fit with what I was trying to create for the brand and types of products we make and design here. MM brand is about making meaningful products and experiences for our customers and the users of them, not about us ‘the designers.’ But we do want to be the best at it, hence being the MOST Modest.” 

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Moving to Downtown Stockton

Originally located in San Francisco, Champaign decided to move Most Modest to Stockton to escape the absurd rent increases and stressful commute. While Most Modest could have moved anywhere, like Austin, Seattle, or Sacramento, Champaign realized that Stockton was the best choice.

“On one of my commutes from San Francisco to the Sierras I decided to check out Stockton. I was immediately interested. A beautiful location on the water, cool old downtown and surrounding neighborhoods and directly half way between SF and the Sierras. I began doing research and stumbled upon Jared Rusten though Instagram. I saw he had left SF and setup in downtown Stockton; I got in contact and he showed me around. It was then that I made the decision I was going to try and setup in Stockton. I planned on trying to buy a building and be part of restoring downtown Stockton to its former glory.” 

Now that they are settled in downtown Stockton, Most Modest can focus on growing and improving. “The future is exciting – we have partnered with some great domestic manufacturers and are ramping up our production, expanding our lines and categories into lighting, furniture objects, and of course power.”

Downtown welcomes Most Modest wholeheartedly, and is eager to see this unique business flourish. 

By Andrew Rocha

Have you heard of the Freckled Moon? You might have seen them as a vendor at farmers markets and events like the Stockmarket, but now the Freckled Moon has a location in Downtown Stockton. The Freckled Moon is a shop that sells handmade artwork, dreamcatchers, and similar crafts created by a local collective of artists The shop is located at 219 East Weber Ave, owned and managed by a family of creatives.  

Marie Pease, the owner of The Freckled Moon, runs the shop with her daughters and started selling handmade crafts five years ago. Before having a physical location downtown, the Freckled Moon was popular at events with repeat customers frequently asking about if there was a physical location where they could shop or when Marie Pease would open a store. “This has always been our dream to have our own little shop. We do events and stuff like that, but we’ve always wanted to open our own shop where people can come and get unique items that they can’t get at the big box stores.” 

Why Downtown Stockton?

So why did a craft store like the Freckled Moon choose downtown Stockton? According to Marie Pease, a need for an expressive shop was felt, as well as a small but talented artistic community. “I knew that if I opened a shop I would want it to be here, because I know that there is not a lot of this here and I wanted to bring it to Stockton because I know that there are a lot of creative people here.” 

A lot of the art and crafts that are sold through the Freckled Moon are from artists and friends of Marie Pease and her family, as well as from artists from Sacramento. Now that they are located in downtown Stockton, local artist are encouraged to work with the Freckled Moon to not only share their work but also to make the downtown areas future brighter and beautiful. 

More Than Just Adding Aesthetic

Besides bringing a new aesthetic to downtown Stockton, Marie also runs the Freckled Moon to be an example to her daughters. “I’ve always wanted to teach my daughters that they don’t need anybody to help them, that they can do things on their own. I’m a product of that, being a single mom with four children. It doesn’t matter where you come from or your background, it matters how bad you want your dream and what you’re willing to do to make that obtainable. You don’t need other people to help you, you can do it yourself. So that was really a big drive for me.” 

They have only been open for a few weeks and the Freckled Moon has already been well received by the community. Hopefully with continued support, Marie Pease and the Freckled Moon will make a larger and larger impact on the community as time goes on. To learn more about the Freckled Moon, check out their website, www.thefreckledmoon.com