BROOKVILLE — When Rebecca Alkaaby found a Victorian house for sale on Facebook last fall, she and her artist husband had never heard of Brookville.
They weren’t looking to move to rural Jefferson County, or even Pennsylvania. But Alkaaby was searching for that kind of house — a model she had loved since watching Practical Magic as a kid — and a place to “put down roots and have a more charming life,” she told Spotlight PA.
A video walkthrough from a local real estate agent galvanized a cross-country trip from San Diego. After seeing the house in person, they were sure. That November, the couple moved to the rural town in the Pennsylvania Wilds.
The welcoming community and lack of retail stores inspired Alkaaby to open French-inspired boutique Maison Alkaaby, which is also located in a Victorian. She designed the space to feel like her own closet — a place where shoppers can find something luxurious, be it lingerie or makeup.
In addition to filling a service gap, she wanted her store to foster connection — which she missed after moving away from her friends in California and found among the group of women entrepreneurs who relocated to rural Pennsylvania from cities all over the world.
Alkaaby, the newest member, has dubbed them the “Shop Ladies of Brookville.”
Each came for different reasons — a house, family, a slower pace — and together, they’ve formed a network of support within the local business community and built friendships.
Jamie Popson, executive director of the Brookville Area Chamber of Commerce, has taken notice of that closeness and was even added to a group chat the women and other business owners use to offer support and help customers track down items when one of them sells out.
“That’s not something you’re going to get in the big box stores, the big cities,” Popson told Spotlight PA.
Adrianna Rubino, a native New Yorker who has lived in Florida and the United Arab Emirates, has called Brookville home for a decade. She settled in the area because it’s walkable, close to family, and she and her husband — both “collectors,” she said — found a house big enough for their treasures.
She was the first of the group to open a shop, Pink Flamingos Vintage. The store harnesses Rubino’s lifelong love of thrifting and vintage clothing, background in costume history and design, and passion for creating both a unique shopping experience and a personal connection with customers. Rubino never doubted opening her business, saying she just went for it — “throw it at the wall and see if it sticks.”
“It did,” she told Spotlight PA. “And I’m so grateful.”
This approach sets the tone for the group and other local businesses, promoting a culture of shared customers and encouragement.
“I think everybody has something extremely unique to offer from their point of view,” Rubino said.
Go into Pink Missie’s This & That, and you’ll see lampshades dangling from the ceiling, Kit-Cat Klocks lining the walls, and a mix of new and vintage finds filling every nook and cranny. The store reflects owner Missie Becker’s love of vibrant colors and eclectic decorations.
“I kind of have a little bit of everything in here, and I can’t commit to one style,” she told Spotlight PA. “I think that’s part of the fun.”
Becker, a Californian who moved to Pennsylvania as a teen before settling in Brookville 18 years ago, rebuilt her business after losing her first shop in DuBois to a fire in 2009. When the pandemic hit, she decided to open another storefront.
While she and Rubino share a flair for pink, Becker said their styles and specialties — and those of the other women — are all different. As transplants from other areas, she added, they bring a different aesthetic to a place where many people play it safe with neutrals.
“We see things differently, and we just want to try to bring that beauty with us,” Becker said.
Philadelphia native Patti Nicolai, owner of Nicolai & Co., and Tracy Metherd, owner of Nostalgia on Main, round out the group.
Metherd and her husband moved from Dallas, searching for an area with history and more space. She quit her corporate marketing job in January 2024 and started selling antiques on Etsy, but working from home left her craving community, so she expanded the business into what’s now Nostalgia on Main.
Leaving a big city to try something new in a small town made her nervous at first. But those worries faded once she made connections and started brainstorming ideas with Popson and other entrepreneurs. Metherd said they all share the goal of attracting visitors to the area.
“If anybody else is bringing people to Brookville for something, it’s helping me too, and everybody seems to understand that,” she told Spotlight PA. “Nobody feels like we’re in competition.”
In fact, Metherd’s shop window for the holiday season features not just her own wares, but items from other local businesses.
“I want people to get this sense, like, wow, there is a lot in Brookville,” Metherd said. “I’m calling it ‘A Brookville Holiday - Together on Main,’ and that’s really what the whole thing is about — to bring us all together as a community and that we can be stronger together.”