___Bradley's General Store is owned and operated by David Gates from Sylva, North Carolina. David was born and grew up in the Jackson County area. His family has lived in Jackson County for generations. David went to local schools, except for spending a year at the North Carolina School for the Blind in Raleigh. David has been totally blind since he was 22 years old, after having vision trouble since birth. At the School, he learned how to weave hammocks, which he still makes and sells in Bradley's. David is married to the former Carmaletta Harris, also of Jackson County. They have three daughters, from age 10 to 28. They own rental property and are involved in church and community events.
___David opened Heritage Hammocks in 1984, at the age of 23, later he changed the name to David's Place when he began selling more furniture and a wider variety of items. For the first few years, David operated the store alone. When business increased so that he was unable to operate alone, he hired a local lady to help him, Eva Nell. Through the years, David's Place continued to grow, changing its emphasis from crafts to gifts, to kitchen items, to gourmet foods, and to antiques. As David developed an interest in antiques, his knowledge and love for them grew. Local antique dealers marvel at how much David can tell about a piece of furniture by touch alone.
___In August 2002, David bought Bradley's General Store and incorporated David's Place into Bradley's. His inventory grew four-fold, and the variety of items offered exploded. Going from a small store totally ran by two people, he now had five employees, plus himself. David continues to experiment with ways in which he can participate in the day to day business of Bradley's. He has a talking cash register, talking credit card terminal, a money identifier, and a verbal bar code reader. Most days customers find David either behind the cash register, or lounging around the store, deep in conversation with a customer. Slow times may find him curled into a hammock swing on the side porch swapping tales with tourists.
___Meeting and talking with people are the essence of life for David. He is very outgoing, seldom forgets meeting people, and loves getting to know people. To David the past two years of running Bradley's has been the greatest of fun. Not a day goes by that someone doesn't wander into the store, exclaiming, "We've been looking all over town for you! We came to your store several years ago, only to come back and find you gone, we're so very glad to find you again!" David chuckles and settles down to finding out what's been happening in their life since he last spoke with them.
___Customer service is very important to David and all his staff. They invite you to browse through the store on-line, and be sure to drop in for a visit anytime you're in the area.