It can be challenging for University of Rhode Island students to track down finds beyond the stores of heavily-advertised Narragansett and Newport, but the nearby town of South Kingstown has several businesses and restaurants to offer.
Eclectic Energy, located at 102 Main St. in Wakefield, opened in July 2023 by URI alum Pam Davis. After over two decades in New York City, where she owned a store and then a wholesale greeting card company, Davis came back to her home state. Although Davis said this is her retirement business, the store is anything but tired; nestled inside a navy building are a variety of thematic rooms with a wide range of merchandise.
Eclectic Energy is printed on a striped surfboard outside the store. Underneath reads “Goods and Gifts,” because Davis “can’t stand gift store” as a label. She does not see what she sells as handicrafts or cutesy. Instead, it is a collection of local, artist-driven items that “you want and need,” according to Davis. The store is an organized explosion of colors and quality.
One area of the store is the stationary room (Davis’ favorite) with a rainbow wall of notebooks and vases, along with a card wall, represents Davis’ expertise in the card wholesale business. Another room has a tomato and pizza-themed table, a soap wall section and down a small hallway is a mushroom nook.
This is because Davis “loves themes and telling a story,” which is clear in the movie and game night table that is on display, complete with socks designed to look like sticks of butter, fancy popcorn holders and a variety of games.
Davis’ years in New York City allowed her to connect with designers and artists, and several of the items in her store are custom designed at her request. She has several colleagues who are Rhode Island School of Design graduates and said that her days as a URI communications major allowed her to build relationships with designers and artists who have a place in her store today.
Davis sees herself as a grown-up kid and is drawn toward the colorful and exciting – she is firmly against the belief that when you grow up everything must be beige. Her store is geared toward all ages and interests.
Something for everyone is hyper-specific at Eclectic Energy. A couple came in looking to shop for an “impossible to buy for” brother. After hearing that the man enjoyed biking and beer, Davis said she revealed pint glasses with bicycles on them.
“I had always wanted to own a store,” Davis said.
Davis wants URI students to know about Eclectic Energy and what it has to offer. She hopes students can find something they like, or something they didn’t know they wanted.
Davis talked of two different groups of URI students coming into Eclectic Energy, who had moved down the line but never really explored South Kingstown. She said both parties were delighted in what the store had to offer according to Davis, saying they wished more students knew about it. Davis wishes the same, as she buys a lot of items she knows will interest college-aged shoppers. From claw clips in fun shapes, to stickers for decorating laptops, there is a wide variety.
“You don’t have to live down the line to come into town and check it out,” Davis said.
URI students who live on campus or do not have access to a car can reach Eclectic Energy by taking the 203 Rhode Island Public Transit Authority bus, which runs daily. The store is open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. seven days a week.
