HUMANS OF MURWILLUMBAH | PART ONE

KIRSTEN DEVITT

Kirsten is the owner of Each To Own, a jewellery and homewares business located in Stokers Siding, just outside Murwillumbah. After dedicating 15 years to hand-making her products and managing multiple labels, as well as running a storefront and gallery, she has decided to take a few months off. This break allows her the space to reflect on the future direction of her business and creative journey. Kirsten believes that it’s good taking time off to play and remember why she started in the first place!

1. What brought you to Murwillumbah and what do you love most about living in town or in the surrounding areas? We had been lucky enough to work at Splendour In The Grass for a few years so we visited the area quite a bit over time.  One year I moaned that I was too old (and precious!) to camp so we rented a little Air BnB in Stokers Sidings for the Splendour weekend of 2013...and fell in love. We bought land with some good friends and set about moving to the country. I couldn't, and still can't, believe that you could be so close to the beaches, beautiful mountains and still be able to commute a few days a week Brissie, which was perfect for us. Murwillumbah is in an incredible location - you aren't too far away from everything you need but it feels like you are very far away; in a homey, regional town. It's pretty special.
   
   

2. What inspired you to start your business in Murwillumbah? I was brought up in a retail family and the lure of a "for lease" sign is always a hard one to resist. At that time ETO (Each To Own) was well established online and I was getting a little tired of the market scene so it made sense to have more of a permanent home IRL for the brand. We were lucky that the shop was so cute and the landlord was amazing so it was a no brainer really. I was inspired by other people like Katie and Matt from Keith at the time - they had made a great little business that was bringing a lovely vibe to the town and I wanted to be a part of that. So we opened our "tinnie not flagship" store. We received amazing support from the community and became a weekend destination shopping spot for lots of ETO lovers from up North. They were really happy, busy days. I loved chatting with visitors and helping them fall in love with our town and region. I have a good strike rate for convincing people to move here ;)
   
   

3. Can you share a story about a time when the Murwillumbah community came together to support one another? I think if you ask anyone in town, newcomer or old timer, they will say that the floods in 2017 and 2022 were completely devastating and have had a lasting effect on us. Both in unfortunate ways but also in good ways. We are an incredible community in a pinch. After both floods there were incredible amounts of love and support given freely and selflessly from so many corners of the community. I am a bit teary as I write this as I have seen so many wonderful gestures and so much hard work go into bringing the community back to a stable place over the years. There is still a way to go but there are always amazing people working hard behind the scenes and I am always going to love this town for how much it cares.
   
   

4. What are some spots in town that you would recommend to visitors? Ahhh, there are so so many! For good stuff this little town really does punch above its weight for gorgeous countryside, amazing food and drink and a vibrant arts community. You can't go past our incredible, award winning Tweed Regional Museum, and our Tweed Regional Art Gallery is by far one of the best regional galleries in Australia. There are also an insane amount of restaurants, pubs and cafes including, Keith, Bistro Livi, Barrels, Wild Thyme Cafe, The Impy, Tweed River House and the good old Austral Cafe. I am in serious trouble of being run out of town because there are 100 more amazing joints in town and the surroundings - it would take a month of Sundays to eat and drink your way through Mur'bah (and you would be VERY happy). We also have so many artists working hard in the region to put us on the map and The MArts Precinct and The Citadel are focal points for the town. Both are working hard to provide spaces for the arts to grow here.
   
   

5. How do you envision the future of Murwillumbah? I see so many chances for wonderful things to happen in this town. I would love to see it as the art, food and culture hub of the Northern Rivers - there are just so many engaged and engaging people working hard, and putting their money where their hearts are, to make this happen. I would love to see the civic powers that be really get in and support growth in the town that benefits our artists, retailers and providores. We have all said many times that we feel a sense that the town is about to "happen" but without forward thinking leadership and support it can sometimes be frustrating. We have such a little gem of a town to share but we also have a community that is crying out to thrive. It will come in time, because I have never known a more hard working, resilient, creative and determined community in my life...and I am so proud to be a part of it.

CLICK HERE TO FOLLOW KIRSTEN ON INSTAGRAM!