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At 5222 Walnut Street in Shadyside, Pittsburgh, Kards Unlimited has stood for over half a century. This long-established greeting card shop, which started in 1968, has been passed down through four generations of owners and has become a pillar of the local business through the wave of chain stores.
Stepping into Kards Unlimited in Pittsburgh is like entering a treasure trove of surprises, breaking the stereotype of traditional greeting card stores: there are independent greeting cards with diverse styles such as cheesy humor, LGBTQ friendly, and Taylor Swift themes, as well as "My Dog Is Awesome" themed socks, Pittsburgh specialty books, liberal political message mugs, and all sorts of decorations and trinkets.
This inclusive and avant-garde style has a long history. In 1969, the store boldly sold posters of "Easy Rider" containing controversial scenes, becoming an epitome of early "counterculture".
Amanda Blair: Legacy and Innovation
Former owner Christine Kershner said she "basically grew up with the store."
In 1968, her grandmother, Sue Giltenberg, bought the Hallman store (a greeting card shop) and renamed it Kards Unlimited.
In 1972, her parents, Mary Sue and Ralph Collet, took over the store and later owned 11 stores similar to Kards Unlimited in the Pittsburgh area.
In the 1990s, the Klezzi family decided to sell most of their stores, but Kershner insisted on keeping Kards Unlimited because it had the best pop culture merchandise and, more importantly, it was a veteran store.
In 2021, Amanda Blair, who rose through the ranks from an employee, took over the reins and became the fourth-generation leader.
Blair's connection with the shop began in 2006. Hailing from Warren, a small town about 50 miles southeast of Erie, she entered the University of Pittsburgh in 1999 to study philosophy and poetry, falling deeply in love with the city's blend of big-city convenience and small-town charm. After graduating, she worked at the large chain bookstore Borders until it withdrew from the area due to financial difficulties.
By chance, she walked into Kards Unlimited and hit it off with the owner, Kershner, and decided to stay. Initially, Blair worked at the store while returning to the University of Pittsburgh to pursue a master's degree, planning to switch to the healthcare industry. However, she soon discovered that her "very talkative" personality was better suited to interacting with the customers of the greeting card store.
When Kershner suggested that she take over the shop, Blair, who had only one semester left before graduating with her master's degree, resolutely chose to drop out of school and take over: "It was certainly risky, but I knew the shop inside and out."“
The new business arrangement is flexible: Ms. Kershner continues to own the building where the shop is located, and Ms. Blair operates the business by paying rent, which allows Ms. Kershner to enjoy her retirement at her grandparents' home in Slippery Rock.
Even with Kershner's guidance, Ms. Blair's transition from employee to store owner was not easy. She was initially not good at office management and was always busy in the sales area until her employees reminded her, "You need to stop and let others do these things." Even more challenging was the store's bookkeeping method: it had long relied on handwritten records and had never transitioned to the digital age. "There used to be long lines at the checkout, and customers were used to it, but now we have to improve."
Under Blair's leadership, the store completed its digital transformation: not only did they build and launch an online sales system, but they also cataloged all the store's merchandise, leaving greeting cards for last due to their large number and complexity. The transformation was remarkably successful. Her initial, incomplete data showed that the store sold at least 71,445 greeting cards this year, with a peak that could exceed 100,000, and each greeting card typically retailed for around $6.
In 2021, Blair officially became a full-time owner of Kards Unlimited. Today, she still communicates with Ms. Kershner several times a week, and the former owner still comes to help out when the store is busiest. Blair joked, "I don't think she's ready to retire yet."“
Architectural History: From Farmland to Card Shop
Ms. Blair's husband, Jason Killeen, initially wanted to surprise his wife, so he delved into the building's history, eventually writing a 118-page book, *From Farmland to Card Shop*. Published in 2022, it is currently available at Kards Unlimited.
Kards Unlimited opened in 1968, but the building at 5522 Walnut Street, Saddyside, dates back to at least 1893, when its owners, German immigrants Gottlieb Benzenhofer and Caroline Benzenhofer, lived in the building and ran a barbershop on the ground floor.
The building was used as a residence until the 1940s, after which many businesses began operating there: several barbershops, an interior designer, and Papa Joe's restaurant.
From 1948 to 1982, the second floor of this building housed the Hollywood Social Club. Notable guests of the club included Orson Welles, director of *Citizen Kane*; comedian and musician Henny Youngman; and the infamous Pittsburgh mob boss Michael James Genovese.
Ms. Blair said her husband's research has helped her build stronger connections with some of her older customers who remember what Walnut Street used to be like. "That's one of my favorite things," she said. "People come in and tell me stories from when they were teenagers, when they would come here and go to that little underground bar." "You don't often find places this old. It's a building full of stories."“
Customers: A preference for local small shops
Katie Greeno, from Auckland, has been a regular customer of this store for over 30 years. What keeps her choosing this store is not only her support for local businesses, but also the fact that she can always find "the most interesting, fun, clever and humorous things" here.
Peggy Hersey of Aspinwall is another devoted customer of this shop. She has been a regular since the shop first opened in the 1960s and still clutches the wrapper with the candy cane design she bought last year. "There are many greeting card shops, but this is my favorite," she says.
Young customers also find a sense of belonging here. Ona Sakko, a 23-year-old from Squirrel Hill, was looking for Christmas gifts for her boyfriend and their cat. She spotted several bags of organic catnip with humorous, even slightly provocative, slogans printed on the packaging, perfectly matching the store's style. "They have so many exquisite little things; you can always find the perfect selection," Sakko said with a smile.
Ms. Kershner thanked the people of Pittsburgh for their continued support of Kards Unlimited, making the store a pillar of the local business in an era dominated by chain stores. “It’s important not to let billionaires get richer,” she said. “Now more than ever, it’s important that people choose local products.”
Ms. Blair agreed. She prefers to patronize the local Pittsburgh coffee roastery, Coffee Tree Roasters, next door, rather than Starbucks, especially since she used to work at a Coffee Tree branch and knew the owner from her time at the University of Pittsburgh. She's also friends with other small business owners on Walnut Street, including Ten Toes shoe store and Pursuits women's clothing store.
Conclusion
In an era dominated by chain stores, Kards Unlimited's ability to become a pillar of Pittsburgh is inseparable from the decades-long preference of its customers, and also reflects the warmth and loyalty of the small town's neighbors who flock to it.
Ms. Blair said, "One of the great things about Pittsburgh is that people are very loyal to small businesses and certain merchants. Everyone knows each other."“
Written by TVOW World Voice Contributor | Adapted from EnglishAdam Babetski, reporter for The Pittsburgh Post-GazetteReports
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