Morganton General Store welcomes new general manager

Dan Williams came across an ad on Indeed for a manager position at Morganton General Store. Prior to applying for the position, Williams said he didn’t know anything about the store and had never been to Morganton.

“I thought, this looks like a really cool store,” Williams said. “This is so nostalgic. There are things here that you don’t typically see in a store. … It’s kind of reminiscent of a Cracker Barrel.”

With 30 years of retail experience, prior to Morganton General Store, Williams worked at Gaffney (S.C.) Outlet Marketplace where he ran the 6,000-square-foot outlet mall for three years.

Williams officially began the new position as the general manager on Jan. 13. The store announced the new manager on a Facebook post that quickly began to circulate.

“Everyone has been very welcoming and accommodating,” Williams said. “I mean, the welcome from the community has been awesome. … A few people who actually saw that post have come in and said ‘hi.’”

On his agenda is the possibility of expanding the seating into the downstairs area to accommodate customers interested in dining at Swedes Cafe but cannot use stairs.

“We have a couple of tables in the storage area, and I’d like to find a couple of places in the back of the store if people need it,” Williams said.

With the community’s warm welcome and a new position secured, the Shelby resident is considering claiming Morganton as his new home.

“Every now and then something just feels right. I like it here so far,” Williams said. “I can see moving over here at some point.”