Wondrous Finds & Peculiar Pieces
The Black Cat Creates an Unforgettable Shopping Experience
Moe Mullis was just a kid when he dug up a century-old fireman’s badge in the yard of his family’s Victorian-era farmhouse in Oneida. The badge was unlike anything he had ever seen, and it triggered in him a lifelong fascination for antiques and the unusual.
Today, Moe and his wife, Ella, own and operate The Black Cat, a mysterious funhouse of a shop, that sells antiques, collectibles, comics, and oddities. In addition to their own finds, the Mullis pack the shop with items from 31 vendors. Finds can include everything from vintage toys, vinyl records, and handmade jewelry to antique taxidermied specimens and treasures pulled from the wreckage of pirate ships.
“We are 1 of the most unique shops in the state of Tennessee right now,” says Moe, who once used the Main Street building to host the popular haunted house, Outbreak on Main Haunted Attractions. “We get people from all over the country coming here. We’ve even got regulars from out of state. There’s a guy from California who comes in about once every 6 months just to visit the shop.”
Rocky Beginnings
The Black Cat got its start as an afterthought—a souvenir shop tacked on to a popular haunted house. “We realized quickly we’d only sell enough T-shirts and hats to pay the bills that needed to be paid,” Moe says. “So, we thought, ‘Well, let’s do an antique and oddities shop,’ and it just took off.”
After a change in state regulations regarding indoor haunts led to the closure of the haunted house in the 1940s-era building, the Mullises decided to expand the shop. For inspiration, they conjured up images from supernatural sitcoms like “The Munsters” and “The Addams Family”—both of which can be seen in the store’s Parlor Room with its Victorian furniture, giant candelabras, and eerily lit merchandise.
They also took ideas from stores they’d visited in other parts of the country. “Even before we did the shop, we’d set up at conventions and see what other people were selling,” he says. “I think a lot of people are surprised we’re up here in Oneida and not in Knoxville or Pigeon Forge. But this is where we’re from. This is home.”
Not long after they opened, a storm came through town, ripped off the building’s roof, and deposited it on top of the carpet store next door. “We spent six months putting the building back together,” Moe says.
When they finally got a new roof and other repairs, they held a grand reopening of the shop in early 2020. 2 weeks later, the COVID-19 pandemic shut down businesses all over the country, including theirs. “Luckily, we had enough savings to pull us through,” Moe says.
Every Piece Tells a Story
Today, however, the shop is thriving, and the Mullises have since expanded it to a second floor, adding 3,000 square feet of space. “That’s where almost all of the comics and collectibles are,” Moe says. “We also put a stage up there. We call it The Black Cat Main Stage, and we’ll be offering some live entertainment.”
Upstairs also houses a portion of The Museum of Oneida and Scott County, a completely free museum of items and photos that tell the story of the county’s bygone days. “We have somewhere between 15,000 to 20,000 items in the museum. 80% of them are mine, and the rest are donated or on loan for display,” Moe says. “We’re starting to get a lot of schools coming in for field trips. That’s important to me—the history of these items, where they come from, what their stories are.”
But they can’t tell these stories without a reliable internet service and a strong online presence. Facebook is, by far, their most powerful and cost-efficient advertising medium. But they also rely on their eBay shop to sell high-end collectibles. They also use various other social media channels to promote the shop.
“Highland takes care of us,” Moe says. “We haven’t had any issues.”
Still, it’s the in-person experience that makes Moe the happiest. He loves seeing the looks on visitors’ faces when they experience the shop that’s unlike anything around. “When people first walk in the door and get that first glance, their eyes light up or they get a big smile,” he says. “We don’t put out just anything. We try our very best to stay original to what we like and what we’re into. We want those ‘wow’ pieces.”
Published with permission from HTC.