Shades Sunglasses and Casual Apparel, Joe Jernigan, The Wharf

Try this on for size… How does a fisheries biologist end up with a regional chain of sunglasses and casual fashion stores? That’s what I set out to learn when I met with Joe Jerrigan at his offices at The Wharf in Orange Beach. 

As I entered the retail store below the offices, I was greeted by several large and small pooches in various stages of repose. Then I noticed the Shades-brand t-shirts had a beautiful Golden Retriever wearing, what else, sunglasses printed across the front.

Dogs are a thing at Shades; lots of dogs. At all ten Shades locations, employees are encouraged to bring their furry friends to work. “It’s fun for the customers and helps us attract better staff,” says Joe. “People come in all the time just to see the dogs. They may not purchase anything, but we’re okay with that. We just want a fun place to visit and shop. It’s worked out well.”

Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, when it was time to go to college, Joe discovered Auburn University. At Auburn, he earned his undergraduate and master's in Fisheries Management. “All I ever wanted to do as a kid was fish. When my parents asked what I wanted to be, I said, “I just want to go fishing.” 

1985 was the early days of computers, and he discovered Auburn offered a program that suited him to a tee. “After college, I became a Fisheries Biologist for the State of Alabama’s Wildlife and Fisheries. I started in Prattville and was transferred to Spanish Fort as a District Fisheries Biologist. That’s when I discovered the Gulf Coast, and I’ve never looked back.”   

As an aquatic plant manager, Joe spent a lot of time in helicopters and airboats spraying invasive grasses. “We were attempting to kill the invasive grasses so the native grasses could flourish. We called it “Bass and Grass Interaction.” It’s still going on, but it is managed now at the Federal level; Corp of Engineers and Fish and Wildlife Services.”

Joe and his wife, Mary, moved to Fairhope after the transfer, and both their boys graduated from Fairhope High School. As an avid fisherman, he noticed there was an underserved sunglasses market in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. “You could find sunglasses in tackle shops and souvenir stores at the beach, but there wasn’t much of a selection.”

In 2004, Joe and Mary opened the first Shades in the Tanger Outlet mall in Foley. Joe kept his day job with Wildlife and Fisheries while the store was getting off the ground. He tells me they leased a 3500 sf space and spent $100,000 on sunglasses, and the store looked empty. “We had to get into apparel just to make the place look like a real store.”

Things took off quickly. They opened a new store every year thereafter: Spanish Fort, The Wharf, and then Tuscaloosa. In 2007, Mary was running all four stores while Joe was putting in 40 hours of paid time with the State, and 40 hours unpaid with Shades. In 2007, Mary called Joe and said, “I need help.”

He quit his Fisheries job and focused his attention on developing Shades Sunglasses and Casual Apparel into ten retail stores in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Tennessee selling T-shirts, shorts, pants, bathing suits, flip flops, hats, and women’s boutique apparel. Joe refers to this as Women’s Fast Fashion.

“We originally just wanted to own one store,” says Joe. “But after we realized the potential, we wanted to own the market,” he tells me. “We weren’t trying to be an outdoor brand that carried Patagonia or The North Face, but more casual lifestyle brands; inexpensive yet good quality with a broad appeal.” 

Shades carries Vineyard Vine from Martha’s Vineyard, Southern Marsh from Baton Rouge, and Old Row from Austin. “Brands come and go, styles come and go. We try to establish relationships with brands just as they are coming into the market so that we can stay on top of the latest fashion trends.”

Of course, Shades carries every brand and style of sunglasses imaginable. After our visit, I ran into an acquaintance who was purchasing a new pair of Costa sunglasses for his trip to the Abbacos the next day. Joe claims he prefers to hit singles with customers rather than home runs. 

“We want everyone who comes in to have a good time. That's why we offer a beverage or a drink while you shop.” As soon as I entered, Joe poured two ladies and me a Pineapple Margarita served in a hollowed-out block of Himalayan salt. He then had all the dogs, at least 7, sit next to a customer who wanted her photo taken, with and without sunglasses. Joe was bribing them with treats, so they were very cooperative models.

I asked Joe about the abundance of dogs. “I started bringing my Golden Retriever, Lola, to the store, and people began expecting to see her whenever they came to shop. Now, we host rescue events at all the stores, one about every six weeks. We work with Wags and Whiskers and usually have 60 or so dogs at every event. We provide the location, and about 20 dogs per day are adopted. Shades pays all the adoption fees.” 

Do you still love to fish, I ask? “For Mary and myself, it’s offshore fishing for Marlin on our boat, Feeling Nauti, a 65’ Hatteras. We don’t tournament fish. If I lose a fish, it just costs me a sandwich, not $100,000.” He prefers to go during the week and has a full-time captain. “It’s busy on weekends, plus I have to work.”

Joe and Mary have been living on Ono Island for the last nine years. I asked him about the growth of the area since they’ve lived here. “I love it. What’s not to like? It’s Orange Beach! The only problem is deciding what to do because there are so many options, and you can’t do them all.” 

Then he closes our conversation by saying, 'The future’s so bright, you have to wear Shades.’