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NEW RICHLAND — After 12 years in the consignment store business, Linda Wagner decided that it was time to retire. Wagner was the owner of the Lady Bug Thrift Shop in New Richland.

Around that same time, the building next to the Lady Bug became vacant.

It was then that Wagner’s daughter and son-in-law, Paulette and Dave Kramptz, decided to step in.

Previously the owner of a body shop in Waseca for 35 years, Dave said he had always wanted to eventually take over running the Lady Bug. Paulette was not as sure about the idea, but when her mother announced she was ready to retire, she agreed as long as Wagner stuck around to help them get settled.

Dave and Paulette also decided to buy the empty building next to the Lady Bug. Wagner said she had wanted to grow the store for some time, but knew she would not be able to do it without help.

“The timing was absolutely perfect,” she said. “It was God’s timing.”

Dave started remodeling by removing the wall separating the two buildings, giving the Lady Bug a lot of extra space.

“They’ve totally changed the whole store, which is wonderful,” said Wagner. She added she loves everything they have done.

The Lady Bug sells a variety of clothing, accessories and home goods. With the added space, the store is also now able to sell small furniture and some tools, hunting supplies and collectible items Wagner refers to as “guy stuff.”

Opened in 1972, the Lady Bug was originally located on Minnesota Highway 30 near Ellendale and run by sisters Carol Shultz and Mavis Langley. They used an old chicken house for the store, but often had problems with ladybugs, thus giving the thrift shop its name.

It eventually moved to New Richland, and Wagner took ownership of the store in 2013.

According to Wagner, Shultz and Langley had built a foundation for consignment that worked very well, setting a high standard for what the store would take and having regular times of the year to make seasonal changes.

“The groundwork was done for us, and we just kept that standard,” she said.

Dave and Paulette kept up these standards as well. In March and September, Paulette said, everything goes on sale with the goal of selling as much of the stock as possible. Clothing that is not sold is donated to New Richland Baptist Church. The church sells the clothing and uses the money for their mission trips.

The Lady Bug then switches over to different seasonal clothes, changing to spring and summer styles in March and fall and winter styles in September.

Paulette said people love coming in after seasonal changes because the store looks completely different, and there are lots of new hidden gems to find.

Even when it is not time for a season change, she said, the store gets new things coming in every day, so there is always something fun to look for.

Thrift shopping has grown in popularity recently, not just to acquire goods, but also as a leisure activity to do with family and friends. Dave said it’s like treasure hunting.

Clothing can be expensive, he added, and it is nice that the Lady Bug does not take items that are substandard, but also sells things at an affordable price.

Paulette said one of their most popular items is NRHEG High School Panthers apparel, as it is much more budget-friendly than buying new clothes.

It is great having a store in New Richland, Dave, Paulette and Wagner all agreed.

There are not a lot of businesses in New Richland, Dave said, but the ones that are in town help each other.

People find the Lady Bug online, and after they are finished shopping, they have lunch at the restaurant down the street or buy something from the grocery store.

“You really see how businesses help each other,” Wagner said. “They help bring in your customers.”

Paulette said people are thankful to have a store like the Lady Bug in town that they come in and thank them all the time.

“We’re hoping that it brings more businesses to New Richland because we’ve almost got one block filled up now,” Dave said.

The Lady Bug Thrift Shop is at 116 Broadway Ave. S. in New Richland, next to Wagner Foods grocery store.