TAMPA — Buccaneer Beads in Tampa expects to sell more than one million sets of beads this month in preparation for all the Gasparilla festivities and various parades happening across Tampa Bay.
“It is a family business. Me and my mom started it 19 years ago,” said owner Jennifer Grindell. “We started it pretty much out of a whim. We got tired of shopping at the only place in town, now we’re the only place in town.”
Grindell said if you catch beads from a Krewe member at Saturday’s Children’s Parade there’s a strong chance they came from her store.
“There are over 90 sanctioned Krewes in the state so they pretty much all depend on us to supply them with as many options of beads that are available,” said Grindell.
From rubber duckies, to hearts, to your favorite sports teams, more than 100 different sets of beads line the shelves.
“For the children’s parade, on average, people will buy 30 to 40 dozen per person especially for like the little kids,” said Grindell.
For those throwing the beads, bigger and brighter is often better.
“It’s always nice to have something that everyone else doesn’t have, so you pick the popular beads so you get people yelling at you. It’s more fun that way,” said Brian Swearingen.
For others, there’s a sort of sentimentality when it comes to bead shopping.
“So I’m from Plant City, so I got the strawberries for Plant City representation,” said Asif Hakeem. “I grew up catching beads with my family on Bayshore my whole life, and I always waited for the opportunity to give that joy back to the kids that we received when we were kids in the community.”
Pirates of the Caribbean may have the Black Pearl but Buccaneer Beads has the Blue Pearl, new this year.
“I carry it in three different sizes, and I can’t keep it in stock,” said Grindell.
Then there’s Matthew Cooley and his two-year-old daughter Nora, who will be celebrating her first children’s parade. It’s hard to tell who is more excited.
“I’ve been in the Krewe for 12 years now, and as much fun as I’ve had, I think this is the most excited I’ve been for any parade, to be able to share this with her, and hopefully she enjoys it as much as I have,” said Cooley.
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