Jeremy and Cynthia Veal with their daughter, Isabella. Or is it Gomez, Morticia and Wednesday?
By Ed Avis
Jeremy Veal loves Halloween. “I’m a lifelong Halloween nerd. If I could live every day as Halloween, I would do that,” he says.
Veal is taking a big step in that direction: He and his wife, Cynthia, are in the process of opening Evil Izzy's, a costume shop in Phoenix, Arizona. They plan to open their doors in the first quarter of 2024.
“Really when it comes down to what I love about Halloween, it’s not just the holiday, but the costumes,” he says. “The more I experience life, the more I see that people have a strong desire to dress up, whether it’s Halloween or Christmas or Valentine’s Day or whatever. So we decided our business didn’t need to be a Halloween store, but rather a year-round costume store.”
The owners are currently in the insurance business, and both previously worked in retail. And they have business degrees. Veal feels their background and education will help them succeed with their new store.
“We have a keen eye for making sure customers are taken care of,” Veal says. “Running the store will definitely be new, but we’re learning.”
Named After Their Daughter
Veal says the impetus to open the store now has been his observation that their 9-year-old daughter, Isabella, has grown into the same love of costuming as he has. Appropriately then, the store is named after her: She is Evil Izzy.
To capture the spirit of the idea, Veal gave a photo of Isabella to a comic book artist and asked him to render her as a mad scientist.
“As soon as the logo happened, my inspiration blossomed,” Veal says.
Filling Easley's Fun Shop Void
The Phoenix market was served for 72 years by NCA member Easley’s Fun Shop. That store closed in 2018, and nothing really replaced it, Veal says. He hopes Evil Izzy's fills that void with a solid year-round costume selection and other mainstay product lines found in successful costume businesses.
“For example, there is a huge theater community in Phoenix,” he says. “With Easley’s leaving, it kind of left a hole for nice theater make-up. So our goal is getting accounts with the companies offering high-end theater make-up and becoming an expert on it.”
Other key markets Veal hopes to serve with his new store include drag, cosplay, and LGBTQ.
“We want to be a safe space where everyone feels accepted and where they can find the types of make-up and costumes they’re looking for,” he says.
But regardless of who the customers are, Veal wants them to consider a visit to Evil Izzy’s an experience, not just a shopping trip. He has partnered with a creative company to design the interior in a way that intrigues shoppers, he says. That includes doorways that are slightly askew, interesting exhibits and displays throughout the store, and an overall “Tim Burton” feel.
And even though the doors have not yet opened, Veal already envisions the long-term future of the store.
“Our grand ambition is that one day Isabella takes the keys and Evil Izzy herself will be the owner.”