Fredericksburg Popcorn Shop Delivers Salty And Sweet Goodness

FREDERICKSBURG, VA — Making savory popcorn is a family tradition for Carolyn Gipson and her siblings. Gipson owns Jus Pop’n, a gourmet popcorn shop at the corner of William and Princess Anne streets in downtown Fredericksburg.

Gipson’s sister operated a gourmet popcorn shop in Iowa, where the family grew up. Gipson’s brother co-owned a popcorn shop in Wisconsin. Both of her siblings recently sold their businesses, while Gipson is sticking with her passion of making gourmet popcorn, opening Jus Pop'n's new location in early June.

Business has been picking up since opening three months ago. Gipson sees her old customers from the days when she operated Jus Pop'n on Caroline Street, she told Patch. With the new shop located in a prime downtown location near the Fredericksburg Area Museum and other attractions, Jus Pop'n also is seeing more foot traffic, especially as people grow more accustomed to shopping in the age of coronavirus.

Unlike her previous shop in Fredericksburg, which she operated from 2015 to 2017, Gipson has the entire store to herself. Jus Pop'n, at 300 William Street, sells high-quality popcorn of various flavors, from white cheddar to chocolate mint to sea salt maple crunch to plain butter. There's a flavor to satisfy everyone's taste buds.

Jus Pop’n is getting new customers after the store was listed in the Virginia Black Business Directory, a directory founded earlier this year by Fredericksburg area business owners. Jus Pop'n also participated in Fredericksburg's Black Restaurant Week, which ran from last Tuesday through Labor Day.

Gipson, who also works as a government contractor at the State Department, has four employees who help her serve customers and fulfill orders.

Gipson is self-funding the new store. But if a potential business partner approached her, she would be willing to listen to their offer. For the time being, Gipson likes the freedom of being able to run the store on her own terms. A business partner or investor would need to have the same vision for the business as she does, she said.

By participating in Fredericksburg Black Restaurant Week and getting listed in the Virginia Black Business Directory, Gipson hopes more Black people will visit downtown Fredericksburg. "It would give them the opportunity to visit Jus Pop'n and to see the other nice businesses down here," she said.

Ernisha Hall, co-founder of the Virginia Black Business Directory and co-founder of Black Restaurant Week, reached out to Gipson about a listing in the directory. As more businesses learn about the directory, Hall is hoping they will sign up on their own.

As for Jus Pop'n, Hall said she loves many of the flavors that Gipson makes. Her favorite is the strawberry shortcake. Hall treated herself to a special batch of the flavor last week while celebrating her birthday.

Gipson welcomes all her customers into her new corner shop and is happy to see many old customers returning to buy her popcorn. While she treats every customer as a friend, Gipson understands why most people come to her shop.

"The product tastes good," she said.