Nestled into the Statesboro Market District sits Reece’s Pieces, the eclectic herbalist hobby shop owned in part by Brian Thompson. From wall tapestries and vintage video games to glass tobacco pipes and Buddhist prayer beads, Thompson said everything in the store is a labor of love.

“Our store has changed and grown so much,” Thompson said. “As we’re getting a little bit older, we realized we’re also nerds, and there’s no representation for that here, so we threw in all the nerd stuff.”

The store itself is named after a friend of Thompson who passed away. Friendship and community are both important to Thompson. The store’s back wall is decorated with planets and galaxies that he and his friends painted themselves. The community, he says, is also his favorite part of the job.

“I love the people,” Thompson said. “Most of the customers we have are great people to talk to.” Thompson says that Reece’s Pieces clientele includes everyone from young children who come in to look at video games and admire the crystals to old hippie ladies who reminisce about Woodstock.

The store is a bit infamous for its feline friends that typically lurk among the incense burners and hand-made jewelry. Thompson owns two cats, both of which typically stay at the store full-time. The tradition began years ago, when he first began working at a herbalist hobby store.

“The first store we worked at had a shop kitty,” Thompson said. “We’ve always had animals in our store.”

Much of the store’s inventory is comprised of glass-blown pipes. Thompson says he works with several glassblowers, some of them locally-owned.

“[One of the glassblowers] has worked with me for almost sixteen years,” Thompson said.

Other products are made by Thompson and his employees. They make pipes from empty liquor and wine bottles. Experimenting and creating is something all of them enjoy. One pipe, made from a vodka bottle, is painted so that it will change colors depending on the lighting.

Thompson prides himself on owning a shop that provides such a unique environment. He described his store as, “things that I love that I think other people might love.”

Reece’s Pieces is an experience unique to Statesboro. Whether you’re a kid looking for video games or a veteran of Woodstock, you may find something there that will catch your eye.