'I should just open my own shop': How Ocean Grove yarn store makes you feel at home

OCEAN GROVE - Native Californian Russell Brent held a number of different jobs in the corporate arena throughout his career. But in 2018, he came full circle when his childhood hobby of knitting led him to launch Balzac & Co., an Ocean Grove-based shop specializing in yarns, notions and patterns that’s become a happy place for knitters, crocheters, weavers and spinners.

Growing up in a small town near Fresno, “I learned to knit from my mom, who was a terrific knitter and needed something to keep me out of her hair,” joked Brent, 56, an Ocean Grove resident. “But back then, boys didn’t knit, so I made lanyards, painted and did other crafts, but I didn’t really pursue knitting after elementary school.”

After graduating from college in San Francisco with a degree in business management, “I did a number of different things in the San Francisco area, from planning events for different companies to running an art gallery and managing administrative services for a local hospital,” Brent said.

A decade ago, Brent’s husband got a job offer in New York City that they couldn’t refuse and the pair moved to Manhattan. In search of a weekend/summer getaway, “we found Ocean Grove through some friends and fell in love with the community,” Brent said. They eventually made a permanent move to their house in Ocean Grove in 2016, leading Brent to a brainstorm.

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“I hadn’t touched knitting needles for 15 years after grammar school, but about 25 years ago my friends started having babies, so I picked up the needles again to make small gifts for them and then expanded my repertoire with larger projects,” he said. “I was working on a project at our house in Ocean Grove and needed some knitting materials, but all of the yarn shops in the area were either closed or inconvenient to get to, so I told my husband that I should just open my own shop.”

Soon after, Brent did just that.

“My original space in Ocean Grove was two doors down from where we are now,” Brent said of the smaller yarn shop he opened in October 2018 and named Balzac & Co. “Within a few months we realized we needed a bigger space, and as luck would have it, the business occupying our current space happened to be moving out, so we relocated there in early 2019.”

“I named the shop after famed 19th century writer Honoré de Balzac because I always liked what he did with his characters,” Brent said of the genesis of his store’s name. “He disregarded stereotypes and viewed all people as equal regardless of their background or socioeconomic status.”

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'Your second living room'

Today, in his quaint and colorful 2,000-square-foot shop, “we offer a diverse selection of yarn fibers and weights for knitting, crocheting and weaving,” Brent said of their products, which can range from $8 to $10 a skein up to $40 depending on the fiber and other features. “We also offer two brands of needles for knitting (including those from Shore-based company Crystal Palace Bamboo Needles), a variety of crochet hooks and all of the notions needed for knitting and crocheting as well as handmade notions by local artisans, and tons of patterns.

“Our goal is to make you feel like you’re stepping into your second living room. We want you to be comfortable, feel at home and know that this is your space,” he said. “We offer tables and other seating areas and welcome people to come knit, hang out and work on a project. We also offer lessons in knitting and crocheting that range from five-minute consults to hour-long one-on-one lessons or group classes, which are priced at $25.”

Among trends, Brent said that knitting, crocheting and many other handicrafts have been on the rise in the past few years.

“The pandemic drove a lot of new customers to us who were interested in learning how to knit and crochet, and we’ve also seen a lot of crochet on the fashion runways; whether you’re in Lisbon, Paris, Tokyo, Milan, Lagos or New York City, knitwear and crochet wear have really started to explode,” Brent said.

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As for what else is ‘in,’ “colors change with every new season and the tastemakers always release their color of the moment,” he said. “Many popular new yarn colors are a rehash of things we’ve seen in the past but are updated in a new saturation, tone or light or else are paired with something we hadn’t seen in a previous generation.”

In terms of their clientele, “our customers are largely local, but some come from as far away as North Jersey, Long Island, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Staten Island, sometimes driving two hours to get to us,” said Brent, who said that for fiber arts lovers, coming to Balzac & Co. is like being a kid in a candy store. “Unlike some other types of retail outlets, yarn shops are a destination location,” he said.

'The best stress reducers'

Supported by a team of six other experienced crafters at the shop, “most of us are proficient in both knitting and crocheting, can answer questions, and can help customers select patterns and find the right yarn,” he said. “I cover all of the shop’s back-office functions and also tend to be the go-to person if customers need help with a technically challenging project,” he noted. “I’ve been told that I have a good eye for color, so I offer a lot of color consultations.”

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Fostering community is also paramount to Brent, who’s involved in such organizations as Knit the Rainbow, which collects hand-knit and hand-crocheted garments for distribution to LGBTQ youth; Knit in the Pit, a community knitting group that meets in-person at The Asbury Hotel and virtually on Zoom; and the New Jersey Wool Walk, “a bar crawl for fiber folks that will take place this April 26-30 and involve 22 different yarn shops in New Jersey,” he said.

“I also love our own shop’s Tuesday Night Knit Group, where we stay open late for a weekly open knitting session that typically draws 15 to 20 people,” he said.

“Ultimately, we want people to feel at home, find the products they want and craft pieces they love,” Brent said of the role he hopes Balzac & Co. will continue to play in the community.

For Brent, the opportunity to promote camaraderie and creativity is extremely rewarding.

“I love interacting with and getting to know people and their story,” he said, “and I also love the relaxing and therapeutic aspects of knitting. It can be frustrating sometimes as you learn the techniques, but for those who enjoy it, it’s among the best stress reducers you can engage in, all while creating something unique and special for yourself or others at the same time,” Brent said. “It’s a truly worthwhile endeavor.”

Balzac & Co.

Location: 48 Main Ave., Ocean Grove

Phone: 732-898-6898

Owner: Russell Brent

Opened: 2018

Website: www.balzacfibers.com