Good JuJu

Well I’m not sure what to say about this place my wife drug me down here to go shopping definitely fun kind of eclectic a lot of sort of trash to some people but super good finds the other people not my sort of thing but it definitely was well done and everyone was very nice and helpful

This place has a huge and diverse selection of great STUFF. It has a nice little café on the top floor. I’ve been disappointed with the prices, but it’s a fun place to at least browse.

I like the West Bottoms area in general, and it makes for a nice weekend when the weather is cooperating. Good Ju Ju is a fun store with lots to look at. Trinkets and bobbles galore! We’ve purchased a few things from here, the latest (and grabbed last summer) was a very cool antique oak kitchen/​side table. Detailed with gingerbread legs and very ornate, it’s not our main «style» but I definitely had a spot and use for it. If you go on Sunday, I feel like a lot has been picked over already. But… I try to avoid the Friday or Saturday days just because of the intense crowds, so it’s a catch 22. There are so many other shops in the West Bottoms now, but Good Ju Ju is still one of our stops.

I found out that Good Juju has an upstairs! Besides their furniture and nice home décor items, in their upstairs section they have vintage clothing. Most of it was actually really nice and decent quality. I bought a top and it fit me very well! I also bought some vintage earrings on my last visit. They seemed to have a little more selection this month, as in not so much décor but more interesting items in general, so that was really nice.

This seems like it’s going to be an unpopular rating but Good JuJu was so hyped for so long that it would have been impossible to meet expectations. The reality is though: if I hadn’t heard so many great things about JuJu, I’d still be unimpressed.
Good JuJu is essentially a more carefully curated flea market. A flea market that just sells home décor. A flea market that just sells home décor, only on the first weekend of the month.
There a half dozen other places in Kansas City that do the same thing every day, it’s unforgivingly restrictive to hope that visitors will plan a weekend around visiting your business because you won’t be open for another month if they miss it.
What are you doing for an entire month while you’re closed? Are you in this or not? Somehow this has become «a thing». A recent weekend I wanted to spend with my mother shopping in some of the cool places around town that I know are there. This doesn’t happen very often and she was VERY excited to spend time with one of her adult kids who for too long had been busy with work and life.
A Unilocal search uncovered more than a handful and one-​by-​one they were eliminated because it was the LAST weekend of the month — not the first. Sorry, Mom.
This might be forgivable had the experience the next weekend been amazing. It was cool. A lot of time obviously goes into curating the items for sale. Not a month. It wasn’t that amazing.

One of my favorite shops in the West Bottoms. Always brings me back to my childhood. It’s a little crowded on nice weekend Saturdays but that’s the only down side to shopping there.

One of my very favorite stores! Went today and managed to find quite a few treasures! The staff are so friendly and helpful. Everything is displayed nicely and great prices! I was so sad when I couldn’t go last weekend and so happy they were open one more time before Christmas!
A place in KC not to miss!

I ventured off to go «antiquing» or whatever the young kids call it nowadays. First of all, I had an absolute BLAST. If I had only gone to Good Juju, the rating would’ve been a solid 4. But because I went to other stores, I saw the other variety, the (some: beautiful) merchandising… it was easy to forget about Juju. First, parking may be difficult but it’s attainable near GJ. After 10a, good luck, but if you get there before 10, you might have a chance to snag a good spot. My standards were pretty low coming in and it’s not necessary to have everything pristine and absolutely organized, but I like the effort put forth by the other stores to make my shopping experience delightful. I have no problem with the merchandise nor the vendors at Juju, it’s just the set-​up and the extra step the other big buildings put forth gives them a little bit of an edge ahead. Another reason to check out other shops is Juju is very strict on the bargaining aspect of the sale… other places are more open-​minded to barter. I wouldn’t necessarily skip out on Juju, but keep in mind that there are other options! Play the field a bit!

Ladies leave the men at home, grab one of your favs and head down to Good Juju on a lazy first Sunday afternoon! People have commented that its not as good as it used to be — I’m a fairly recent transplant to the KC area and I think it’s awesome! Great finds, beautiful work and so many eye catchers! Though they’re open the first Friday/​Saturday/​Sunday of the month, Sundays a sale days and you can score some amazing deals! Bought the perfect red china hutch for under $ 200! Bonus: they have AC in the summer unlike most of the warehouses out there.

I must admit I have avoided the West Bottoms, probably because I don’t love the «hype».
But I love vintage and antique stuff and my friends kept raving about the stores down there and showed me some of the stuff they picked up, so I thought it would be best to go with an open mind and see if I could find anything cool.
Good JuJu is sort of the namesake of this neighborhood. I expected to be blown away, but maybe the hype and popularity was a disadvantage to them.
Their space was laid out in a standard antique mall fashion. The building isn’t all that exciting in comparison to other stores, so the place that should make up for it is the merchandise.
While I did see some pretty cool items, I didn’t come across anything I absolutely had to have and if it peaked my interest it was definitely on the pricey side.
I’ll probably still come back to check this place out on another trip to see if it was a fluke, but as of right now, it wasn’t anything super special.

Good Juju ended up being a later stop for us during our first Saturday antiquing, and honestly it probably should have been one of the first we went through. By the time we got there the crowd had really started to pick up, and it was still before noon! I did find a cute little juice glass, but felt like herded cattle most of the time, making it really hard to actually get into the different areas and look through things. If you have anything in your hand from a previous purchase, take it to the car. You will feel like a jerk for bumping into everyone (or were they bumping into me?). I think the store has a lot of potential, but I left with one very small item, and mostly from the impatience of dealing with other shoppers. I heard this was an upgraded space for Good Juju, but maybe they need to consider another upgrade.
The prices seemed pretty fair for most of the things. I was pretty bummed about a Cher Barbie in not so great condition for 30 bucks. My juice glass was a steal at 1.50 though!
I’m sure there is Good Juju to be found in the store, but it doesn’t lie with the layout or the space.

Full disclosure here: I haven’t been to all the antique shops in the West Bottoms. In fact, I’ve only been to three, so my basis of comparison isn’t as cultivated as other reviewers. That being said, I loved Good JuJu. Compared to antique shops outside of this area, the prices are amazing. Compared to the other two shops I visited on the same day, the prices are better. I like their inventory way more than other places. It’s fresher, younger and more diverse. The store is quite large and has an excellent mix of styles and eras. It gets stupid busy and the staff is always running around, so customer service isn’t the best; however, this is the very rare situation where the inventory trumps the staff.

I’ve always liked Good JuJu and their merchandise is fun, though sometimes a little pricey. However, the one huge problem I have always had — it seems especially hard to maneuver when it’s crowded. It feels like there’s no main aisle to bypass people stopping into booths — you’re stuck going the pace of the person in front of you. If you have a man with you, just forget it – my hubs refuses to deal with the claustrophobia in here. (Though, it’s getting that way with a lot of shops. I’m going to have to start leaving him at home or dropping him off at Jaskki’s down the street.)
I thought this was why they moved to a new location, but they packed this location just as full instead of leaving some room to breathe. However, the parking at their new location is spacious and there is quite a bit of shade.
To be fair, a lot of the WB shops have the crowded problem; the best way around it is to go early and avoid Saturday afternoon. This last weekend, I went on a Friday afternoon, and I had a much better time being able to poke along and see what I wanted to see at my own pace.
Edit: After posting this, I received a personal message from the owner, which I really appreciated. They’re listening and always striving to make their store better! Thanks!

I hesitate to share my love for fear others will crowd me as I hustle through here. But then, I love what they are doing so much that I want them to be successful… and so passing the word will help that success grow. Okay, lets be honest… they don’t need me to be successful. They’ve figured it out.
Here is how sucked in I was on my first visit… I purchased a desk. I do not live in Kansas City. In fact, I don’t live in Missouri or Kansas. I live in California. I did not need that desk, but it was such an awesome deal, it needed to come home (to my friend’s house until I can someday use it). ha!
The whole West Bottoms revival is worth looking into. There are a number of really great entrepreneurs sticking their necks out down there and supporting them is a win-​win.
Do it! Do it!

Oh Good JuJu! I feel so bad for you. I feel like you’ve crumbled under the weight of your success. It’s really not your fault, but man that 5 star rating has GOT to go.
See, Good Juju has always only been open on the first weekend of every month, in order to restock their store with quality antiques and vintage/​retro merchandise. That makes perfect sense, and for a low rent area, it’s a sound business plan. The problem is, it was TOO successful, and now there are like 12 other giant stores in the neighborhood that do the same thing. And frankly, many of them do it better.
I have sympathy, because unique, funky antiques are definitely in rare supply, and I feel like the people who curate this store have to put a lot of effort into finding good merch. There may just not be as much of it out there anymore.
Every time I go down to the West Bottoms for the first weekend antique thing, I make sure and stop at Good Juju. I still do like it. But there are a handful of other stores that I vastly prefer.
Thanks for starting a great trend, Good JuJu. Now just see if you can find a way back in front of it.

I just couldn’t take it any more.
I’ve been trying to hold out on a trip to Good Juju until I actually needed some new furniture, but… well, I caved. So I went this Saturday at 9, and it was as glorious as I imagined.
I wanted everything. Alas, I am low on funds right now, so I had to make do with the most perfect crab ash tray — my grandmother had the exact same one when I was growing up, and I think it’ll be a perfect place for rings. One friend got a darling little pantry, in addition to the trunk and dresser she got last time. I wavered on a few items, but held firm (this time).
Next month I’ll have a bigger apartment to furnish, so I’m going to start saving now. Can’t wait!

Juju or Ju-​Ju is a word of West African origin, derived from the French joujou that refers to the supernatural power ascribed to an object; or fetish.
This now explains why I now own an aqua blue and green mushroom print trivet ($ 3) and blue flower glass ($ 1.50). *See my photo
Good JuJu is a fun place to browse and has enough open aisle space to not feel crowded with other shoppers. There are many associates available on the floor to assist customers. They don’t give off the «here to catch shoplifters» vibe either. Prices are affordable.

Another solid, fun 4 star shopping location in the Bottoms — YAY! This place is huge, and it was definitely doing a brisk trade the day we stopped in. Good JuJu had been on my radar for awhile, but it seemed like I always forgot about it when it was actually open… not this time, my friends!
It was a teeny bit difficult to find parking because it was so busy — late in the day on a Saturday, at that. Always a good sign, if you ask me. When we went in, I was immediately amazed at how big Good JuJu is inside — I could’ve spent a lot more time in there browsing than I actually did. This is the sort of place that makes me want to get MUCH more creative than I actually am — there are little treasures everywhere; everything from jars of vintage buttons, to matchbooks, to old containers… and that’s just the small stuff. Being there reminded me of when I was a kid, visiting our elderly neighbor — she’d always let us try on her jewelry or poke around in the basement, and seeing all of the interesting stuff in Good JuJu brought all of those memories back.
There was all kinds of furniture that I wish we had the room for, and my husband was enthralled with the old books and tools. There were even things from our childhood — we’re not that old, so it was funny to see what we both remembered from our younger years, and to see that things from our youth are apparently now early vintage!
Good JuJu is another place where there are lovely surprises around every corner — that old combination lock just hanging on the wall is still on my mind, and I wonder how it would look on MY wall! I’m hoping it’ll still be there the next time we’re in, but if not, I’m sure I’ll find plenty of other treasures to bring home.

After a day of searching through the antique shops along antique row and being all «woe is me for I cannot afford anything here» (I still can’t stop thinking about that green desk for over 3K. Being that my car cost *half* of that, well, let’s just say that’s out of my budget), imagine my joy upon entering Good JuJu.
You see, I have an obsession with things from the past. You’ll find a good amount of vintage in my closet and quite a few vintage pieces of furniture in my house and possibly one or two antiques (the *general* rule is that antique items are 100 + years). I would love to have more such items in my home, but I simply cannot decide what era is my favorite. You might find me drooling over a mid-​century modern living room set, buuut I can’t say that I could make that commitment because that’s not going to go with my Victorian lamp or my art deco coffee table. It’s really difficult to choose so I tend to just pick pieces pre-​mid century, mix that in with some modern pieces and call it a style.
But I would love something a bit more pristine. Maybe some day when I rightfully claim my castle along Ward Parkway, I can have rooms that are pristine. Until then, I’ll decorate our 100 year old rental in my typical style, even if it afflicted with a personality disorder.
Voi-​la Good JuJu! Oh my *heavens*!! I was so excited to peruse each and every booth and their treasures, all in pristine to good to used and abused but still quite charming condition. Such as: those rubber animals that kids played with in the 40s, Christmas kitsch, glassware, vintage roller skates (avec key!), but furniture is where they who grace Good JuJu truly shine. Around every corner I was gasping for air and then when I found my dream enamel top table, I almost knew what it was like to reach a state of nirvanic bliss. Such tables cost upward of 300 dollars in New York. At Good Juju it was marked 120. A lovely 50s grey and pink kitchen table with chairs would be so lovely if only we had an eat-​in kitchen. Now on to the dressers and Hoosier cabinets! The selection ranges from turn of the century to mid-​century, all reasonably priced. My problem, of course, I could not choose! Luckily they are open again next Saturday.
We were good today. Despite me wanting to replace every item in our house with «new» stuff from here, we took measurements of two Hoosier cabinets, made mental notes for a buffet in the dining room, bookmarked the enamel table and purchased a metal fan and a saucy red/​black fringe lamp with a vintage base for only 12 dollars.
Keep in mind Good JuJu has limited hours (they are open First Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and sometimes they’ll add on another Saturday or two during the month. Call to check.

Bittersweet* qualifies the emotions I felt after leaving here.
This treasure trove of whimsy that reminded me how it felt to be a kid in a candy store. A candy store where the candy has morphed into beautiful pop colored chandeliers, refinished French provincial chairs, mid-​century modern coffee tables and buffets. Trinkets once beloved by others, ready to pass into another hand to be loved.
The best part about this place is that it is only open once a month over a weekend. And it’s good because anticipation makes everything less bitter and more sweet.
*I’m bitter because I live too many states away.