By Jamie Strickland
Growth has a way of changing a community. The challenge is making sure it doesn’t change what people love about it.
Few people understand that balancing act better than Christi Thompson and Erin Nenni.
As Johnston County has evolved, these two entrepreneurs have helped shape that transformation in a way that strengthens, rather than replaces, the community’s identity.
Together, they have created opportunities for small businesses, invested in local causes and played a significant role in the revitalization of downtown Clayton — all while staying grounded in the small-town values that first shaped them.
Nowhere is that more evident than The Station, the former Clayton Town Hall building they helped rescue and transform into a vibrant gathering place.
For Thompson and Nenni, revitalizing this historic landmark was about preserving the stories, relationships and sense of community all while creating something new for the future.
That commitment to honoring the past while investing in what comes next is a defining reason they have been selected as this year’s recipients of JNOW Magazine’s Spirit of the County Award.
Though they grew up in different towns — Thompson in Youngsville and Nenni in Benson — both were raised in small-town North Carolina by entrepreneurial fathers who shaped how they viewed work, people and community.
“I think both of our dads are entrepreneurs,” Nenni said. “Growing up, you watched how their employees turned into family members and how they treated people.”
Those lessons stuck with them and became an example for how they wanted to run their businesses.
After years in corporate America, Thompson opened Three Little Birds in downtown Clayton in 2015 after recognizing a gap in the local market. What began as a small storefront grew from 1,000 square feet to 10,000 and became a vendor-driven marketplace that gave local makers and small businesses a platform to grow.
Nenni’s path began in education. A former Johnston County teacher, she left the classroom after starting a family but quickly realized she needed something more.
That’s when her path first crossed with Thompson’s. Nenni became a vendor at Three Little Birds and what started as a business relationship soon became a friendship, and eventually a partnership rooted in shared values and a similar view of what Clayton could become.
That partnership deepened during the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Like many small businesses, Three Little Birds suddenly faced a future without foot traffic or in-person customers. Rather than shutting down, Thompson and Nenni adapted quickly, launching Facebook Live sales that reached customers far beyond Johnston County.
COVID, which could have ended the business entirely, instead became a turning point where they discovered how well they complimented each other.
That realization led to new ventures, including La Di Da Wine Shop and later, The Station.
As their businesses expanded, they naturally began creating more opportunities for others.
Thompson and Nenni’s vendors don’t just rent space, they gain exposure, mentorship and access to years of hands-on business experience.
“We’ve always had goals to support other entrepreneurs,” Nenni said.
In many cases, their spaces function as incubators, giving small businesses a chance to grow.
“We’re not money motivated,” Thompson said. “Our motivation is community.”
That concept is especially evident in The Station.
When they first began discussing the old Clayton Town Hall building, it sat quiet and deteriorating. Years of water damage, structural issues and uncertainty had left its future unclear.
In 2023, they began the process of acquiring the building from the Town of Clayton.
“We didn’t really even know what the business concept was going to be inside of it at that moment, just figuring it out as you go. With all our businesses, we’ve kind of always looked at things like, ‘What do people want? What do we want, as people who live and work and bring our families to Clayton?’”
“Our friends and family must have thought we were crazy, because there were giant holes in the floor and water damage. But the biggest option for the town was to tear it down, and we were just like, “you can’t, have you seen this grand room?” Thompson said.
Where many saw an aging structure, they saw possibility, and their vision for a space where history and community could coexist began to come into focus. They carefully hand selected each tenant to fill the space.
“Our realtor probably hated us,” Thompson joked. “For every ‘yes’ there were probably a hundred ‘no’s.’”
Today, The Station brings together a curated mix of local businesses and creative spaces designed to support one another while serving the community.
Tenants now include Crescendo restaurant, Roast & Roll Café, Happy Vibes Nutrition, The Station Market, Wisp Candle Studio, Brushes & Brows, Empowered Wellness and Something Art Related, creating a mix of dining, shopping, wellness and creative spaces under one roof.
Businesses that compliment each other and support the rest of downtown Clayton as well were essential to their vision.
Maybe most importantly, the project preserved a building deeply tied to local memory.
Across decades, the structure served as Town Hall, a court room, police station, jailhouse, library and fire department. Generations have passed through its doors, going about the business of life.
“There are people who come in just because they want to see what the place where they paid their electrical bills, or where they voted for the first time, looks like restored,” Nenni said.
For members of Clayton’s firefighting community, the connection is especially meaningful. The building served as the fire station for the majority of its time, and is the motivation behind the name “The Station.”
Families have visited to reflect on the building’s past, including one emotional moment when the widow of a former firefighter returned to the place where her husband had begun his career.
Moments like that underscore what preservation can mean beyond just the architecture.
In a county undergoing rapid growth, Thompson and Nenni have helped demonstrate that progress and preservation don’t have to compete. Through their work, they’ve created spaces where small businesses can grow, residents can connect and needs can be met, without sacrificing history or heritage.
