Aug. 25—Scott Johnson told his mother that one day he would open an old-fashioned rock shop. Saturday he gets to achieve that dream when his new business, simply known as The Shop, holds its grand opening.

"She just thought that was a great idea, just for me to be able to take it easy for a little bit and not have to work too hard," Johnson said. "I kind of built this in honor of her."

He lost his mother in December 2022.

"She really enjoyed the idea of an old-fashioned rock shop with a wood shop in the back," he said. "That's what we have done here."

Johnson said the business will sell high end mineral samples, rock samples and little trinkets that they discover and think are interesting.

"How you tell if you like a rock or not is you pick it up and if it feels right to you then you take it home," he said. "I always tell everyone it's bad luck not to buy anything at an old-fashioned rock shop."

The Shop is located at {span}608 North St.{/span} and includes a wood shop in the back. The Shop will also sell handmade furniture.

Johnson was the former own of Black Dog but sold the business to Marissa Bergstedt in August 2022. After selling the coffeehouse, he spent his free time in his woodshop.

Johnson went to college to study geology and then taught astronomy, geology and environmental science at Logansport high school for 28 years.

He left teaching in 2013 when he had the opportunity to work as a geologist.

"I tried it for a couple of years and it just wasn't as fulfilling as teaching was for me," he said. "I think I needed to be around more people. I think teaching got that into my bones. I still like to create gathering spaces that gives me access to a lot of interesting people."

"I've always been a rock collector," he said. "I've always had an interest in rocks and minerals and geology in general. I've taken a lot of trips around the country for collecting."

He credits his passion to his father.

"He was an English instructor at Iowa State University," he said. "He was a professor for 48 years and in his spare time he got a degree in geology."

Johnson said that growing up his family would take summer trips to Wyoming, Idaho, Montana and Arizona. He recalled going to the Grand Canyon and learning the geologic timescale by looking at the layers of rock.

"I've always had an interest in it but that's where it came from, the travel that I did when I was young," he said.

He said the shop will give him an excuse to go and have adventures looking for fossils, rocks and minerals.

Johnson said the grand opening will be a lowkey affair. Musician Brian Layman, who performed during the opening of Black Dog, will also perform at the Rock Shop's opening from 4 until 6 p.m.

"It will just be an open house where people can walk through The Shop and the wood shop and talk to our people and get an idea of what might look nice in their home or furniture they'd like built," he said. "Just come in and browse around."

The Shop will be open from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. Saturday. Johnson said he will always be in during the week until 4 p.m. and hopes stay open longer on Friday and Saturdays.