… And it’s just the beginning for Old Colorado City store for the unique

For Manfred Burkholder and his wife, Nancy Milliron, what “all started with a mess — and a really good idea” — has blossomed into a successful entrepreneurial venture celebrating its third anniversary this summer.

A bell on the exterior door jingles delicately as patrons step into their west-side “oddball” specialty shop on a recent Thursday afternoon, in the former Simpich Showcase performing arts theater at 2413 W. Colorado Ave., directly across from Bancroft Park in Old Colorado City.

“Welcome to Oddball,” general manager Matt St. Amand welcomes them enthusiastically.

And that’s what you’ll find through Oddball Store Music & More’s doors: the odd. The unconventional. The quirky. The unique.

“What we sell here is … a solution to a problem someone is having, especially when they’re looking for a unique gift,” Milliron said. “We have that nailed.”

The 2,500-square-foot shop is stacked with an amalgam of treasures, some eccentric, some nostalgic, some practical, some unusual. Musical instruments from guitars to pink flutes, poker watches, NFL Super Bowl rings, clocks, corded phones, posters, books, vintage toys, vinyl records and more neatly line nearly every visible inch of space.

The shop Burkholder, an Army veteran who served during the Vietnam War era, and Milliron, a longtime real estate broker and residential property manager, established three years ago, has served collectors, musicians and patrons from across Colorado Springs and the Pikes Peak region.

In a short time, it’s made a name for itself as a community go-to for vinyl records, collectibles and exceptional finds.

It started with jobs cleaning out properties together. The couple found themselves stumbling across one-of-a-kind items, pieces they felt deserved better than ending up in a landfill, so they kept them. And started selling them.

Burkholder became, and still is, a well-known face at the Colorado Springs Flea Market, though he now focuses mostly on selling at his shop. And it’s become “the” place to go to buy, sell or trade “oddball” items, the couple said.

“I hear this all the time: ‘My pappy had that,’ or ‘My aunt always collected those and now I have them and I don’t know what to do with them,’” Burkholder said.

The shop also repairs items like guitars, clocks, watches, record players and radios.

About a month ago, Oddball debuted its year-round Christmas and German shop inside the store. To the left of the main entrance, in a 250-square-foot section, guests are immersed in a display of German-made goods including delicate gold Christmas ornaments, authentic German beer steins, lederhosen, music boxes and more.

After Old Colorado City’s Christkindlmarket made its wildly popular debut at Bancroft Park during the last holiday season, Burkholder and Milliron did some research and found another opportunity.

“There are no other German retail stores in Colorado,” Burkholder said. “There’s German restaurants, German bakeries, German sandwich shops. But no German (retail) stores at all. So that was interesting.”

The specialty shop is officially celebrating its third anniversary on Aug. 12, and Oddball Store Music & More is giving back to the community that has supported them since Day One.

While supplies last, every visitor that day will receive a free anniversary gift. Guests can choose from three offerings: a USA flag necklace, a novelty poker money clip and watch or a $1 million Betty Boop note, “a playful nod to the same spirit of surprise and discovery that fills every shelf in the store,” a company news release said.

Oddball Store Music & More is open Monday and Tuesday from noon to 5 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 7 p.m., or by appointment.