Meet Michael Coe | Artist/ Small Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Michael Coe and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Michael, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
It started during the pandemic, I was offered to have a spot at a vintage market and I had some old 80/90s pop culture items that I thought would sell well. After the market I really enjoyed connecting collectors with old items that might have been thrown away, that’s where the idea of Mikes Pog Shop came about. After that I would go to yard sales and flea markets and buy old, dirty toys and pop culture items, clean and refurbish them and wait for them to find their new home.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I saved a bunch of old 8-track tapes and cassettes and I was upcycling those for collectors and for artwork. That got me into finding more vintage music items which ended up connecting me with my roots of playing music. That’s when I started playing music again after taking a ten year break. One of the things I am most proud of is that I’m halfway through my independent U.S. tour where my goal is to play a show in all 50 states. I have about 30 so far.
When I started playing music again after ten years, not many people understood or believed in me, that was difficult. However, the more I played and worked on my music and stage presence, the more I felt comfortable with my art. Once I was fully comfortable with my art and who I was, that’s when other people started supporting me or at the very least what and why I was creating and performing.
One of the lessons I’ve learned is it’s so important to be authentic and true to yourself about who you are, and what you want to do. If you can do that and align it with your purpose in life, to me that would be the ultimate purpose in life.
My two main goals with my art is to inspire others, and to inspire others to follow their dreams, and to be aligned with their passions, and to build communities of “creatives”.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
San Diego is a very special city to me, so much so I wrote an entire album “Where the Seasons Never Change by Audio Martyr”,about the city and places in it. One of my favorite places is Bankers Hill and Balboa Park, because Balboa Park is a beautiful mashup of landscape, nature, and old architecture.
Although that might be a very generic place to say I will also have to include Shelter Island for a relaxing walk by the water and boats, Ocean beach for a fun night hearing some random band at “Winstons”. Finally, the Torrey Pines glider point for a majestic view of the ocean.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I wouldn’t have started the pog shop if it wasn’t for the late Charlie Boranian. He mentored me about vintage items and about reusing and upcycling classic items. He would upcycle vintage furniture but I learned that the size of the items made it more difficult. The idea of nostalgia and vintage items was the same, and that’s when I went into 80/90s pop culture. Thanks so much Charlie for the support and your guidance.

Website: https://michaelthecoe.carrd.co

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/MichaelTheCoe

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/MichaelTheCoe

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Michaeltcoepoet

Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCybG5Bt1haU60x_3Ob-O37g

Other: https://spotify.link/PM8IX1WkYDb https://www.mercari.com/u/588701257/