CLEARWATER, Fla. — The House of Make Believe is home to more than 30,000 costume pieces that help customers step into a new world. But to Bernice Stoneberg, everything in the store is very much real. 

What You Need To Know

  •  A family-owned business in Clearwater is trying to figure out how to stay up and running

  •  House of Make Believe, a custom costume shop, has been in business for 45 years

  •  Now, the owner has until May 1 to vacate the store

Stoneberg’s mother and grandmother started the business 45 years ago. They handmade many of the pieces hanging on the racks today. 

“Back in 1978, they didn’t give a lot of women loans back then,” Stoneberg said. “And she did it on her own, with a local bank downtown. They gave her $10,000, and we opened up in the little house behind McDonalds on Gulf to Bay.”

Now, Stoneberg is fighting to keep the family store up and running. 

“We were told when we rented this space that sometime in the future, far future — it was supposed to be 10 or 15 years down the road and it’s only been about six and a half — that this building would be demolished,” she explained. 

Stoneberg has until May 1 before she has to move out. She explained the property owners, who run a nearby business, are removing the building to create more parking and storage. Stoneberg is hoping to find a new space, but may end up having to sell the business and its inventory. 

“Even to move the space, what is out there right now because the prices have been going up since COVID, I can’t even come close to what I’m paying here,” she said. “It’s way above what I can afford.”

Not only have four generations of Stoneberg’s family been raised in the store, but they’ve made costumes for Busch Gardens, Gasparilla krewes, local theater productions and more. 

“You come in not knowing what you want, you come in looking real ordinary,” Stoneberg said. “But we’re going to have you leave looking like a star.”

As other small businesses in the area face similar challenges, Stoneberg is passionate about preserving family-owned stores. 

“We’ve kind of been a staple in the community,” she said. “If we go away and your child goes to high school and they’re in a play and they need a costume, the only place you’re going to be able to get it is online.”

Stoneberg said she promised her mother that as long as she’s alive, she would try to keep the House of Make Believe up and running. She is remaining hopeful that she’ll find a solution before the end of the month to keep true on that promise. 

Regardless of what becomes of House of Make Believe, Stoneberg said she wants to eventually form a foundation in her mother’s name to fund scholarships and grants for high school performing arts.