About Us

Willies is owned by two sisters, Tracy Freeman and Paula Freeman. We grew up in Williams Lake and have lived here most of our lives, save for a few forays to Vancouver, Alberta, Texas, and Georgia. But, Williams Lake is home.

We bought Willies Western Wear in 2002 from Willie Crosina, who owned it for close to 20 years. Over the past 6 (coming up 7 years) since we have owned the store, we have made significant changes to it. Understandably so, the original “Willie” was in his 80’s when we bought the store, and we are half a century younger. Change was inevitable. Gone are the days of overcrowded racks and out-dated product that was the norm back in the day before we got ahold of things. Now you’ll find the latest and the greatest in a store that you can actually move in, and see what there is on the racks without feeling like you are wrestling a gorilla just to look at a shirt.

There have been some hiccups and speed bumps along the way, but we are finally getting the store to where we want it to be. Hence the name change from Willies Western Wear to just “Willies”. You see, we have evolved. We are not just a western store anymore, but definitely a player in the casual clothing market as well. Many of you will notice the “boutique” look of the ladies section, where there aren’t 15 of the same shirt; we prefer to keep things clean, orderly, and unique, so you won’t see a bunch of other people wearing the same thing as you are. After all, who wants that?

Yes, we still carry the great western brands of Wrangler, Panhandle Slim, Roper, Cruel Girl, Cinch, Resistol, Boulet, Ariat, etc., etc. , as well as a good selection of western giftware, Montana Silversmith Jewelry, and tack (if you are looking for horse tack or have a question about what type of bit to use or pad to buy, you will NOT find anybody more knowledgable than Tracy!). But I digress, not only do we carry those great western brands I just mentioned, BUT we also carry a growing selection of totally non-western clothing, such as Levis, Dish, !iT, Alternative Apparel and Soya Concept to name a few. AND we have over 40 styles of ladies jeans! Yes over 40!!! So if you are in the market for a new pair of jeans, whether it be the good ol’ Wrangler or the newest hippest style, we have it – and one thing we also have that is very hard to find in many other stores is knowledgeable, helpful, friendly staff who will do their best for you!

So that is Willies in a nutshell. Check us out, you won’t be disappointed.