Local boutique owner turns to Facebook after finding snake in store
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — An unexpected customer slithered into a downtown Wilmington boutique earlier this week—and it wasn’t to shop the spring sale.
Samantha Balzano runs Hues of Violet, a boutique on South Front Street. But on Tuesday morning, her usual routine took a turn.
“One of our displays was knocked over and then [my employee] also sent me a picture of something wrapped up in one of the sticky traps… and it turned out that it was a snake…”
Balzano wasn’t at the store when her employee discovered the snake. She told them to leave everything alone until she could get there.
Unsure of who to call, Balzano posted about the situation on social media—and says the response was immediate.
“By the time I drove from my house in Leland downtown here… there were two other people from Facebook waiting for me. I received two phone calls on the way down here of people offering to help me relocate the snake and handle it, and I was very lucky because I was not equipped.”
The snake had gotten stuck in a glue trap—one of several Balzano keeps in the store to deal with common downtown pests.
“If you are in downtown Wilmington, you know that there are bugs and waterbugs, roaches, whatever you call them—they are going to get in…”
Falyn Owens, a wildlife extension biologist with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, says the snake was most likely looking for food—not fashion.
“When we see snakes finding themselves indoors, in most cases, [it’s] because usually they have followed the scent trail from the food that they were following…”
Owens also says encounters with snakes may become more common as the weather continues to warm up.
“If it’s over sixty degrees, then snakes and other reptiles start going about their lives in a way that they don’t when it’s too cold.”
Thanks to the quick support from her online community, Balzano was able to get the snake safely removed. She says she’s now better prepared for any future surprises.
“Did not think being a small business owner—a boutique owner—that I would end up dealing with [this] in my store… but now I know who to call.”
The NC Wildlife Commission recommends calling a licensed reptile rehabilitator if you find a snake inside your home or business. If you are unable to identify whether it’s venomous, it’s best to keep a safe distance.
In this case, Owens believes the snake found in Balzano’s boutique was likely a non-venomous racer snake.
