Lawyer, mom, author, and brand maker, Omolola “Lola” Campbell is, at the heart of it, Gullah. The beauty of her storefront Binya HHI is that Campbell and her family have “binya” (been here) all along and have an incredible story to share.
Campbell was born and raised on Hilton Head Island to one of the longest-standing native families in Spanish Wells. Being raised with a deep respect and admiration for her lineage and their “maker” legacies, Campbell has long carried a fire to tell the stories of her elders and “spread the respect” for this rich and vibrant heritage.
That dream has come true, but it’s clear this fast-sprouting seed is just getting started and, over time, could grow into a mighty oak of Gullah legacy.
A graduate of the University of Georgia and Howard University School of Law, Campbell continues her “day job” as senior capital markets counsel with Wells Fargo, based in Charlotte, N.C. In 2020, with COVID upon us, like so many others, she asked if she could work remotely, which served as the turning point to coming home to Hilton Head Island.
During this season of worldwide soul searching, Campbell faced what she calls “a series of epiphanies and perspective shifts.” That was also the year she lost her father, which lit an urgency, she said, realizing, “I’d better start doing the things I’ve always been feeling.”
That led her to launch the Gone Gullah lifestyle brand. “It was something that my dad and I had talked about going on 12 years,” Campbell said. In the summer of 2020 when she went back to the idea, her dad enthusiastically supported her. “Oh yes, you’ve got to do it,” he told her. When he passed mere months later, Campbell felt it was his final stamp of approval, and it was now or never.
That birthed the storefront. Campbell’s mom and family members run a produce stand situated at Spanish Wells Rd. and Marshland, a local staple that everyone knows if you’ve … well, binya. Prior to his passing, her dad offered to renovate the spot next to the stand so his daughter could put in a law office. But Campbell wanted to create something that could be more of a legacy, and what better place to do it?
Destination-shopping for choice island goods
The scatter-shot approach to Gullah goods and artisan creations in our area (available at many locations, but without a localized space to serve as “home” for cultural creators and creations) moved Campbell to ask herself how artisans could get their brands into a store or giftshop without losing too much to profit-sharing. “I wanted to create a space to feature Gullah authors—a place where you will find treasures that celebrate Gullah culture and everything we love about the Lowcountry,” she said.
She knew this struggle personally, being a published author, and wanting to help support and bring others along. She has succeeded as, today, Binya HHI is 90 percent stocked from local artisans, creators, and makers.
A quick tour of what you’ll find if you head to the shop:
- Art: Choose from prints, posters, paintings, and pastels of coastal-inspired themes and Gullah homages.
- Books: Page through a library of titles that celebrate Gullah and Lowcountry culture, filled with inspiring imagery and artwork and telling valuable stories, whether you’re buying for collection, education, gifts and souvenirs, or décor and display.
- Baskets: The shop carries a selection of sweetgrass baskets, a Gullah tradition dating back to 1680. Born out of necessity to carry crops, these baskets have evolved into a true artform that is passed down from generation to generation.
- Clothing: Campbell’s own line of clothing and lifestyle accessories is featured in the store along with other designer’s brands celebrating the Lowcountry, including woven and straw bags that trend from the New York runways to Hilton Head beaches.
- Accessories: Campbell cultivates goods from brands throughout the coastal southeast, like candles from Charleston to HHI in various scents and visual styles.
Not just a shop, a cultural learning legacy
The real magic of Binya is not what you find on the shelves, and that’s by design. “I wanted people to come to Binya and have a great experience and learn something,” Campbell said. “People come in, and we always get into conversations about something from the culture, which is the best because I feel like my vision is coming true.”
Campbell invites locals and tourists alike to come in and see what the culture has to offer and to really learn what Gullah is. “It’s a safe space for people to ask questions and discover. Here’s where you can engage more one-on-one rather than sitting in a large group at a lecture or event. I want the store to encourage conversation,” she said.
“That’s one of the reasons I love the location,” Campbell continued. “Although it’s off the beaten path, I love that it’s on my family’s land so that when we’re standing in the store, I can point to the right and say, ‘Across the street is where my father was born. And my grandfather and grandmother lived in the house that was built by my great grandfather—and the house is still standing there.’”
Campbell dreams of expanding in the future to offer Native Islander Experiences for fostering connections and learning. “We’ve done a few events at the store—book signings, sweetgrass basket demonstrations and wreath making classes with local maker Lizzy Lancaster (of Woodsman’s Wife & Co.). I’m looking to do more events bi-weekly or monthly during spring and summer, like Lowcountry boils and talks with a variety of voices, for instance, having an architect share how Gullah structures were built for the sensibilities of the past and how we can relate this to the present,” she explained.
Binya HHI was just the beginning. After a year on the island, it’s stirring a legacy more resonant than just the memorable, moving craftsmanship carried on shelves. In its brand, Binya brings the promise of an unfolding story, one that Campbell herself can measure as far back as six generations.
You can feel it when she speaks, when she dreams of unraveling yarns for visitor after visitor in a victorious vision, and when she points “across the street, to the right” to tell of her family and all the Gullah lives and legacies—those who have come, those who have gone, and those who have always “binya.”
