Popology Chicago Popcorn, a gourmet popcorn shop in downtown Homewood formally known as Pop Culture, has permanently closed its doors after six years in business. Owner Carlos Smith said he needed more time to care for family members who fell ill but is still grateful to have served the Homewood community for the time he did.
Popology served over 50 popcorn flavors, including but not limited to strawberry cheesecake, honey barbecue, snake bite, bee hive, dirty dill, banana pudding, Snickers and regular cheese and caramel.
Smith described himself as a “popcorn enthusiast,” adding that whenever he’s traveling, he makes a stop to buy the gourmet popcorn. He said he’s loved popcorn since childhood, especially Garett Popcorn Shop in Chicago.
“I used to go to college classes with my mother on the weekends,” Smith said. “That would be our stop. We’d get off the L station and go straight to Garrett’s Popcorn. And that’s what I’d be munching on in class.”
Earlier this year, the Homewood popcorn shop’s original co-owner, Kendall Jackson, left the business. Smith rebranded under the new store name, Popology, by changing its color scheme and leaning more into its signature flavor mixes.
“Right in the midst of us doing a rebrand, my wife had a major stroke,” 50-year-old Smith said, adding that they’ve been married for 34 years. “Being away from home really disrupted home. Because I’m her primary caregiver.”
Smith said he tried to juggle these responsibilities but this became impossible when his mother fell ill, too.
“I was faced with putting family first – and that was an easy decision to make,“ Smith said.
Smith said he hasn’t lost his passion for gourmet popcorn and there’s a chance he might open up another business in the future. For now, he said he feels “very relieved because this is one less thing I have on my plate,” describing the feeling as “bittersweet.”
“I’m extremely appreciative of the Homewood community. Because I was definitely treated well and with respect the entire way,” Smith said. “I hope I served the community well and represented the community well.”
Smith said he got to know a few regular customers over the years.
“This one lady – we called her the Obama lady,” Smith said. “Because I had a flavor called the Oh-Bama. And it was our caramel sea salt and white cheddar mix. And she’d come in and get that every week.”
Smith, a former educator, still works as a senior regional manager for the nonprofit organization Youth Guidance. He supervises the Becoming a Man (BAM) program which Youth Guidance describes as “a school-based group counseling program that guides young men in 6th to 12th grades to learn, internalize and practice social cognitive skills, make responsible decisions for their future.”