In 1987, Bouyer opened the Wholesome Roc Gallery and Cafe at 2360 N. Clybourn in Chicago with accountant and small business advisor Stephanie Coleman.
“I can’t say we made a lot of money,” Bouyer says. “But we had a lot of fun. I met a lot of people and I even sold some artwork.” She kept her day job while running the gallery, which was open from 7 p.m. till midnight during the week.
“We’d rent the space out too, for people to host parties,” Bouyer recalls. “That was mostly a dance-party, DJ kind of function. There was a lot of crossover there between Robert’s crowd and our crowd.”
On November 17, 1987, Wholesome Roc hosted Ground Zero, a kickoff celebration for Think Ink that doubled as Ford’s 26th birthday party.
In spring 1988, Adkins published a recap in the second issue of Think Ink, as part of his Tee Parties column. Guests included house songwriter and producer Riley Evans, Ten City vocalist Byron Stingily, and Frankie Knuckles. “This was a cocktail party, mind you. No dancing,” Adkins wrote. “There were thousands of Think Inks on hand.”
