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Christmas and fun for sale

New residents are occupying downtown Marietta with permanent and temporary shops alike featuring unique items and fun times planned for those that stumble across their new business ventures.

Wit & Whimzy at 152 Front St., Marietta, has officially placed its roots in the downtown area and has plans to stay and grow within the community.

“I offer everything from jewelry and accessories to paper goods, greeting cards, baby items, mens’ items, home decor, some vintage items, a few special pieces of furniture and much more,” said Laura Pytlik, owner of Wit & Whimzy. “Everything is U.S.-made. A lot of it is made in Ohio or locally but I’ve also found vendors across the country.”

Pytlik said she hopes to help support the community and artists within the area.

“My mission is to support artisans and the small businesses that are either local or throughout the country offering unique items,” she said. “The shop helps to give some of the artists and the small businesses more exposure and it widens their audience.”

Wit & Whimzy is open on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Thursdays and Fridays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sundays from 1-5 p.m. Prices fluctuate from $10 to $100.

Pytlik said she has always admired the artists and artisans downtown and was excited to join them with her own shop.

“I think my shop adds to the diversity of the great shops that are already downtown and offers another option for visitors,” she said. “I tried not to duplicate what’s already being done so well, so I think people will find some unique items that they haven’t already seen in the area.”

After creating Marietta Marketplace, Pytlik said she felt inspired by the artists and artisans and the more she networked with them, the more she wanted to open up a place of her own.

“Because I’ve spent most of my adult life working for someone else, I like the fact that this is my baby, my effort. I’m making the decisions and my future is pretty much in my hands,” she explained. “I love the feeling of opening the door in the morning and getting ready for the day and meeting people; it’s really a great feeling of being a part of downtown.”

Also on Front Street is a temporary shop that is featuring the Christmas holiday. Sylvi Caporale, co-owner of American Flags and Poles is now co-owner of Christmas Village.

The Christmas Village is located on 282 Front St., Marietta, and is open from Wednesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Prices vary, but many items can be found at $25 and under.

The Christmas Village offers a lot of fun activities along with unique merchandise, noted Caporale.

“It will be total Christmas, meaning train rides for the kids, letters to Santa, Santa will be there…unique one-of-a-kinds,” she said. “It’s locally owned, centrally located in downtown Marietta and has one-of-a-kind merchandise available for purchase.”

Caporale said she doesn’t know if temporary stores will become popular in Marietta, but that is has definitely become a trend nationwide.

“I think they’re part of the mix of retail,” she said. “We want to cause a commotion, and a temporary business causes a commotion.”

Mainly, in opening the story, she wished to draw attention to the rented building so that another business might see the potential of the space and would want to move in.

“One (of our goals) is, of course, to sell merchandise, and the second is to have the building occupied — we want a good neighbor and we value retail,” she said. “The wonderful store is available for rent and we wanted to showcase that as well.”

Caporale said business went well on Friday when they opened and that the excitement is growing.

“It’s unbelievable,” she said. “People are very excited and the social media aspect of this is working very well. People are sharing it and the enthusiasm is definitely showing.”

Every day there will be a special in the store, whether it be with the merchandise or with a local organization, such as the food pantry, the humane society and more. Caporale said they are providing an opportunity for the community to benefit in more ways than one from the pop-up store.

“It really is a community activity center,” she said. “My team has been wonderfully supportive, excited and energetic in making it happen in actually less than four weeks. We have a concept, we have a context and we saw an opportunity and we went for it.”

If you go

Christmas Village

¯ Where: 282 Front St., Marietta.

¯ When: Wednesdays through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. until Dec. 17.

¯ Who: Sylvi and Jim Caporale.

¯ Cost: Prices vary, but many items can be found at $25 and under.

Source: Sylvi Caporale

Wit & Whimzy

¯ Where: 152 Front St., Marietta.

¯ When: Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Thursdays and Fridays, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sundays, 1-5 p.m.

¯ Who: Laura Pytlik.

¯ Cost: Fluctuating range from $10 to $100.

Source: Laura Pytlik.

 

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