All Local, All The Time

Little Shops at Niwot to return March 1

The Little Holiday Shops at Niwot, the Cottonwood Square microbusiness retail store that closed its doors at the end of last year, is poised to reappear permanently as the Little Shops at Niwot. On March 1st, it will set out a welcome mat in the old Shopgirl space next to Winot Coffee.

"There were so many festivals and markets that were canceled due to COVID 19, and so many artists. We wanted to give them a place where they could still sell," Leigh Suskin, the Little Shops proprietor, said. ""The last time we moved so quickly, we weren't able to sink into our role as an incubator for businesses. Now we're focused on trying to be able to help these entities grow."

The first iteration of the shops had more than $40,000 in sales in the fall/holiday session. "All but two of the vendors broke even," Suskin said.

She believes the changing retail environment during the pandemic explains some of the Sshops' success. "It's very unusual that people are willing to take a risk to open up a retail space when the economy is challenged and there is so much change going on. Finding a place where they can flourish and sell, can interact with the community on a lower-risk level, is the way we need to adapt."

The new store is going to be different from the holiday version. It will be a smaller space, reducing from 2,600 square feet to 1,100 square feet, but this shouldn't lead to too much of a decrease in vendor numbers. "We learned that we didn't really need all of the space we had in the old shop, that we could use a lot of the wall area. Now we're focused on being more vertically oriented," Suskin said.

The retailer also is also planning to incorporate other lessons learned from its first iteration. These include holding an outdoor market in front of the space, engaging the community more, ensuring that vendors have more time in the shops to interact with customers, and running an events classroom that Suskin calls a Makerie.

There's a wide range of creativity in how the shops can evolve, including plans for the classroom space to hold children's lessons while parents relax next door at Niwot Tavern. With these kinds of ideas, the shops have the potential to evolve from a traditional store into a community gathering place.

As with the holiday sales space, there will be a wide variety of retailers taking part this time around. Vendors include Baxter Jones and Company, which was one of the largest earners from the holiday store, and Rockabilly clothing store Rizzo's.

Many of the space's daily operations are handled by vendors. Sarah Campbell, owner of Little Shops' vendor Poppybox, is handling daily operations and the store's website is managed by Laurie Alger, who owns Fantasia Mosaics. Watercolor artist ist Audrey Gale is helping with staffing and running the Makerie.

If there are additional vendors who want to be part of The Little Shops at Niwot, four spaces are still available. Vendor fees range from $50 to $250 per month, and include the space, insurance, additional staffing, administrative support, and marketing/advertising coverage. Interested vendors should contact Suskin at her Farmers Insurance office in Cottonwood Square at 720-815-1924, or at Little Shops at Niwot.com

As the shops prepare to open, Suskin's eagerness is palpable. She's looking forward to what these shops can offer as they come together under one roof and she's excited that the collection of microbusinesses are here and showcasing Niwot.

"The Little Shops at Niwot is a reflection of how special the town is. People walk in saying how this is so needed and that they appreciate the chance to shop local, and the vendors appreciate it too. If there are artists people want to see in the store, they should let us know. We'll reach out to include them along with everyone else."

 

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