Canaan
The market would serve as a venue for local artisans to display and sell their products, offer classes, and host a cafe featuring locally raised produce, said Mike Sampson, Canaan’s town administrator. It would also include a farmers market operated by local farmers under a co-op situation, with produce from other areas available in the off season.
It would be open five days a week. Vendors would pay a flat membership fee of about $50 a year and a commission on sales, to hold down the costs of really small vendors, Samson said.
The town has been working on the project for the past several months, gauging interest, meeting with prospective vendors and creating a business plan.
To get started, they’d need about 30 vendors. So far, 26 or 27 have expressed interest, Samson said. “The more there are, the more likely it is to succeed.”
Part of the town’s economic development efforts, the market has the potential to stimulate economic growth, Samson said.
It would be a single place where people could sit down and have a sandwich or latte, and buy local products, he said.
“It should be a synergistic move.”
For more information, contact Samson at 603-523-4501, ext. 5, or townadmin@canaannh.org.
Von Bargen’s Jewelry has been named a runner-up in Instore magazine’s America’s Coolest Stores Contest in the big store category (stores with more than six employees). Instore is a trade publication for jewelry store owners. Its contest “highlights the best examples of independent jewelry retailers in North America,” the company said in a news release. Winners are judged by a panel of retail experts on business practices, history, online presence, interior decor and curb appeal, the release said. The winners are given trophies and featured in the August issue of Instore and at instoremag.com. Von Bargen’s, a second-generation business, has locations in Hanover and Springfield, Burlington, Stowe and Stratton, Vt.
The League of NH Craftsmen’s 83rd annual Craftsmen’s Fair is scheduled for Aug. 6-14 at the Mount Sunapee Resort in Newbury, N.H. Organizers said several new elements will be offered this year, including a Tasting Tent, live music, Children’s Day at the Fair with kid-focused activities, workshops and performances, and “Lunch and Learn” seminars at which guests can have lunch with master craftsmen. More than 25,000 people are expected to attend and more than 350 craftsmen will offer pottery, hand-blown glass, framed prints, bowls, scarves and handcrafted jewelry. The Mount Washington Cog Railway, the fair’s lead sponsor, will again host an on-site display of the historic Peppersass Cog Railway train engine that built the world’s first mountain-climbing cog railway. The engine was built in 1866 and the fair will help celebrate its 150th birthday on Aug. 11. For more information or tickets, visit www.nhcrafts.org.
The Lebanon Area Chamber of Commerce is planning for its third annual Wings & Wheels community event, scheduled for Sept. 24, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Lebanon Municipal Airport. This year’s event will feature classic and antique planes and other aircraft, classic and show automobiles, food, live music, giveaways and more, the chamber said in a news release. More than 2,000 people are expected to attend. Admission is $6; 18 and under free. Vendors can reserve a 10-foot by 10-foot booth space for $250, and sponsorship and advertising opportunities also are available. Call 603-448-1203 or email lebanonchamber@lebanonchamber.com for more information or an application.
Items of interest to the local business community are published in the Business & Money section of the Sunday Valley News. Submissions may be sent by email to: biznotes@vnews.com (high-resolution photographs may be attached in .jpg format), or by mail to: People in Business, c/o Sunday Valley News, P.O. Box 877, White River Junction, Vt. 05001. (Photographs cannot be returned unless accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope.) All items are subject to editing.