Trending
EAST LIVERPOOL - Early holiday shoppers, those looking for unique gift idea or those who are just looking to support local businesses by shopping locally are encouraged to attend the grand opening of the Makers Exchange on Nov. 24 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. with a grand opening ceremony held at 11 a.m.
The Makers Exchange, powered by the LEAP Hub, located in downtown East Liverpool at 508 Market St., is a hub for local artists, maker and entrepreneurs to showcase and market their products and talents.
Visitors attending the grand opening will have the opportunity to meet the makers, discuss their crafted products with them, enjoy food samples and light refreshments, watch live art demonstrations, and shop for unique locally made products.
The event is open to the community and provides an opportunity to support local businesses while celebrating a new shopping destination in downtown East Liverpool.
Featured vendors who will be offering food samples during the grand opening include Faithfully Made with Jam, providing samples of handcrafted jams; One for the Oven Bakery with samples of baked goods and Bs Bites by Breanna Roller. There will also be complimentary light bites including charcuterie-style selections.
Live Art Demonstrations will be provided by Lindangel Designs with tea bag art demonstration and Amber Eells giving a reverse painting demonstration.
The Makers Exchange is an initiative of the LEAP Hub with the purpose of serving as a retail marketplace for local artists, makers, crafters and entrepreneurs and will serve as a business incubator providing the entrepreneurs the opportunity to gain retail experience, develop their business and grow their customer base, Stu Wallace, executive director, LEAP Hub, said.
It is designed to support entrepreneurship and small business development through mentorship, economic development and creating a unique downtown shopping destination and experience that offers a variety of locally handmade products, specialty foods, gifts handmade products and a variety of other unique items while encourage residents and visitors to shop local and support local talents, Wallace said.
Wallace noted that the LEAP Hub focuses on creating opportunities while inspiring innovation and empowering local entrepreneurs and community members. LEAP represents L-Learn, E- Empower, A-Aspire, P-Propel. And The Makers Exchange supports this mission, providing artists and entrepreneurs with opportunities for learning, developing and propelling their business forward.
The Makers Exchange supports this mission by giving artists and entrepreneurs an opportunity to learn, develop, and propel their businesses forward.
"The LEAP Hub exists to create opportunities, inspire innovation, and empower the people of our community," Wallace said. "We want to give artists, makers, and entrepreneurs a platform to learn, grow, and propel themselves and their businesses to new heights."
Wallace said that those at LEAP Hub are excited to launch the Makers Exchange as more than just a retail store. They envision it as an incubator where local entrepreneurs can gain experience, develop their businesses, and turn their creativity into opportunity.
"We're equally excited to bring a new shopping destination to downtown East Liverpool while encouraging our community to support local businesses and the talented people right here in our region," Wallace said. "We sincerely thank everyone who has supported this initiative and continues to show interest in the growth of our downtown and local business community. This is about more than opening a store. It's about opening doors to opportunity."
Wallace encourages the entire community to attend the grand opening, which is taking place just in time for shoppers to discover unique gifts for the holiday season and celebrate this exciting addition to downtown, Wallace said.
Community Invitation is invited to attend the grand opening, meet the makers, discover unique gifts just in time for the holiday season, and help celebrate this exciting addition to downtown East Liverpool.