CORTLAND, Ohio – Pearl Street Market opened a few weeks ago in the former Cortland Hardwood Products building and draws customers from across the Mahoning Valley and beyond.

“We opened not too long ago, and the response has been wild,” says Kelli Denman, marketing manager.

Artisans sell antiques, honey, sourdough bread, jewelry, clothing and decor among other items from about 80 booths inside the market. There’s a waiting list of vendors who want to rent space.

It’s open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. After Black Friday and through the holidays, it will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday.

Weekends see the most traffic, but Denman says customers file in during the week too. People strolled through the market on a Wednesday afternoon in late October, searching for Christmas decor and browsing the booths.

“We at first, honestly, just wanted an antique store and we didn’t really even know that this is what it would become,” she says. 

After securing a food license to allow vendors to sell food, the owners realized a lot of people were creating products and they decided to tap into that market.

“It has turned into something a little bit more than we ever expected,” Denman says.

It’s a place where customers can find handmade and antique items not available at big box stores, she adds.

“I think we have the demand for it,” Denman says. “I think, in this culture right now and everything going on, everyone wants to find something that is more heartfelt.”

The building, at 125 Pearl St., is owned by the family that owned and operated the hardwood store, including Denman’s husband, Kevin, his father and brothers. They manufactured crown moldings, doors and other wood products at the business that closed earlier this year.

“But deep down, they love antiques the most,” Denman says. “So, it kind of just ignited their passion and they turned this entire back building, which really was just full of wood and machinery, into what it looks like today.”

Nostalgia is part of the decor. Signs from Tracks and The Tavern, two Cortland bars that burned down, and Hartford Orchards hang on the market’s walls. Wooden booths and framing provide space for the vendors to display their wares.

“They built everything,” Denman says of the family. “We have saved a lot of things, too, because, I’m not saying we’re hoarders, but we like to collect a lot of stuff.”

Denman has more plans for the business. The market will host workshops from Nov. 14 through year’s end where vendors will teach members of the public how to make something the vendors sell in their booths. In the first workshop, those who sign up will learn to make elderberry tincture.

“In the spring, I want to do a mini makers market,” Denman says. “I have two kiddos. They’re 9 and 8 and my son loves to make ball bats with duct tape. It’s like all the rage right now.”

She envisions working with a nonprofit organization and helping kids learn about entrepreneurship and adding an outdoor market in warmer months.

Vendors pay between $50 and $200 per month to rent the space. The owners take between 6% and 10% commission and handle all marketing. Pearl Street Market’s technology enables vendors to photograph their crafts at home and print tags at the market. 

When a customer buys something, the store scans the tag and the system tracks what’s sold for the price. It ensures accuracy and makes things easier for both the market and the vendor than at some markets where a person writes down that information.

And every item in the market is listed on its website.

“We get a picture of each booth, and then all of their inventory is underneath it and you can search for things…,” Denman explains. “So, down the road, our goal is to do some shipping and things like that too.”

Most customers come from the Mahoning Valley, but Pearl Street has drawn visitors from Summit and Ashtabula counties and West Virginia.

Denman relies on social media for most of her marketing.

“It has turned into a spot for anyone looking for something unique to come to, like a destination for decor or little gifts, or just bringing you back to older times,” Denman says.

Pictured at top: Kelli Denman is the marketing manager at the Pearl Street Market in Cortland.