Artisanal Retail Store Handmade Heaven Expands Storefront In Lansdowne Place

/

Less than four months after its grand opening, artisanal retail store, Handmade Heaven has expanded its space to accommodate more artists to sell their products at Lansdowne Place on Tuesday morning.

The store could sell products from 90 local artisans prior to the expansion. Owner Sam Milne said he was overwhelmed with how many people were on his waitlist and that expanding his storefront was an easy decision.

“I knew Peterborough was good for artisans and makers but I had no idea that there'd be this many people applying,” he explained. “I had about 150 on the waitlist to get in so when this unit beside my current unit became available, I knew I had to take it up just to get all the makers in there to sell their products in our store.”

The new space helps support up to 145 handmade entrepreneurs with room for the number to grow. More artisans bring more unique products to be sold such as bead paintings, baby clothes, chunky blankets, resin-based works and alpaca apparel. 

The expanded storefront is located across from Dollarama on the upper floor, beside the original location. Handmade Heaven first opened on May 1. All artisans and artists keep 100 per cent of the sales in exchange for paying rent to use the retail space.

“You know they're handmade, you know they're local, you're supporting local businesses and you feel good about your purchases,” said Milne.

Local artisans that want to rent space in the store must fill out an application online.

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for newsletter here.

Grand Opening of Peterborough's Artisanal Retail Store, Handmade Heaven Hits Lansdowne Place

/

Lansdowne Place is now the home of an artisanal retail store, Handmade Heaven as lots of shoppers were lined outside the storefront for its grand opening on Monday morning.

Photo by David Tuan Bui.

The store features goods from over 70 different local businesses — including junior makers — that make 100 per cent of the sales in exchange for paying rent to use the retail space.

Local artisans that want to rent space in the store must fill out an application online.

“I know there's a huge artist community around here. I just did a calling and all the makers, the artists and all the talent basically did the rest and had an overflow of applications,” said Sam Milne, Handmade Heaven owner.

Milne has family connections with the ‘The Nooks,’ a chain that is a similar concept to what he is doing for Peterborough with Handmade Heaven. It has seen success with 18 locations in Canada including Vaughan Mills.

The storefront is located across from Dollarama on the upper floor. Milne had announced on his Instagram that Lansdowne Place that he was setting up shop in mid-March.

“As soon as I saw this location, I knew instantly that this was going to be the store,” explained Milne. “It's absolutely perfect, I know the people of Peterborough are going to come out and support. It's been above and beyond what I expected so far.”

Roughly over 50 people were lined up outside prior to the opening. Milne says the store is a great outlet for local artisans to be recognized and supported. Artists get up-to-date notifications on when their product gets sold in the story.

“(I) really try to get people out to support their local makers and see all the beautiful things there's handmade artists have actually made,” said Milne. “Every time one of these makers sells something with their hard work involved, they (customers) have no idea how much it means to these people when they see their sales.” 

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Tiktok. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for PTBOBuzz newsletter here.