Salisbury’s Red Barn Gift Shop Opens for the Summer
MONCTON — “Everything here has a story,” Brenda Campbell of the Red Barn Gift Shop says.
The space in the Salisbury Farmers and Artisans Market on the block of Main Street between River Road and Fredericton Road has just opened for the season, letting shoppers access local handmade goods throughout the week.
Unlike the Farmer’s Market that only runs on the weekends, the gift shop is open Wednesday to Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. If you pop in you can expect to be greeted by Campbell likely working on a project of her own, or maybe chatting with another local artisan who sells items in the shop.
Creating and supporting a community of local artisans is the motivation behind the shop.
“It’s not just me,” Campbell says of the items on display. “It’s a wide variety of people that have all come together in one space.”
The shop showcases the work of more than 35 unique vendors who sell everything from stained glass to honey to homemade greeting cards featuring local covered bridges. Campbell draws from talent around the region, as far away as the Nova Scotia border, Fundy Park region, as far afield as Hampton and Richibucto.
A rack of “Straight Out of Salisbury” swag, and other unique printed tees and hoodies greets visitors as they enter the store, along with quilted and crocheted blankets, handmade sweaters and sweatshirts, and cheerful smocks.
There are wooden bowls, jewelry, handmade tea towel and aprons as well as a display of woolen socks and mittens, ear warmers, beer cozies and even loose looped knit, washable mop bottoms.
There’s even a pet section, with locally made doggy treat dispensers and other pet accoutrements.
Hand-turned honey dippers sit next to a display of scrumptious homemade jams, and hand-sewn hats are hung next to one of the store’s most unique items – vintage jewelry tree collages, shaped and framed for display.
Campbell came up with the idea the season before the pandemic hit. She got a 10-week trial run before everything got shut down, but it was enough to know that she would be back when things returned to normal.
“There’s no other place in town … where you can get anything that’s homemade creations,” she says. “Say you wanted to pick up a nice picture, a painting. I have a lady that paints beautiful watercolours and I have them in my shop.”
“A lot of times people appreciate homemade things because they’re well made. They’re not mass manufactured.”
She says having a space like this is great not only for the established artisans in the community, but also for those that are just getting started.
“I have two young girls, their business is called Twin Needles, because they’re twins,” she says. “They sew and make scrunchies… and there’s another little chap who does the tied, fleece blankets. He’s not in my shop yet but he was talking to me and I said to him ‘bring them in and we’ll put them in to consign them.”
That’s the big advantage of the shop. Artisans who would like to take advantage of the traffic going through the Salisbury market but who don’t want to set up their own individual stall, can sell their items with Campbell at the shop.
It makes the process less intimidating, and gives her more items to put into the already well-stocked space. Campbell says she wants to help promote entrepreneurship among Salisbury’s youth.
“I encourage [young people] to come into the market and try maybe selling cookies, or popcorn or lemonade…anything to get the young people off the phones and off the electronics, and doing something creative. Working with their minds.”
Campbell is playing with the idea of establishing knitting or quilting clubs in the future, but for now running the shop and keeping up with her own artisanal pursuits is enough.
“I just love what I’m doing,” Campbell says. “I guess I want to bring as much craftiness into people’s lives as I can.”
Alex Graham is a Huddle reporter in Saint John. Send her your feedback and story ideas: [email protected].