The Big Give

We’ve been up to something at Woodstock Market!  For most of this year actually, we’ve had something BIG up our sleeve. We’ve been planning, prepping, building toward the moment we can surprise you, our customers - our community, with a gift.  The holidays are right around the corner, and we hope to take the season's crazy expectations to a new level!

You have given us so much - your patronage, your enthusiasm, your loyalty and trust. And this community has given us a home and a place to live out our dream. And that’s why we are looking forward to the season of giving especially this year.

Before Lisa and I ever signed our lease on the Woodstock Market store, we realized the expanse of windows at the front would provide us a way to give Cherokee County an annual Christmas attraction that’s uniquely its own.

Imagine! Our own whimsical, wonderful Christmas window display designed and handcrafted by local artisans. Fifth Avenue, 34th Street…Bells Ferry! And imagine if that was just the beginning of the giving!

The first weekend of November is Woodstock Market’s 2nd Annual Christmas Open House.  We’ve chosen this weekend as the launch of our ongoing, monthly giving campaign, The Big Give - a program in which the Market, its shoppers and the community's non-profit organizations will partner in a year-round “spirit of Christmas.”  We want to make the foundation of this season all about giving back - offering a program in which the Market's established community of shoppers and dealers are able to support non-profit organizations all year long, simply by shopping and doing business.

The Big Give is a chance to remember what the Christmas season is all about.  Our entire focus is giving back twelve months of the year so we can make a difference in the lives of others.

Woodstock Market has always been about making people feel welcome while they relax and enjoy a local shopping experience.  This is not about the size of a customer’s receipt.  We want them to find ways to give back, even more than we want them to complete their Christmas list.  Our heart motive in this launch of The Big Give Campaign is that our customers will choose to become someone’s Santa.

Papa's Pantry & DFACS Foster Children Toy Closet will be our partners for the launch of The Big Give program, as we kick off our 2nd Annual Christmas Open House on Friday, November 1, 2013, at 7:00pm with the Big Window Reveal – our annual Christmas window!  There will be live music, refreshments, dealer designed trees & more!  Customers are asked to bring a new toy to help stock the DFACS Toy Closet providing Christmas gifts & birthday presents to foster children throughout the year.  We are also collecting nonperishable food items for families & individuals facing financial setbacks & sudden hardships.

The Open House weekend continues Saturday and Sunday when everything in the store will be 20% off!  Saturday will get started with some early morning shopping!  Check back for details.

At Woodstock Market, giving is woven into the fabric of who we are.  We hope to offer our customers a “Mall-ternative” shopping experience wrapped in the spirit of giving back.  There are more surprises to come!  In fact, we’ll reveal this year’s theme on October 14th. Stay tuned!

What type of store are we?

When asked to describe our store we often pause, glance awkwardly at one another and say something profound like, “well, we are not a…."  After saying this numerous times we felt it was important to answer this question once and for all.  During the process of articulating what we are we found it was easier to begin with what we are not.  Here’s what we came up with.

First of all, we are not an antique mall even though we have antiques.  That may seem like a contradiction but if you stay with us you’ll see where we are. Our customers tell us on a daily basis how much they love the store and some of their favorite features are:  the wide aisles (they like being able to walk side by side with their friend rather than single file); the bright lights (they like seeing the junk they’re buying); they like that it doesn’t smell musty (we’ll let you interpret this); and they like the mixture of merchandise (we do too).  Now, don’t get us wrong, we love antiques and great vintage finds, a.k.a. picks.  We feel these add character to your home but most homes these days aren’t filled with just antiques.  Homes are filled with your favorite things and that’s what we have done with our store.  We filled it with things we love – finds we think will help you make your house a home:  handcrafted, custom made, repurposed, nostalgic, quirky and some new.  We love it all!

Second, we are not a thrift store or flea market.  Before I continue let me clarify the term flea market.  In the south, a flea market is thought to be a place you go to buy cheap socks, sheets, hair products and if you are lucky maybe you will find some cool junk.  If you are from out west or up north a flea market is a place you go to search for the greatest junking finds of your life.  So from a southern point of view we are not a flea market, but if you are from the west or up north we will take it as a compliment if you call us a flea market. 

A row of "storefronts" found inside Woodstock Market

We love junk as much as the next person and we have some of the best pickers around selling their wares at our store.  They scour the states looking for things you would love to have in your home.  From industrial pieces, to vintage signs, and primitives that make you feel like you are buying from a store in the 1800’s, we have them all.  Socks, sheets, hair products…not so much.

So, if we are not an antique mall, a thrift store or flea market, what are we you ask?  The answer is quite simple - We are a Market (no not a grocery store).  We are a modern day version of the old Market where people went to buy and sell the merchandise they made or the produce they grew.  We are a mixture of old, new, quirky, traditional, handmade, handcrafted, repurposed, recycled, rusty, shiny, and beautiful inspirations for your home and life.  We are a Market!  A new breed of store where you can Expect the Unexpected.