BIBLE HILL, N.S. — Wendy McCallum and Tanya Swan are often amazed by the items that come into their shop. They recently opened Totally Local, where they sell items made by local artisans.
“I’m not an artisan but I appreciate the work that goes into each piece,” said McCallum, who owns the business. “I had Top Floor Coffee and More, at the Tatamagouche Grain Elevator, and met a lot of artisans. I knew it was sometimes difficult for them to get everything together for one-day events. With this, they leave their stuff and we sell it for them, and shoppers can come in six days a week.”
The shop, located at 27 Main Street, in Bible Hill, opened Oct. 2 and word of mouth resulted in a steady flow of customers. During the first couple of weeks, every vendor had sold something.
“I chose this location because it’s a high traffic area and there’s parking available,” said McCallum. “There’s also a fair amount of foot traffic.”
Vendors rent space in the store and are responsible for bringing in new stock as needed. There are currently 17 vendors, with more coming in November, and the shelves and tables are filled with throw pillows, bath bombs, scented candles, hand-made cards, jewelry, wooden cutting boards, tumblers, knit and crocheted items, seaglass décor, skin care products, keychains, clothing, seasonal giftware and more. Most vendors will do custom orders.
Tanya Swan is the store manager, as well as an enthusiastic shopper.
“I love coming in here to work, and I’ve already bought a few things,” she said. “I’ll be able to get some Christmas shopping done without leaving here.”
McCallum has been in retail her entire life and operates Jet Cresting and Promotions from her home, in Onslow Mountain.
“I’ll keep doing that, but I always like to do something new,” she said. “I think it’s important to support local and I enjoy being here and meeting the people who come in. A lot of them are surprised by the things they can find made locally.”
Totally Local is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday to Saturday.
