Empire, Glen Arbor host seasonal holiday markets

By Ross Boissoneau

Sun contributor

With the holiday season comes the panoply of seasonal markets, where artists and artisans, bakers and makers alike showcase their wares. For many, the season starts with the holiday shows in Glen Arbor and Empire that take place the weekend after Thanksgiving.

The Glen Arbor Holiday Marketplace kicks off Friday night, Nov. 29, at 6:15 p.m. with the lighting of the Christmas tree and caroling. The town hall opens for shopping at 6:30 p.m. and goes until 8 p.m., then welcomes shoppers again on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

“It’s been going on a long time. I put it together with a ton of other people,” says organizer Cre Woodard. “It’s like a machine.”

This is a machine where friends greet one another and peruse the huge variety of goods before inevitably making a purchase or two. Or three. “You know you’re going to buy something,” says Woodard.

The vendors line the walls at the town hall, the center of the room and the stage as well. Throngs of shoppers fill the room, perusing the displays of jewelry, mittens, art, holiday décor and more. Woodard has no problem signing up vendors, and when she runs out of room, she knows where to send them – just down the road to Empire. If there’s room there.

“I filled up very fast,” says Linda Payment of this year’s Empire Artisan Marketplace, held in the Empire Town Hall. Payment has coordinated the daylong event for the last several years, which takes place the Saturday following Thanksgiving, Nov. 30. It runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

“I have room for 19 vendors in the hall,” she continues. Each year, at the end of August or in early September, she contacts vendors who have been at the show before, as well as those she’s met at other holiday shows, farm markets, etc. Then it’s first come, first served, until she fills up.

And then what? It turns out there’s still another option. Holly Decker at the nearby Cottonwood Inn has begun opening her doors to vendors, timing it to coincide with the Empire market. “We have a number of makers and artisans,” she says. They include A Little Lavender from Cadillac, Simply Sourdough bread and bagels and Imagine That, which turns the entrance to the B&B into a storefront.

It’s that kind of variety that makes the shopping fun for attendees. Depending on the year, the markets may showcase leather goods, yarn, dolls and/or doll clothes, a large variety of jewelry, toys, art, candles, baskets, hats, mittens – a bevy of handmade goods. Plus, there’s likely to be a few booths selling edible goods, from cookies and cakes to dried soup to maple syrup and, well, you get the idea.

While it’s the huge number of sellers in one place that draws the crowds, one of the best things about the markets is the camaraderie. With so many of the vendors returning year after year and the fact it attracts so many locals, both makers and shoppers, it is an opportunity to spread holiday cheer with friends. “You can go to the market and see your neighbor,” says Woodard.

“It’s local,” echoes Payment, noting that most of the vendors are from nearby; the most distant is from Traverse City.

And rather than seeing each other as competition, the two build upon the fact they’re near one another as a benefit. “People do both – they make a day of it,” says Payment.

From the vendors’ perspective, the shows provide a place to sell their goods where everyone is already in a good mood. “We go every year. It’s a tradition,” says Mike Shimek of the Empire market. He and his wife Mary own Bohemian Lavender Farm, where they grow both English and French lavender. He says Empire is the only show they go to; the rest of their sales come from visitors to the farm or online.

They sell a variety of lavender products, from the plants themselves to lavender soap, lotion, shampoo, candles and other products infused with lavender. Oh, and lavender oil as well – the French variety is perfect for aromatherapy, massage, or skincare. The English variety is a culinary product suitable for adding to simple syrup, jams and jellies, cookies, candy and honey.

Darlene Lapham will be attending the Empire market for the third time. She creates jewelry and décor from fine silverware and silver dishes. “My daughter started doing it as therapy. She got another job, so I started,” she explains.

“Spoon rings were a thing years and years ago,” she says, adding that interest is returning. She also makes necklaces, ornaments, and a few non-silver products such as tea towels.

Andria Bufka of Red Gate Farm is one of those providing goodies at the markets. She will be at the Glen Arbor Holiday Marketplace, offering her coffee cake, cinnamon rolls, pies, brownies and maybe some jam. Not only does she get to sell her baked goods, she gets to decorate her space as well, something she doesn’t get to do at her farm stand. “I’ve got a lot of cute holiday décor,” she says.

Meanwhile down the road, caterers Mel and Fell will offer to-go items at the Empire Town Hall.

Decker does things a little differently at the Cottonwood Inn. She works at Traverse City High School, the alternative high school for Traverse City Area Public Schools, and the income derived from special offerings at her bed and breakfast are earmarked for the school. Among the vendors is a table from and for the school.

“There’s a space for Traverse City High School to sell,” says Decker, mentioning wreaths and holiday décor as some of the items the school sells. Those monies go back to the school for Santa’s Workshop, where those students in need have the opportunity to pick out a gift for themselves or someone else. “We had 150 students last year for Christmas. This year it could be 200,” says Decker.

So, you have your choice of Glen Arbor, Empire or the Cottonwood. Why not hit all three? Because – wait for it – there’s still more. Right across from the Empire Town Hall, the Glen Lake Library will host not one but two sales. The Friends of the Library will be holding a used book sale, while the Glen Arbor Women’s Club will hold a vintage jewelry sale in the library’s main lobby Saturday as well.

With so many options, you can go to Glen Arbor, you can go to Empire, you can go to the Cottonwood Inn – you just can’t go wrong. And while the longer you wait, the slimmer the selections will be, the traffic never stops till the doors close. “It’s always busy,” says Shimek. “It’s always a fun time.”

For more information on the Empire Artisan Marketplace, visit EmpireChamber.com/event/empire-artisan-marketplace. For the Glen Arbor Holiday Marketplace, check out VisitGlenArbor.com/event/holiday-market-2024.