MOOSE JAW — With the goal of helping the Moose Jaw Humane Society and to encourage residents to shop local, Keon Garden Centre held its first-ever Maker’s Market on site with table rental fees going to support the local animal shelter.
The market involved approximately 23 vendors and ran from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Dec. 7.
“At this time of year, our greenhouses are full of Christmas trees, but we knew that this weekend we’d be almost sold out and have a nice empty greenhouse,” announced Marcy Duffey, owner of Keon Garden Centre.
With the ongoing Canada Post strike and a limited courier availability, Duffey added that her mission was to also encourage more people to shop local.
“People need to shop local. When they buy things, they need to touch them, feel them, and it’s much easier to make a purchase that way,” she said. “So, what a better way (to achieve this) than through local vendors.”
The extra space was available because of a successful year of Christmas tree sales. “We had over 200 (trees available) and now we’re down to about 10,” she said about the northern Saskatchewan-sourced evergreens.
The Maker’s Market included a visit from Santa Claus, who was on hand to take photos with several dogs who attended with their human companions. Additionally, the U17 girl’s volleyball team ran an onsite canteen featuring baked goods with proceeds supporting their upcoming nationals tournament.
The garden centre’s fundraiser was set up in support of the Humane Society due to the shelter’s close proximity and Duffey said the two businesses often work together. “We’re good neighbours; we help each other out all the time.”
This sentiment was shared by Donna Fritzke, the fundraising co-ordinator for the Moose Jaw Humane Society.
“We are so thankful for Keon Garden Centre,” Fritzke said. “They (Keon’s) do a lot of amazing things to help out the shelter with its parking lot and they’re always there for us if we need a hand.”
One of the event’s vendors, Kaelyn Baylis with Bliss, said she was kept quite busy and noted that most other vendors she spoke with seemed to be doing fairly well.
“We (at Bliss) offer all kinds of sublimation items, so it could be tumblers or mugs. We specialize in wind spinners as well, and we do a lot of customization — like, we can put pretty much anything you want on a mug or a spinner,” Baylis announced.
Baylis said that she decided to partake in the market because of her support for both the greenhouse and the Humane Society. “Well, I love Keon’s, so it’s a perfect place for a market,” she said. “(There are) great people at Keon’s… and it’s been a really good day.”
Another vendor, Brianna, was attending to sell a few of her homemade arts and crafts — all of which made excellent stocking stuffer ideas.
After witnessing a successful run, Duffey hopes to expand the market into two greenhouses next year. The smaller inaugural run, she explained, was to test the waters.
“We are always overwhelmed by the community and by the support that they have for the shelter,” Fritzke said. “Our Christmas hoodies (were re-ordered) four times and we sell out within a couple of days, so that’s phenomenal.
“We’re just so blessed that people support the shelter. Every hoodie and every crew neck is a walking billboard for us, and if we can bring attention to the needs of the pets at the shelter, then we’re just so excited to work with everyone.”
Keon’s will remain open until Monday, Dec. 23 with a wide assortment of Christmas gift ideas on hand including porch pots and greenery. After that, the greenhouse will remain closed until a date to be determined in March 2025.
Keon Garden Centre is located at 1645 Stadacona Street West and can be reached at 306-693-6771. For more information visit KeonGardenCentre.ca or follow ‘Keon Garden Centre’ on Facebook.
The Moose Jaw Humane Society is located at 1755 Stadacona Street West and can be reached at 306-692-1517 or MJHS.ca.
