Uptown Westerville is a Place for Good Deeds for and with Good Friends

A special note from The Westerville Uptown Merchants Association --

Saturday night (May 3rd)... on the third floor of The Old Bag of Nails Pub... 24 N. State St., from 6 to 11... It's Earlene's Celebrity Event!

Admission is FREE and proceeds from sales for this event go to Earlene Wandrey's American Cancer Society Relay for Life Team.

This is a great cause and last year the event was super big fun and raised a lot of money for Earlene's team.

So, stop by The Old Bag of Nails pub, get together with friends, have a great time, and contribute!

For more information (including the list of celeb servers!) check out the flyer (click here!).

Uptown Westerville is a Place for Fashion Redux

The Westerville Uptown Merchants Association welcomes:

DeJa Vu
Women's Consignment Store.
11 N. State St.
614.890.1150

Deja Vu carries name brand, gently used merchandise. You’ll want to visit Deja Vu on a regular basis!

dejavu@wowway.com

Uptown Westerville is a Place for Clean Clothes

The Westerville Uptown Merchants Association welcomes:

Westerville Cleaners
40 W. Main
614.882.2233

Westerville Cleaners provides cleaning and laundry services including draperies, AND has a convenient drive through window for drop-offs and pick-ups! Westerville Cleaners also has a mobile pick-up and delivery service.

Uptown Westerville is a Place for Legal Services

Uptown Westerville is a more than shopping -- Uptown Westerville also features select service professionals.

The Westerville Uptown Merchants Association welcomes new member:

Hollern & Associates Law Offices
Edwin J. Hollern
77 N. State St. at W. Home
614.839.5700/fax 614.839.4200

Hollern & Associates is a trial and appellate practice in the areas of Insurance Defense and Insurance Coverage, Uninsured Motorist Coverage, Professional Malpractice, and Product Liability. http://www.ejhlaw.com/

Uptown Westerville is a Place for Home-Made, Home-Grown on Wednesdays

Look for our ad in the May 1 ThisWeek Westerville!

That's right, the Uptown Westerville Farmers' Market starts next week, on May 7th.

3 p.m. - 6 p.m. at the NE corner of N. State and E. Home in the Church of the Messiah parking lot. On-street and in-lot, parking in Uptown Westerville is free.

To keep up with the Uptown Westerville Farmers' Market visit http://www.uptownwestervillefarmersmarket.com/. And, check out our blog! http://uptownwestervillefarmersmarket.blogspot.com/

Need directions? Just click here!

The Farmers' Market vendors are looking forward to a fresh, fabulous 2008 Season. Each week should have something new! Visit often!

Uptown Westerville is a Place for Good Reading

First, congrats to Kriss Rogers of Outside Envy -- Outside Envy is featured in the May/June 2008 issue of Westerville Magazine!

And, Columbus Monthly May 2008 edition is hitting newsstands and mailboxes as you read this -- look for the special section on the City of Westerville, featuring an article about Uptown Westerville.

Happy Reading!

Uptown Westerville is a Place for Fourth Friday!

Tonight, April 25th from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., is the first Fourth Friday Celebration in Uptown Westerville!

Sponsored by WUMA Member, the Westerville Visitors and Convention Bureau, Fourth Fridays are a family-friendly community gathering on the streets of Uptown Westerville. Enjoy the features of each Fourth Friday theme including extended hours from merchants, live music and performances, Westerville Fire and Police Department exhibitions, the Westerville Public Library Reading Swing, the Sertoma Brat Wagon and more.

When you come uptown tonight, enjoy the flowering trees along the uptown streets and the tulips blooming in front of City Hall. Come uptown for dinner, enjoy Fourth Friday, and stay for dessert!

This year, Fourth Friday runs through September 26th. For more information, be sure to visit the Fourth Friday page at the Westerville Visitors and Convention Bureau website or call 614.794.0401. Parking uptown (on street and in public lots) is always free!

Logo courtesy of the Westerville Visitors and Convention Bureau. (c) 2008 Westerville Visitors and Convention Bureau. All rights reserved.

Uptown Westerville is a Place for an Outdoor Oasis

Congratulations to WUMA member Kriss Rogers of Outside Envy for her recent mention in The Daily Reporter. Here's the article:

Westerville store owner expects growth during her first spring in business

RICK ADAMCZAK
Daily Reporter Staff Writer
04/17/2008

After more than 25 years in the corporate world, Kriss Rogers last year decided to combine her hobby and her career to open a new store in uptown Westerville that sells outdoor accessories such as wind chimes and glass ornaments.

Outside Envy, located at 15 N. State St. in Westerville, opened last August, but is now gearing up for what Rogers said she hopes will be the store's busiest time of the year.

"We're looking at the next three months as being about half of our business," Rogers said.

People are starting to spend more time outside and therefore starting to decorate their outdoor areas, she said, noting that her store offers buyers a variety of pottery items, art glass and wind chimes to create unique outdoor spaces.

"I always had been an avid gardener and loved the outdoors. I was looking for a niche and felt that I have one," said Rogers. "I didn't want people to come in here and be able to say, 'Oh, I could get that anywhere.'"But she did study ideas from other retailers as she envisioned what she wanted at her own store.

"I took parts of three to four other retail outlets and incorporated those into my concept," Rogers said.

She said that so far the reception from customers has been positive."People have really liked it. Sales have been strong," Rogers said.

The most popular items so far have been the art glass. She said she started with two or three different styles, but now carries more than four dozen.

"It's definitely been one of the strongest categories," Rogers said.

The store also tries to feature as many items from local artists as possible. "We're always on the lookout for local artists and we're hoping that they'll be coming to us through word-of-mouth. I think people have a real interest in that," said Rogers.

The store also may benefit from the high gas prices as people are taking fewer vacations and instead spending money on their homes."There are a lot of people adding three-season rooms or sunrooms. They're traveling less and want to get a lot of enjoyment out of their back decks or patios," Rogers said.

After a long career in a variety of positions, including as a buyer with such large retailers as JCPenney and Value City, Rogers decided nearly two years ago that she wanted to go out on her own.

"It's something I had though about for the last 10 years ... finally I took that leap of faith," she said. "If I was going to keep working hard, I was going to do it for myself. It's a lot more fun when you're doing it for yourself."

That experience in the corporate world - especially her background in dealing with manufacturers - has been a big help so far in her entrepreneurial venture."I learned about the buying process and try to understand what the customers want and what they're willing to pay for," said Rogers.

"The item has to be unique and it has to be affordable." In that vein, the store does offer products at in a wide range of prices.

One of her main challenges now is spreading the word about her store and she said she's learning "how to get noticed outside the community."So far, about 60 percent of her customers live in or around Westerville, but she said she's also seeing more shoppers coming from the New Albany, Worthington and Sunbury areas, too.

She spent nearly nine months looking all over Central Ohio for a location and finally landed the Westerville location, with a little luck involved. Scouring Westerville one day to watch traffic patterns and other characteristics of the uptown area, she spotted a lease sign in a storefront that hadn't been there before. She immediately called about the lease and when another potential leasee's appointment ahead of hers was canceled, she met with the owner and decided she had found the spot she'd been wanting.

"I had been looking at a lot of different locations and for some reason always kept getting pulled back to uptown Westerville," Rogers said. "I'm so happy with the location. I don't really think I could have done any better."

The Westerville Uptown Merchants Associations encourages you to shop Uptown Westerville and stop by Outside Envy.

OUTSIDE ENVY
Art of the Garden, Deck, and Patio
Unique Gift Shop
15 N. State St.
Westerville, OH 43081
614.895.3689
outside.envy@sbcglobal.net

Uptown Westerville is a Place for Fresh Air Shopping

Mark your calendars -- the Uptown Westerville Farmers' Market opens on Wednesday May 7th!

The market, sponsored by the Westerville Uptown Merchants Association, will, like last year, be open every Wednesday from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the corner of N. State St. and E. Home St., in the Church of the Messiah parking lot, and runs through October 29th.

Your favorites are returning:

▪ Arjay Gourmet Foods ▪ Bildsten Landscape ▪ Bird’s Haven Farm ▪ Bridgman Farm ▪ Carousel Watergardens & Cathy’s Tasty Treats ▪ Doran’s Family Farm ▪ Flying J Farm ▪ Malabar Acres ▪ Mockingbird Meadows ▪ Northridge Organic Farm ▪ Pleiades Maple Products ▪ Sue’s Kitchen ▪ Varley Valley Products

And welcome new vendor:

▪ Frijolito Farm

For more information, check out the WUMA Uptown Farmers' Market Page, the Uptown Westerville Farmers' Market Vendor Directory, and the Farmers' Market Blog!

A couple shopper's tips: first, if you want pie, come to the market early and second, be sure to check out all the action with the Uptown Westerville merchants and shop Uptown Westerville! Uptown Westerville is an original town center, open since... 1858!

See you at the Uptown Farmers' Market!

Uptown Westerville is a Place for Artisanship in Glass

Kriss Rogers at Outside Envy is celebrating National Art Glass Month!

This spring Outside Envy is featuring one of the largest collections of hand blown Kitras Art Glass in Central Ohio.

Kriss invites you to celebrate the close of National Art Glass month by attending Outside Envy's Open House the weekend of April 26th and 27th.

One lucky customer who stops by the Open House that weekend will win a Kitras Art Glass Spirit Ball valued at $200!

Visit Outside Envy 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays thru Saturdays and 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Sundays.
For additional information, call 614.895.3689 or e-mail Kriss at outside.envy@sbcglobal.net

Outside Envy – Art of the Garden, Deck and Patio, 15 North State Street, in Uptown Westerville, An Original Town Center, Opened 1858!

Uptown Westerville is a Place for Personalized Service

The Westerville Uptown Merchants Association welcomes its newest member:

The Sullivan Co.
Wear. Brand. Matters.™
130 Graphic Way
614.898.9971
614.898.0882 Fax
www.wearbrandmatters.com

The Sullivan Co. features in-house screen printing, promotional products, gifts & apparel, embroidery, chef & restaurant apparel

Uptown Westerville is a Place to Know How the Garden Grows! With Style!

Congratulations to Kriss Rogers of Outside Envy for her recent feature in The Columbus Dispatch's Shop Talk.

Click here to read the article.

Or... check it out right here:

SHOP TALK

A weekly chat with a store owner or clerk in central Ohio

Kriss Rogers
Thursday, April 10, 2008 6:55 AM

Kriss Rogers, owner of Outside Envy in Westerville
52, owner of Outside Envy, 15 N. State St., Westerville

Describe your store.
We say that we have accessories for any outdoor space, or any space where you want to create an outdoor atmosphere.

And you carry everything from garden sculptures and glass ornaments to candles.
It's an eclectic collection of unique gifts at affordable prices. . . . It's no fun if you can't afford it.
We've got tickets in the store that are $400 but also things that are $10. So there's something for everybody.

You opened in the fall -- near the end of gardening season -- so that you'd have a few months to get to know your customers and what they wanted before spring rolled around. Now that it's here, what have you found they want?
They love any kind of unique gift. . . . And categories? I think art glass and wind chimes have been strong.

They really like your area artists, too. Talk about Tammy Stewart's work, which you carry.
She's called the concrete gardener. She actually casts things in concrete, then paints them. (Rogers picks up a large, painted leaf that illustrates Stewart's work, then points to round oil lamps.) Her kind of signature pieces are these oil lamps.

You've spent years in retail, for places such as Schottenstein's and JCPenney. What do you like about owning a store?
Oh, gosh, . . . I think it's just -- it's fun. When you work in the corporate world, it's compartmentalized. I like the "whole picture" part of the job (in a gift store). You just see everything start to finish.

-- Kristy Eckert keckert@dispatch.com

TRY THIS: Dennis East wine-bottle-stopper candelabras ($7.50 to $14.50)

Outside Envy is a delightful oasis full of just very nice touches for home, patio, deck, and garden. And, a perfect place to buy memorable, thoughtful gifts for all occasions for friends and family... or yourself!

Stop by Outside Envy, 15 N. State St., on your next trip uptown.