Bill and Diana Robinson, owners of the Cookstown Antique Market on Highway 27 north of Highway 89, were ready to welcome customers in person as soon as the Ontario government allowed them to open, May 19.
Diana said, “It has been a fairly steady stream of customers, new and old, coming into the store since then.”
One repeat customer, a young man from the Bond Head area, Mason Dalakis, brought his friend to see the place and to look around. Dalakis said,
“It’s a great place - great atmosphere, a lot of very cool little antiques and niche items.”
Diana said it’s a misconception that young people don’t like this sort of store. “We have a very young following. It’s absolutely wonderful to see. We have unique, one of a kind, quality pieces and they appreciate that.”
The market was purchased by the couple in 2017 from Bill’s parents and has been in business for 29 years. The coronavirus posed challenges, and the business went on line with certain items. “While we were closed, we produced a daily Facebook live event ‘CAM Time’. In many of these episodes we gave shout outs to other local companies to encourage our viewers to also check out their stores/restaurants/services,” Diana said.
It didn’t take long to prepare the market to reopen. Diana explained, “We installed two barriers at the cash wrap area and old license plates on the floor, spaced at 2m distance as cues for customers. We reached out to a local supplier for bulk hand sanitizer and wipes for our surfaces such as handrails, counter tops, doors, washroom.”
The 6,000 square foot, two-storey century barn, could have more than 30 customers at one time, but they feel this number allows for comfortable distancing. The space is air-conditioned with plans to add an accessible washroom in the near future.
The market is divided into units. Individual antique dealers rent a space, or spaces. With the help of staff, the market keeps and sells the items. Currently it is at full capacity with 30 or so vendors. “All they get is an empty space. They do everything. They do all the displays; they do all the pricing and searching for their inventory,” Diana said.
This creates an eclectic mix of items, with each space distinctive, while providing a good spacing between the units. “We have always maintained a minimum 1.2 meter wide aisles for customers to easily walk through our store,” Diana said.
Items available to purchase lean towards maintaining heritage, are unique often one of a kind which many younger customers, designers and collectors love. Diana added, “We also spread the concept that antiques/vintage was green before it was labelled as such. “Reduce, reuse, recycle and now upcycle!"
Besides the allure of the building and its contents, the property provides easy access to the Thornton-Cookstown section of the Trans-Canada Trail. People regularly park at the back, and walk or hike the trail. Bill said, “This is a four acre property, and it’s about 500ft to the trail.”
There are no food or drinks permitted, so it’s important to bring what is needed if using the trail.
Market visitors are asked to take a number at the door to help track the number of customers; masks are voluntary, hand sanitizing when entering preferred to gloves.
Diana said, “We want our customers to feel confident, whatever that looks like for them. We also want them to feel relaxed while they visit and at the same time feel safe to visit our store. I believe that we are achieving this through feedback that they are providing us.”
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Rosaleen Egan is a freelance journalist, storyteller and playwright. She blogs on her website rosiewrites.com
