Westport hosted its 13th annual Popshop Markets on, Sept. 20, a marketplace that brought together vendors from across the state. A total of 35 vendors offered shoppers a wide range of handcrafted goods, clothing, jewelry pieces, gifts and furniture to explore and purchase. Not only does this provide a wonderful experience for shoppers, enabling them to support hardworking business owners directly, it also offers benefits to vendors as a way to promote their businesses and connect with the community and other vendors.
Georgina Real, a wife, mom of two and a longtime graphic designer, wanted to take her creativity beyond the computer. "I use all of my artwork and put it on the labels, but I wanted to make a product, so I started hand-pouring candles," Real said. "Then my husband saw and asked what he could do, and he started doing the sugar scrubs, body butter and soap." What began as a creative outlet has turned into a thriving small business creating 100% clean body products and candles.
Sisters Lillian Pipa, owner, and Paula Alviazs also work side by side as co-workers. Together, they are making the world more sustainable by purchasing vintage items, anything older than 20 years, from people who are downsizing or decluttering. They carefully clean, restore and resell these pieces, giving them a second life. Although this shop is new to the vendor scene, it has been a successful online shop for 10 years. "People are starting to recognize our shop and that always feels good that people are starting to know we're physical here and they could visit," Alviaza said.
New mom Lauren O'Connor had her first daughter in 2022 and quickly realized that there were not many local shops, and she couldn't find the things she was looking for. This sparked her interest in making and accessorizing items, such as denim jackets and sunglasses, which are all done by hand. O'Connor shares how selling these items not only allowed her to get specific items she couldn't reach before, but also meet a new community. "A positive would be meeting everyone and being able to connect with my customers. I've met people here at the market in May, and I still talk to them," O'Conner said. She selects unique brands and clothing, which are hard to find in an ordinary store. For instance, Sweet Wink, which sells pieces like tutus and patches made from shed-free glitter, and the jewelry is crafted from handmade acrylic.
Every candle begins with a walk. Amy Allen, owner of Larch and Pine, starts her process by picking up fresh flowers on her walks, carefully pressing them, and delicately adorning them onto each glass vessel. She then hand-pours soy wax, completing a candle where every detail is thoughtfully chosen. Allen takes pride in sourcing ingredients that are natural and as local as possible. "I work with a little farm in Connecticut to get all of the botanicals for a magnesium spray and a small farm in upstate New York to get my suet for my towel," Allen said. Allen's commitment to quality and intention is clear: she always goes the extra step to ensure her customers receive the most natural products. She deeply values her community and the product she sells to them. "Positives are meeting people in the community and being out on beautiful days."