BrrrZAAR, Holdiay Village create ‘holiday headquarters’ that brought thousands to downtown Spokane

The modern holiday season for many brings the nostalgic yearning for a romanticized picture of the Christmas consumerism of years past, when gift shopping meant an in-person experience.

Downtown this weekend brought a sample of that flavor for thousands of shoppers, plus a modern twist wherein shoppers could also patronize local artisans in what, for many, has become a holiday tradition .

On Saturday, Terrain hosted its seventh annual BrrrZAAR artist vendor marketplace at River Park Square downtown. Over 80 local artisans displayed their work at booths around the mall, where shoppers could find local art and brand-name items in one fell swoop. In addition to the mall, shoppers could meander to nearby Riverfront Park, where in the Gesa Pavilion was the first Holiday Village event.

“What was great is you really saw the Spokane community, whether that was families shopping, walking down the street with their shopping bags, to friends having holiday brunch together,” said Emilie Cameron, president and CEO of the Downtown Spokane Partnership. “There was also a show so you had people in the evening in their holiday best.”

At the pavilion, more than 60 small businesses peddled their wares for yet another chance to shop small and local for the holidays. The village was open Thursday through Sunday.

“It’s sort of like the best of both worlds next to each other; it really creates a symbiotic relationship there,” Cameron said, describing shoppers’ abilities to buy name-brand, “top of the wish-list” gifts from the mall’s stores while also finding surprise treasures from the local vendors.

“This is something that really has become part of the fabric of Spokane now, and you see a demand to have the opportunity to shop local,” Cameron said.

Traditionally, the second weekend in December contains the busiest shopping day of the year for downtown, Cameron said. While she doesn’t have figures on money spent or customers participating, she expects Saturday’s “holiday headquarters” to mirror or exceed past trends. Last year on BrrrZAAR Saturday, downtown businesses had 65,000 visitors.

Cameron said it’s a welcome demand, as shopping locally has both “quantitative and qualitative” benefits to the community.

For one, there’s a boost that stays in the local economy, Cameron said. Citing stats from the American Independent Business Alliance and the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, she estimated that for every dollar spent at a Spokane business, 48 cents stays in Spokane’s pockets and is “reinvested into the community,” Cameron said, compared to 14 cents in chain purchases.

BrrrZAAR vendor Sarah Windisch, who makes prints and stickers of ornery-looking local wildlife with snappy slogans, said Saturday’s BrrrZAAR was her biggest selling day of her career so far.

“I think people were in the mood for some joy, being out and seeing everybody being festive,” Windisch said. “When things are tough all over, take a minute to enjoy how cool the people are where we live.”

There’s a point of personal pride that comes along with gifting something from your home, Cameron said. Artists, Cameron said, are part of defining and exploring the character of a community.

“That unique purchase brings you a lot of pride, but also elevates and promotes your neighborhood,” Cameron said.

Some shoppers, like mother-daughter duo Joni and Katy Scott, particularly enjoy finding Spokane-specific gifts to send across the states. The two went to both BrrrZAAR and Holiday Village in the pavilion.

“I love getting local goods and being able to share them,” Katy Scott, 31, said. “I have friends across the country, and I love being able to send them things, some of them are from here, and sending them little pieces of home, but also being able to send people things that they’ve never even thought of.”

In addition to the nettle tea for a friend in Colorado and a candle for another in Chicago, Katy Scott couldn’t help picking up a necklace and some granola for herself.

“I have a really bad problem of going into markets and forgetting that I’m shopping for gifts,” Katy Scott joked.

The 60-or-so vendors set up in the pavilion’s indoor lobby and extending into heated, enclosed tents included a wide variety of wares like jewelry, clothes, soaps and candles, 3D printed toys and herbal-based medicinal remedies from Mumbo Jumbo Apothecary and Gifts.

There, Owner Charlotte Strehl sells herbal oils and salves to address all manner of irritants, like a bug bite, cracked hands or eczema. Though she’s been in business since August, she’s been crafting herbal remedies for loved ones for over 15 years, she said.

“If I can heal my family with herbs and things from the earth, I will and I want to,” Strehl said.

What started as whipping up batches of an eczema relief balm has snow-balled into a Strehl’s apothecary that stocks herbal teas, scented oils, soap and remedies for dry skin or cuts that Strehl said can work better than the over-the-counter medicine she bases her work on.

For example, her son is allergic to bug bites, but hates the smell and feeling of DEET found in many bug repellents. Instead, he uses Strehl’s lotion bar made with peppermint that deters horseflies and mosquitoes.

“Every single one of my items has a story from my own family members,” Strehl said, describing her HVAC repair worker brother-in-law who inspired a working hands repair cream for cracked and bleeding fingers.

The Holiday Village, Strehl said, is a welcome chance to get visibility for her young business. Kathryn Klepak has been at the game slightly longer, selling items made from alpaca wool for over 22 years, but still relishes the chance to host a booth at local markets. It helps her get the word out for tours of her 33-acre ranch on Micah Peak, where she keeps alpaca, Scottish highland cattle, rabbits, donkeys, sheep and all sorts of fauna.

The alpaca has motivated her business Snowy Range Alpacas. At the pavilion on Sunday she sold sweaters, socks, gloves, stuffed animals and dryer balls made partially with wool from her and others’ alpaca.

She loves the chance to peddle her woolen wares and mingle with other sellers, she said.

“I love that there’s more things after COVID that we’ve been able to do as a community and come together and just be able to enjoy and meet each other,” she said.