Marketplace brings local vendors under one roof

Tammy Stouffer, the owner and operator of the Made in Montana Marketplace in Bigfork, had a plan in mind when she opened her store promoting local merchants. She simply wants to give back to the state that’s already given her more than she expected.

Her store held its grand opening on Saturday.

Before moving to Montana in June, Stouffer had endured three rotator-cuff surgeries and survived a subarachnoid brain hemorrhage, a diagnosis that is fatal for 70 percent of its victims, she said. Today, enjoying her health in the Flathead Valley has only strengthened her drive.

“I never knew in my wildest dreams that Montana would change my life mentally and physically,” she said. “I want this store to promote Montana and give back to the community.”

Stouffer originally came to Montana to visit her son and his family near Swan Lake. After concluding her medical bout, she decided to return to the mountains and fresh air. She fell in love with the thriving vendor community in Bigfork, and decided to manifest a stage for their display.

The marketplace is the newest addition to the Bigfork Plaza on Montana 35, tucked between Burton’s Satellite Store and a local thrift shop. The sign, “Made in Montana Marketplace,” cut from a refurbished metal sheet, hangs above the front door at the center of the plaza.

Inside, the theme broadcasts handmade wooden crafts and furniture. Tables, chairs and decorations line the walls and small goods are displayed on shelves for sale. Glass windchimes and quilts hang from a drift-wood ladder display. The theme wasn’t initially wood crafting, though, she said.

When Stouffer first advertised to vendors through Craigslist and a handwritten sign on her door, her first taker was a local salsa manufacturer. The second was a log crafter, she said, who really set the tone for the marketplace.

“It’s Montana style,” she said. “[Flathead Valley] is a great place to be a local craftsman.”

Stouffer’s vendors come from as far as Kila and West Glacier. The marketplace currently houses 21 vendors from the immediate area, with 10 percent of items coming from out-of-state. She’s keeping her profit margins low, she said, taking 25 percent of sale prices while the remaining revenue returns to the manufacturer.

Although the marketplace celebrated its grand opening on Saturday, Stouffer has left the door unlocked in recent weeks while she filled the retail space.

She has welcomed window shoppers, giving them the chance to buy gifts when passing through on vacation. Stouffer said customers have been split 50-50 between tourists and locals.

Heather Burnham, executive director at the Bigfork Chamber of Commerce, believes the store has a good chance at success, and it extends the town’s retail district.

“It’s definitely something that we think the visitors here will enjoy, it’s a niche that is specific to the Montana area,” Burnham said. “It’s also going to help branch out and enhance a place where retail hasn’t had much attention on that Highway 35 corridor.”

Burnham also recognized that while some gift shops have small sections dedicated to local vendors, the Marketplace is the only local-specific shop.

Stouffer, a hairdresser by trade, said she may someday get into the arts; founding the marketplace has certainly boosted her interest. But for now, she’s just focused on the transition of opening the store and sustaining her place in the Bigfork market. Although she’s just spent a few months here, she’s found it’s her place to stay.

“I’ll go back to visit Pennsylvania,” she said. “But this is home now.”