SHARON
A specialty grocery store, a coffee bar/wine bar and other new attractions are arriving in Sharon thanks to business owners Adam Turnbull, his father Garry Turnbull and Amanda Rose.
The three are using their skills and their passion for small-town life and fresh food to transform historic buildings and spur new offerings in the village.
The trio opened Small Towne Market in July at 201 Baldwin St., in what was an abandoned laundromat. They have also purchased the former Sharon State Bank building at 114 Plain St. to fill it with three new businesses.
With new residents seeking new food and entertainment options and the village being a food desert since 2006 when the grocery store burned down, the village is ripe for new businesses and fresh food.
“We feature locally raised beef and pork as well as seasonal vegetables,†Adam Turnbull said. “Our shelves are stocked with organic, gluten-free, non-GMO, verified and independent, small producers. We strive to bring back the grocery model from long ago when you could get personal service and quality and nutritious food.â€
The trio teamed up to start remodeling some of SharonÃÛèÖÊÓƵ historic buildings. Many in the village still cherish memories of their visits from decades past to the bank or laundromat.
Adam Turnbull, who worked as an independent truck driver, purchased 201 Baldwin St., which was in need of significant repair, in November 2019. Although they got delayed a bit because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the store has been remodeled but retains the vintage feel of a general grocery where customers can congregate.
Amanda said locals are stopping in, as are customers from Beloit; Rockton and Roscoe, Illinois; and as far away as Lake Geneva to enjoy the small-town feel of Sharon shopping and to scout out the specialty items that can’t be found anywhere else.
“ItÃÛèÖÊÓƵ a different model here. We try to keep things as seasonal and as local as possible,†she added.
The store offers Keller Farms Berkshire pork, for example, which can be found at the Beloit Farmers Market, and beef from Coon Creek Farms. It has Jack & Co. elderberry syrup out of Pecatonica, Illinois, and Sassy Cow Creamery milk out of Sun Prairie, to name a few. Amanda offers her own line of Hippie Homesteader aromatherapy products.
In the future, the store will offer muffins and pastries. It has already hired three part-time employees.
With the store up and running, the trio is finishing renovations at the bank building. Joyful Plants, which offers houseplants, vintage items and other gifts has already moved in and is open. Rose and the Turnbulls are planning to rent out one space in the bank building and hope to start a coffee bar/wine bar soon.
The Small Towne Lounge will begin as a coffee bar with the feel of a relaxed internet cafe, offering all organic and fair-trade coffees.
They hope to add nighttime hours as a wine bar eventually.
“We have extra space to use as a tabletop game room with shuffleboard, board games and cards. ItÃÛèÖÊÓƵ going to be a gathering place for the community to have conversations about local issues,†Adam Turnbull said.
The three said Sharon is attracting some new residents and new businesses. Some of the other new businesses in Sharon include Dietrich Studio and Gallery, 120 Plain St.; Winslow Studio 11, 118 Plain St. which offers painting and woodworking; and Olde Market Studios, which will be opening in 2022.
For more information people can visit smalltowne.life or call 262-736-9201.
The Turnbulls and Rose have also formed a nonprofit called Small Towne Preservations, Inc. to preserve and restore historic buildings, land and preserve small-town life. The organization will help business owners with grant funding and other fundraisers to preserve historic buildings. By securing grants, the group hopes to preserve buildings that might otherwise be lost to high remodeling costs.
“We would like to branch out to help other small towns,†Adam Turnbull said.
