Meadows of Dan merchants will take center stage during Small Business Saturday, according to Rebecca Adcock, executive director of the Patrick County Chamber of Commerce.

“The chamber is focusing on the Meadows of Dan community during Small Business Saturday for a few reasons,” Adcock said.

“The first is we had two stores to open up there this year,” she said of the Concord Corner Store and the Country Cupboard Store.

The two new businesses complement existing business such as Poor Farmer’s Market, Mountain Mercantile/Christmas in the Meadows, the Meadows of Dan Food Market, Nancy’s Candy Co., the High Country Lavender Farm & Shop and others, Adcock said.

Additionally, the Meadows of Dan Christmas Parade will be held on Saturday, Nov. 24 and Adcock said the parade attracts visitors from all areas of the county. The parade starts at 3 p.m. Pre-registration is not required.

“Don’t get me wrong, we’re not trying to discourage people from visiting merchants in Stuart and shopping here, but we have activities” scheduled the following weekend that are centered in and around Stuart, Adcock said of the Grand Illumination on Nov. 30 and the Patrick County Christmas Parade on Dec. 1.

“People will visit and shop our merchants here in Stuart during those events,” she said, adding that merchants in each area offer one-of-a-kind shopping experiences that make for unique gift giving.

For example, the Concord Corner Store offers a wide variety of items made by local crafters, so much so that one section of the store is dedicated to local crafters, according to Denise Stirewalt, who is in charge of merchandising at the store.

Wares include several different mediums, from woodworking to pottery and glassworks; floral pinecone sconces, hummingbird feeders and wind-chimes, stained glass tree ornaments, handcrafted walking sticks, vintage handmade dulcimers, metal work art (crafted from repurposed propane tanks), quilts and quilting projects.

The quilting area is staffed by quilters, Stirewalt said.

A sampling of the store’s vast offerings also include Minnetonka Moccasins, Cedar Twist Rockers, outerwear, handmade trivets, dinner bells, jackets, puzzles, handmade hats from Peru, and handmade Turkish lamps, “our biggest seller,” Stirewalt said.

In addition to sandwiches and yummy treats, the Country Cupboard Store’s inventory includes jewelry, stone/bottle art, home and yard décor, signs, furniture stains, essential oils and more.

The store hosts ‘artist live’ events, with various local artisans visiting and crafting their wares in the store. Also featured are tasty confections like Shoe Fly Molasses and Honey Chess pies.

“The big focus is all of our arts and crafts come from artisans in Virginia,” said Pat Vaughn, co-owner. “Everything in the store” is from Virginia businesses, including dairy products from Homestead Creamery. In addition to social media, the store also has a website: countrycupboardstore.com.

Mountain Mercantile/Christmas in the Meadows offers a Christmas everyday section, with themed trees decorated year-round, according to Jim Stimley, who co-owns the shop with the wife, Dreama Stimley.

Themed trees include a Peacock Tree, Santa and Elves, Old West, Pets, Sports, Professional, Veterans (including first responders like law enforcement, fire and rescue, according to Stimley).

“We specialize in Christmas ornaments,” he said, adding ornaments displayed on the trees are offered for sale nearby.

The store also stocks unique items like ornaments handmade in Israel from olive tree trimmings, lighted picture frames and lighted cottages that can be displayed on Christmas trees.

“These have a lot of detail, and they’re all made in Williamsburg,” Stimley said.

The store also offers a good variety of dog breed ornaments and cat ornaments. Made from hard acrylic plastic, Stimley said the ornaments are unlikely to break.

Personalized nutcrackers are a new addition this year, he said, adding holiday inventory also includes garden flags and holiday mats/inserts.

The mercantile areas of the store offer jewelry, T-shirts, garden décor, mailbox wraps, CDs, pet magnets/coasters, rugs and wall art.

The Toy Room features “things I played with as a kid,” Stimley said of marbles, Pick-Up Sticks, boomerangs and spinning tops.

The High Country Lavender Farm & Shop grows and harvests the lavender that is used to make soaps, lotions and other items, Adcock said, adding other businesses in the area include Poor Farmers Farms and Wood’s Produce.

(Merchants in Stuart will be featured in the Nov. 28 edition of The Enterprise.)