Hamilton County Marketplace Comes to Town

The three amigos, or partners, of Hamilton County Marketplace: Susan Brooks, Jeff Zeckel and Brad Cook.

At first glance the packed parking lot at the Hamilton County 4-H Fairgrounds reminded me of the happy-go-lucky warm days of the summer county fair. Only on this day there was a dusting of snow, people were bundled in winter coats and the temperature was a whopping 10 degrees. No, it wasn’t the fair; the Hamilton County Marketplace had come to town.

Brainchild of vendors Brad Cook, Jeff Zeckel (both of Noblesville) and Susan Brooks of Atlanta, the concept of the Hamilton County Marketplace was birthed out of necessity. “We needed to provide a venue for like-minded individuals who were busy selling their wares throughout the summer months, but didn’t have a wintertime option,” said Cook. Cook who owns Brad Cook Art, Brooks who owns Dip Stix and Zeckel who owns Zeck’s BBQ, contracted with the fairgrounds for six days each year for the next two years.

The Marketplace meets on one Saturday from November through April at the Exhibition Building on the Hamilton County 4-H fairgrounds in Noblesville. The remaining dates for 2010 are as follows:

(Open to the public from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.)

• February 6, 2010 – $1 Admission goes to Janus Developmental Services
• March 20, 2010 – $1 Admission goes to Hamilton County Historical Society
• April 24, 2010 – $1 Admission goes to Hamilton County Humane Society
• November 6, 2010 – $1 Admission goes to Agapé Therapeutic Riding Resources, Inc.
• December 18, 2010 – $1 Admission goes to Meals on Wheels Hamilton County

Vendor Beverly McDowell of Hidden Pond Farm demos her Kombucha "Elixir of Life" product.

The first event was held on January 2 and started early as a wide variety of vendors, all hand-picked by the three, packed into the exhibition hall and set up shop for the day. A large crowd of shoppers moved from booth to booth finding some of their favorite products from the summer festivals and farmers’ markets: food, jewelry, accessories, books, woodworking, body products and art and photography. A Made in Indiana booth featured products from, of course, only Indiana.

Cook has had such an overwhelming response from vendors that they currently have a waiting list for the jewelry, candle making and handbags categories. Their 71 booth spots sold out for January, and the majority of the vendors signed up for all six months.

From the start, Cook, Zeckel and Brooks decided they wanted to involve local charities in the mix. “This whole thing isn’t driven by greed. It’s driven by opportunity,” said Cook. “By getting the not-for-profits involved, we are able to do a good thing for the community, and the not-for-profits also do a service for us by providing the people on the door so the three of us can man our booths.” Each month a different not-for-profit from various communities in the county will be set up in the entry-way to collect the $1 entry fee. The organizations get to keep these proceeds and may also receive other donations throughout the day.

Chaucie's Place dream team: Charles Jeffras, board member; George Cannon, board member; Ginger Kadlec, Executive Director; and Jane Haywood, Chaucie's Place Advocate from Prevail.

Chaucie’s Place, a child advocacy center in Carmel, benefited from the January Marketplace. Executive Director Ginger Kadlec was thrilled by the support. Since their doors opened in 2001, Kadlec says Chaucie’s Place has helped interview over 2,400 children who were victims of abuse. All told, $1,400 was donated to Chaucie’s Place on Saturday. We were really pleased with the outcome of that,” said Kadlec. “In addition to the donations, we also received the names of some people who were interested in volunteering … one person is now volunteering as a body safety instructor. We were really honored to have been invited by the coordinating committee,” she said.

Overall, Saturday’s shoppers were a happy crowd; happy to see some of their favorite summer products and happy to be out and about on a cold winter day. Brenda and Judy Bush of Sheridan, and Judy May of Indianapolis stopped by the Little C’s Arts & Things booth while May purchased a beautiful hand-made alpaca coat. “We’ve had cabin fever,” said Brenda Bush. “We’ve been inside for three days.”

Sandy Schleeter, visiting from Georgia and Karen Sherman and Charlene Moreillon of Noblesville, saw the Marketplace on a TV newscast that morning and headed over. “We decided to do this as our ‘chick trip,’” laughed Moreillon.

Many of the shoppers were excited about their finds. Judy Poe of Noblesville was thrilled with her nostalgic purchase, an art print of the old Rainbow Roller Rink in Noblesville from Brad Cook Art. “My kids spent three days a week there,” she said. Poe’s daughter Kim Harris agreed with her mother remembering her skating days “doing the shuffle.”

Ultimately, Cook rates the first marketplace a success. Plans are in the works to possibly expand the space. “We are so encouraged that we’re looking to accommodate with additional space,” said Cook. Instead of turning all the vendors down or putting them on a waiting list, we’d like to figure out a way to get them in there.” And if the interest generated on this frigid January day is any indication, February’s show will be packed.

Interested vendors can get information at www.hamiltoncountymarketplace.com.