- November 22, 2024
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Gathered, a lifestyle market, opened a month ago at 775 S. Yonge St., offering handmade, unique items for the home and the whole family, even the dog.
Art, furniture, photography, woodcraft, honey and even dog treats, all made by local artists and artisans, are among the wide array of items arranged in a large gallery.
The business was started by Kathe and Kevin Neat, who both grew up in Ormond Beach.
Upstairs is a room for art classes, where Kathe Neat teaches classes in milk paint, a nontoxic, water-based paint. She paints furniture, and in the past sold in outdoor markets. She was seeking a place in Ormond Beach to open a small shop for her craft when they found the current building which provides much more space than she needed.
Looking at the large space, they decided to expand by gathering other crafters and artists and that’s how the business, and the name, started.
Kevin Neat said It’s a unique opportunity for artists to be in retail, brick and mortar, setting.
“We brought an open-air market indoors,” Kathe Neat said.
She said both artists and customers “hang out” there and they want it to become a gathering place for the community.
Kathe Neat is the curator, selecting what products are displayed, and they’ve had many seeking to be included. To gather artists, she contacted those she knew, friends of friends and also talked to exhibiters at shows. The merchandise in the shop styles present a variety, but they say they have a “beachy, farmhouse” or “coastal country” style.
They are always getting in new items, they say, from their artists and crafters, who rent space.
A HAPPY PLACE
The couple travelled a lot, because of Kevin Neat’s job, but always knew they would return to Ormond Beach. Once you leave, they say, you realize how unique the town is.
“When you drive to the top of the Granada Bridge, it energizes you,” Kathe Neat said.
The shop is located just south of the city limits.
“We brought an open-air market indoors.”
KATHE NEAT, owner, Gathered, a lifestyle market
While some say Ormond is getting crowded, it’s nothing like Miami or Philadelphia, they say. Also, it can be hard to get to the beach in other parts of Florida.
Located in the former Wicker Hut building on busy U.S. 1, they’ve found that customers on the busy highway can be lured in. They have found that about half their shoppers stopped because they saw their sign. Also attracting attention on an outside wall is a large painted flamingo, similar to the wings around DeLand where people pose for pictures.
They bought the building in March and spent three months, with help from their two sons, in getting it ready. It was a labor of love.
“This is my happy place,” she said.
Visit www.gathered775.com or call 386-281-5616.
