We've Got The County Covered
We've Got The County Covered
Chinook's Creative Collections opened recently at 236 Indiana. Posing for a photo are some of the artists and building owner involved in the new business.( L-r) Brandon Nissen, building owner; Matt Paulsen, blacksmithing and iron work art and Roy Case, Western Cedar birdhouses. Front row l-r, Kat Whitaker, organic body scrubs and bath salts and manager Kathy Mitchell, wreaths and table runners.
Two weeks ago a new business opened in downtown Chinook. Located in what was once the Golden Triangle Mental Health facility (236 Indiana), Chinook's Creative Collections is a 'gallery' where local artists can rent individual space to display and sell their creations. On opening day there were 11 artists with their wares on display. Brandon Nissen, who owns the building, believes there is potential for 20 artists to be involved in the new enterprise by June of this year.
Purchase of building suggested idea of a business incubator
Nissen, who operates a financial planning service, bought the building a couple of years ago to house his own business. He explained, "I ended up with five spaces for offices. I figured my costs to buy and maintain the building, then rented out office space to just cover the costs." When a space was vacated, Matt Paulsen approached Nissen about providing some space for artists to do consignments of their work.
Nissen said, "Early on I had the idea of using some of the office space as a 'new business incubator.'" Business incubators allow people trying to start a new business to have reasonably priced space and a few basic commercial services, like internet. If their business begins to grow, they find a new, larger space and a new startup moves into the incubator's space. Nissen began to think about how he could combine the idea of a business incubator and opportunities for local artists to showcase and sell their work.
He explained, "I posted my general idea about a creating a space for artists and in one evening got 30-40 inquiries." Things began to move quickly. Nissen scheduled a couple of informational meetings for people to see the space and share ideas about how things would work. Creative Collections opened on April 5th with works by eleven artists for sale. Nissen said, "The response by artists was much bigger than I anticipated."
Each artist shares part of a suite made up of a reception area, at the entrance, a long hallway and an office. Tables, pieces of furniture and walls are used to display the art. Creative Collections is open Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 .pm. Kathy Mitchell is the manager and also has artwork on display. She said the only requirement to display art is that the works be handmade by the person offering them. There were a variety of items ranging from wall hangings to handmade jewelry. Some artists also offer custom work on request.
Kathy Mitchell said, "So far most of our promotion has been word of mouth and on Facebook. We are planning to be open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Mother's Day, Sunday, May 13th." A larger grand opening is being planned for Saturday, May 19th.
Persons interested in renting vendor space can call Brandon Nissen at 390-0975 or Kathy Mitchell at 357-8848. Check "Chinook's Creative Collections" on Facebook for information about events or other news.
Brandon Nissen said a big thrill for him would be to see some of the artists' sales grow to a point they would need to move to a bigger space. "That," he said, "Is the whole purpose of providing an incubator space for a startup business."
