BARRINGTON — A mushroom grower, a cement statue pourer, an heirloom furniture creator, and a lantern designer are among the nine new merchants that will round out the slate of more than 170 businesses at The Windmill Farm & Craft Market when it reopens Saturday.
It will be the 38th season for one of Yates County’s premier destinations, and this year, it is opening a week early to accommodate a changing schedule.
For three decades, the cooperative at 3900 Route 14A has given customers the opportunity to experience one of the most diverse shopping experiences in the region, featuring everything from food, wine and beer, collectibles, and plants to fashion, a used bookstore, and a hardware store run by one of the market’s Amish vendors.
Special events include car shows, holiday celebrations, and customer appreciation days and run until the end of November. The market also is open Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, Labor Day, and Black Friday. This year, it will not be open Columbus Day.
“We are pleased to open the 38th season of The Windmill. Our new and existing merchants are looking forward to seeing all the smiling faces of our customers again,” said Steve Wilson, the market’s operations manager. “Since our opening day falls on Easter weekend, the Easter Bunny will be visiting from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. for photo ops and to hand out treats. The kiddos can hunt for filled Easter eggs hidden around the market. Adults will enjoy foods, beverages and hand-crafted items themed for the weekend as well as special discounts and treats from many of the merchants.”
He added that Jackson Cavalier will provide musical entertainment from noon to 3 p.m. And, the Windmill will be launching its electronic commerce, or eCommerce platform, in 2025.
“This will enable customers to shop 24/7, and we are excited about it,” Wilson said.
Nearly all of the new merchants nearly have a connection to existing vendors or were customers themselves before deciding to join the cooperative this season.
Paul DeBrine of Penn Yan purchased Nana’s Tater Shack, which makes the Windmill’s famous butterfly ribbon potatoes, and changed the name to Pa’s Tater Shack. His wife, Pat, has owned her business at the market for the past quarter-century. She sells handmade signs in a space on the South Street of Shops — her business has no name, she said.
When the tater shack came up for sale, Paul decided to jump. Their granddaughter, Samantha Dahl, worked for the previous owner and will continue with her grandfather. Her parents, Robert and Michele Dahl, also are vendors and own Rob’s Grill.
“We have three generations here,” Pat said.
Alexander Kajosz owns Monroe Mushroom Co. in Rochester. His shop at the Windmill will sell fresh mushrooms, mushroom tinctures, mushroom jerky, mushroom coffee, grow kits for mushrooms, and fresh pasta. He started his business in Colorado; he says shops like his are big hits in the southwestern states. He decided to give the Windmill a try after his girlfriend, Danielle Sanford, who owns Plastic Free Curiosities, thought it would do well.
Sanford grew up in the market working with her grandfather, Rod Collson, at the Linen Closet/As the Crow Flies. She started her sustainable product shop a few years ago. Like the DeBrine family, they are third-generation merchants, with Collson’s daughter part of the business.
Brian Martin of Stanley joined the market at the recommendation of a friend, Ion Zimmerman. Martin had a small operation making outdoor cement statues and bird baths, but when Zimmerman told him the Windmill’s cement business was for sale, Martin said he would give it a try. He already had molds of his own, but when he took over the operation at the Windmill, it gave him access to more varied alternatives, like puppies and other things you might put in your flowerbed.
Zimmerman, a member of the cooperative’s Board of Directors, has a furniture business and is a longtime vendor. His wife, Lydia, owns one of the ice cream shops at the market. Most of their nine children have helped out at the businesses.
Jen Hoke moved from West Virginia to open Wild Goat Vintage Studio, which she described as re-imagining vintage furniture and other vintage items like lamps. She creates “new” pieces, with an emphasis on sustainability and craftsmanship, out of previously loved pieces she finds, adding quality and personality.
“We respect the craftsmanship, and we want to bring it back to life,” she said.
Hoke’s children live in Penn Yan, where she and her husband bought a house recently. Hoke said he’s newly retired, so she expects assistance from him in the repurposing of what she makes. Her husband’s family is from Penn Yan; Hoke said she’s visited the Windmill for years and has owned her business in West Virginia for nearly four decades. It was time, she said, to move closer to her children and bring her ideas to the Finger Lakes.
Amelia Wasiluk doesn’t have plans yet to be local; she will come from Fayetteville, on the east side of Syracuse, each Saturday to run Amelia’s Avocado Salsa & Dips. She will sell fresh avocado salsa dip, homemade corn chips, fresh fruit and veggie homemade juices, produce, herbs and fresh-cut flowers. She said her recipes use very little salt.
Wasiluk, who is Mexican, said she will add some of her culture to her offerings, which she described as healthy and well-researched. She decided to be a vendor at the Windmill because it presents a new challenge and it gives her the opportunity to grow her already-strong customer base in a new area.
Originally from Southern California, she moved east about 25 years ago. She was an engineer, but left that field to raise her children and decided to not go back.
“I was curious, so I came out there,” she said about the Windmill. “It’s not that far — it’s 90 minutes — and the people were really welcoming.”
Wayne McClure also has quite the drive. The owner of Handcrafted Treasures will come from Columbia Cross Roads in Bradford County, Pa., also about 90 minutes from the Windmill. McClure and his wife have been coming to the Windmill for years as customers and thought it was time to give their craft business, founded in 2017, a shot with a retail store.
Their products revolve around rustic handcrafted wooden lanterns, in which the add mason jars with battery-operated LED candles. They sell different sizes and also have handcrafted wooden vegetable bins. McClure’s sister, mom, and grandmother have been avid Windmill shoppers as well, so he said his whole family has been very positive about him joining as a vendor.
Three other new vendors this season: Vineyard View Winery in Jerusalem, which is operated by Adam and Nikki Folts; Twin Brooks Maple, run by Luke Patterson; and Funtastic Chocolates owned by Mark Steven. The latter has been tentatively approved and is waiting on licensing.
