SCHOHARIE — Up the winding Hilltown roads and along the main drive in Schoharie, Schoharie Mercantile has pulled together 22 artisans to offer a wide variety of goods for sale, from soap to jewelry to sweets and more. 

Cheryl Jones, a co-founder of the cooperative, told The Enterprise this week that most of the artisans involved are from Schoharie County, and each was picked by a five-member panel who ensured that there was no overlap in the merchandise.

“A lot of people recognize the artists’ stuff from different craft fairs that they’ve been to …,” Jones said, such as the Thacher Park craft fair. “There’s some crossover, but we try to keep it to one or two kinds of the same kind of craft.  There’s three people that knit and crochet, but their stuff is different.” 

Some other works include paintings by the folk artist John Wilkinson, quilts and general woven goods by Shirley Hall-Garner and Farmer John, handcrafted leather products by Shari Attendorn, objects from ocean shores collected by Vicki Dube, sheep’s milk and wool products from Sunny Valley Farms, and cooking herbs curated by Carolyn Wellington. 

The locally made products and the shop itself are a reflection of the area, Jones said, where there’s an “older way of life,” set apart from the hustling gift shops in more populated areas. 

The cooperative opened in February, and so far it has been “managing to keep our heads above water,” but the cozy rural setting also means fewer people wandering in. Most customers, Jones said, had travelled to the store specifically.

She suggested that any customers driving to the mercantile make an afternoon out of their visit to the farming town and stop at one of the local eateries as well.

“People like to go out to lunch at the Carrot Barn or the Apple Barrel,” she said, along with The Farmers Beef and Brew. 

Schoharie Mercantile is open from Thursdays through Sundays this winter, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., which will expand back to seven days a week at the end of the season.