CLEVELAND, Ohio --The West Side Market is getting dressed up for the winter holiday season. Decorations are going up on Tuesday and Thursday this week when the market is closed. Vendors will be decorating their stands as well.
The decorated facility will host holiday festivals, popup markets and special events to enhance the seasonal experience.
“We anticipate Thanksgiving shoppers and people who might be from out of town,” says Patrick Evans, marketing director for Cleveland Public Market Corp., the non-profit that operates the West Side Market. “We want them to see the market at its holiday best.”
The official Holiday Kick-Off Festival is 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 23. It includes 19 pop-up vendors who will fill the produce arcade’s empty spaces. They will offer a variety of gift-worthy merchandise, including plants, jams, dog treats, skin care, greeting cards, pottery and more.
Vendors include
- A Stare of Owls
- Anila Ghosh
- Applewood Centers
- Billy Delfs Photography
- Chi-Irena Wong Art
- Hawthorn & Quinn
- Hood Honey
- Hunger Network
- Jennifer Price
- Jindonut Treatery
- Lucky Bonsai
- Market Fresh Jam
- OliveMe
- Purple Elephant
- Rinaldi and the Party Hats
- Sparkly Bead Designs
- The All Balm
- The Flowered Pinecone
- Thrown Room
The market is offering themed WSM merchandise for gifting including all-new quarter-zip fleece pullovers, winter hats, mug, a holiday long-sleeve t-shirt and holiday ornament.
An outdoor beer garden returns that day with Collision Bend Brewing Company serving Lakeshore Lager and Christmas Staycation Winter Ale. Festival breweries are all from Northeast Ohio but change monthly.
A Home for the Holidays Festival – with popup vendors and beer garden—is scheduled for 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 21, just in time for last-minute shopping.
Festivities throughout the month of December include
- Santa visits on Dec. 15, Dec. 20 and Dec. 21. Mrs. Claus joins him on Dec. 15 and Dec. 20.
- North Coast Men’s Chorus performance from the balcony at 2 p.m., Dec. 21.
Visit the West Side Market online to see events as they are scheduled.
Because Christmas and New Year’s Day fall on Wednesdays, the market will have holiday hours from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Tuesdays prior and be closed on the holiday.
The holiday activities have been enhanced this year by the Cleveland Public Market Corp. as part of the market’s plan for improved programming.
“We want to market the market and attract new people down to have a good experience,” says Evans.