Centre Markets now has a Nittany Mall storefront. What it’s like and what’s to come
Last year, Centre Markets founder Sabine Carey and Webster’s Bookstore Cafe owner Elaine Meder-Wilgus announced the launch of a new project in Pine Grove Mills that would include a physical storefront for Centre Markets and the new Centre Kitchen Collective, a communal kitchen space and incubator resource for local food producers and farmers. While the goal was to open the Collective in mid-2024, with the Centre Markets storefront to follow in the fall, the project’s timeline has shifted slightly, making way for a new venture in the meantime: a Centre Markets storefront in the Nittany Mall.
“When this opportunity came up to rent the space at the mall, I originally was just going to use it for the online market’s pickup (orders),” Carey said. “Then, I realized, it seemed silly to be at the mall and not open a retail space.”
The storefront, with a grand opening planned for later in the spring, provides Carey with a bit of a test-run ahead of the still-planned Pine Grove Mills project, while also exposing the Centre Markets brand to new clientele. And with the retail space open, Centre Markets can apply to accept SNAP benefits, an initiative that’s been a long time coming.
“It’s something folks have been really hoping for, for a long time, to be able to use SNAP benefits for fresh, healthy, local food,” Carey said.
As per Carey’s original plan, the mall location will still serve as a pick-up location for the online market, as the online market expands its operations this summer.
“Right now, we only have pickups on Saturday,” Carey said. “We’re going to add a Wednesday ordering window and expand our deliveries. Right now, we just (deliver to) the State College area, but on the Wednesday ordering day, we’ll add the Bellefonte area. ... We’ll have State College-area deliveries on Saturdays, and Wednesday to Bellefonte.”
When the retail side is up and running, in-person shoppers will also notice an expansion when it comes to the number of products and vendors Centre Markets offers. There was a need to provide a greater array of products within the mall-set retail space, Carey said, with at least 10 new vendors in addition to Centre Markets’ existing vendors.
“They’re all local products,” she said. “I just added a local mushroom grower and another fish producer... We’ll be adding locally roasted coffee and raw honey. ... Stay tuned — we’re really going to be increasing our selection.”
According to a press release from earlier in March, other products expected to be on offer at the new location include local flowers, eggs, dairy, pasture-raised meats, baked goods, prepared ready-to-eat and frozen meals, artisan products and handcrafted gifts. There’s also a possibility of hosting workshops at the storefront, as part of the effort to provide value as a community space.
Currently, the Pine Grove Mills Centre Markets retail location is expected to open in late summer, while Centre Kitchen Collective will open at a later date, as it’s partially reliant on grant funding. However, Carey doesn’t say the Nittany Mall store will automatically shutter once the Pine Grove Mills location opens.
“We’re going to see what demand looks like,” Carey said. “There’s a positive response to the mall location. People are really excited to see something coming into the mall instead of leaving, and it’s a very convenient location for our customers in the Bellefonte area. Pine Grove Mills really is on the other side of town. So, keeping the mall location will depend on how it’s received. If there’s a demand for it, we’ll certainly consider staying at the mall.”
The Centre Markets Nittany Mall store is located near Entrance B, next to Holiday Hair and T-Mobile.
Stay up to date on both the Pine Grove Mills Centre Markets and Centre Kitchen Collective projects, as well as the Nittany Mall location, on the Centre Markets website, centremarkets.com; via the Centre Markets newsletter; and on the Centre Markets Facebook page, www.facebook.com/centremarkets.
Holly Riddle is a freelance food, travel and lifestyle writer. She can be reached at holly.ridd@gmail.com.
