Antiques dealer opens second shop
Staff writer
Not long after re-opening Red Barn Antiques in Hillsboro, Shirley Krause got a chance to open another store in Marion.
She decided to take the chance for a couple of reasons. She had always wanted to have a store in Marion, because that’s where she started dealing in antiques at T.C.’s What-Not Shop, and she had more merchandise than would fit in Red Barn Antiques.
Now she operates Sunflower Antiques in Marion and her husband, David, operates Red Barn Antiques in Hillsboro.
“It’s easier for one to do one,” rather than splitting time at the two stores, she said.
Krause said Sunflower Antiques at 329 E. Main St., Marion, has a little more of everything than Red Barn Antiques, simply because it is much larger.
“It’s twice the square footage as the Barn,” she said.
With the extra space, she has more room for antique and vintage furniture than in Hillsboro. It also gives her more wall space to display signs and artwork.
Other people’s antiques also are for sale. One such vendor has a variety of decorative duck decoys.
The two shops also have different customer bases, Krause said.
“I get a lot more lake people here than in Hillsboro,” she said.
She said she wasn’t sure why that was. She said she suspected it was because Sunflower Antiques is in downtown Marion, while Red Barn Antiques is just a little out of the main shopping area in Hillsboro.
Sunflower Antiques is open 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. For more information, call (620) 382-2822.