Evolution: Special sales highlight busy Friday night

More than 350 visitors stopped by, shattering the expectations of co-owners Jason Mitchell and Michael and Natalie Mardis. The grand opening was held in conjunction with First Friday Art Walk in downtown Springfield and for the first time on Commercial Street. Theworkshop, 308 W. Commercial St., was among several businesses causing unusually high foot traffic in the burgeoning district.

Theworkshop party started at 6 p.m. and included visits by Mitchell’s friends from Pennsylvania and Atlanta, Michael Mardis’ parents from Indiana and Springfield Mayor Tom Carlson, who is a friend of Mitchell’s family. Two doctors in scrubs strolled in around midnight, and the last group left at 1:15 a.m.

“We were overwhelmed. It was a great crowd,” Michael Mardis said, expressing surprise at the number of passersby who dropped in. “There were more people coming off the street than we had invited.”

The night had two firsts: the first furniture sale right off the showroom floor and the first retail sale of Natalie Mardis’ stationery.

Theworkshop guys already had scored a $4,600 furniture sale in April to Meghan Chambers for her Staxx Apparel showroom. Despite a much-smaller price tag, the $410 red table was a special sale because it was out of the blue, Mardis said.

Buyer Ruth Arick, a self-employed health care consultant in Springfield, said she fell in love with the table after seeing it photographed in a Springfield News-Leader article earlier that day. She approached Mitchell upon seeing it along the west wall.

“I love startup companies,” Arick said, just before handing Mitchell a check. “These guys are doing nice, responsible reclaiming work. I’m glad they’re here.”

Michael Mardis said that while the evening was extremely positive for the business, his big-picture view points to positive momentum for Commercial Street.

“That night is what people have envisioned for Commercial Street,” Mardis said. “There’s been a lot of people working for that for years. It finally happened. This is how it should be on Commercial Street. We’re grateful to be a part of it.”