Shopping at River Street Marketplace

Inside the buzzing new retail spot in Manistee

By Anna Faller | April 18, 2026

If you ask Michigan native Robert Gras, a telling marker of a community’s health is the in-person shopping scene.

Even with online retail on the rise, he says, there’s an irreplaceably human factor that comes from seeing and touching a product—maybe even consulting an expert firsthand—prior to making a purchase that helps build and maintain a loyal following.

“If [a business] treats me correctly and has reasonable prices, I’m going to go back to them,” Gras says. “If you can create that, I think that’s something to foster.”

It’s that connective layer of local commerce that Gras and his wife Cheryl are aiming to cultivate in their recently-opened Manistee mini-mall, River Street Marketplace.

Officially launched in September 2025, the complex—which occupies a multi-lot space whose previous lives include a five-and-dime and a dentist’s office—is home to an indoor market hall with rentable units for up to 10 vendors (only two of which are yet unclaimed).

As for what you might find while browsing? Handmade goodies galore are a given. Read on for a look inside the shops of three River Street Marketplace vendors!

Crafty Craft Creations – Sharon Tetzlaff

Tucked into one of the market’s two street-facing suites is Crafty Craft Creations. Owned by veteran sewist Sharon Tetzlaff and her husband Bill, aka Doc, the shop, as its name suggests, is home to scads of crafty commodities, from artisan soaps to euchre sets, ornaments, sun catchers, magnets, and more.

The boutique operates on a consignment model, wherein upwards of 35 makers and artisans, the vast majority of whom are Michigan-based, stock Crafty Craft’s shelves with their one-of-a-kind products. About 95 percent of Tetzlaff’s inventory is handmade, she says, with a series of artfully-crocheted dishtowels, laser nightlights, and her own sewing designs (think: aprons, baby bibs, tote bags, etc.) all topping the list of routine fan-favorites.

As Tetzlaff tells it, her first foray into the creative world came in high school, when she learned to make her own clothes, and later, to sew items for her daughter. Fast-forward several decades and years spent traveling for craft shows, and she and her husband set their sights on pursuing a brick-and-mortar location.

Per Tetzlaff, it was the promise of a busy downtown space coupled with accessible rent that first led her to her shop on River Street.

“I figured I couldn’t go wrong with that!” she says, and so far, reception has been “unreal.” In fact, her street-facing storefront marks an upgrade from her original suite, a smaller, 450-square-foot affair, and with it, a more than 100 percent sales increase from 2024 to 2025.

“This is the best spot in town,” Tetzlaff adds. “I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else!”

Boutique 1692 – Andrea Hindman

As spiritualist and empath Andrea Hindman notes, the journey towards spiritual wellness can be lonely and even prohibitive for those without a supportive community.

“There was nothing in this area where people could go and talk about that experience,” she says. “I really wanted to build a community and learn from other people.”

It was in that interest, and to source an arsenal of niche supplies, that Hindman opened Boutique 1692.

Named in cheeky homage to the Salem Witch Trials, this metaphysically-driven shop is all about nurturing the positive energy that comes from reconnecting with ourselves and each other. To equip visitors for their various quests, Hindman stocks everything from funky bleach leggings, intention candles and herbs, and essential oils, to the more directed ritual tools of crystal sound bowls, hand-blown spirit balls, and ornate athame blades for directing energy.

There’s also a “farm finds” layer to the space, wherein Hindman sources antique furniture like butcher block tables, buffets, and apothecaries and stocks them with goods, both for display and for sale. On-site services like tarot readings and candle blessings are also available, and she hints that plans for expanded gatherings might also be on the future docket.

The goal for Hindman is to bolster the area’s small but burgeoning spiritual community—an endeavor that’s so far garnered positive reception—while establishing the boutique as an all-souls shopping hub. This makes for an ever-changing inventory, notes Hindman, but that’s half the fun!

“When people walk into the store, I want it to evoke an emotional experience,” she says. “I want them to say [that] it feels good in here.”

The Nautical Nook – Michelle Dunlap

You know that singular sense of joy that comes from spending a day on the water? Artist and crafter Michelle Dunlap does—in fact, she’s rendering it in driftwood, film, acrylic, and everything in between at her River Street Marketplace boutique, The Nautical Nook.

The daughter of creative parents—“my mother was a crafter and my father was a woodworker,” she says—Dunlap was raised on art and painting before entering the craft show circuit in the 2010s. Since then, she’s dabbled in photography, woodworking, mosaic, garden crafts, and beyond.

“I just fell in love with the lakeside and [using] natural elements to help create my artwork,” she notes.

So it comes as no surprise that The Nautical Nook is laid out like a cozy art gallery. Inside, shoppers can expect to wade through a treasure trove of arty finds, headlined by a driftwood and metal mural of the Manistee North Pier Lighthouse near the entrance. Other maritime merchandise includes hand-made magnets, glass ducks and sailboats, kitschy beach and cabin signs, paintings, prints, and hand-crafted goodies aplenty.

As part of her art-centric inventory, Dunlap also features a few larger pieces, including whimsical furniture, a giant folk-art seagull print inset within a driftwood frame, and—one of her favorite pieces—a beach glass mosaic wave and sailboat creation entitled Breaking Through.

As for future nautical adventures? With not quite a year of business under her belt, Dunlap still has shop space to fill, though she anticipates collaborating with the other marketplace vendors will make for short work.

“The shops here are so unique, and we all work well together,” she adds. “It’s been a lot of fun!”

One Stop Shop

While you’re visiting, don’t forget to check out the other five River Street Marketplace shops!

In the retail column, the lineup includes the French-inspired Taphouse Boutique, a curated women’s clothing store; She Shed Shenanigans, helmed by Gras’s wife, which offers aromatherapeutic blends, bath products, and custom sublimations; and a recently-signed wholesale liquidator, whose pallet-based inventory ranges from silverware and holiday décor to power tools and beyond!

Salt City CPA also occupies one of the building’s 10 spaces, as does Aesthetics by Andrea, whose licensed aesthetician services include skin and nail treatments and body waxing.

And the marketplace shows no signs of slowing down! In fact, Gras hints at plans for expansion ranging from basement classes and storage space to solar panel installation, and maybe even a second story.

“We just want to support downtown [Manistee],” he says. “If we can make a living doing something that benefits someone else, that’s the idea behind the building.”

Find River Street Marketplace at 390 River St. in Manistee. (231) 299-1061