Sales, samples and surprises at Lehmans Fall Festival
By Kelley Mohr
September 29, 2011
435
At Lehmans Old Time General Store, old fashioned does not mean outdated. At the annual Fall Festival on Saturday, Sept. 24, the store showcased old-fashioned products, pastimes and entertainment that never go out of style.
Visitors to the store could enjoy free entertainment, samples and demonstrations while perusing the countless shelves full of old time wares. While wandering through 10 departments of the 32,000-square-foot store, customers could try tools and treats that harken back to a simpler way of life.
This is more than a store, its a way of life, said Glenda Lehman Ervin, vice president of marketing at Lehmans. We picked this Saturday to highlight our products and explain not only what we do but why we do it and how we do it. A lot of it is stuff people have never seen before, making cider and cooking on the grill and apple butter.
For the Fall Festival, Lehmans showcased their authentic historic products with a modern day purpose, whether the product is a wood burning stove capable of efficiently heating an entire house, wooden toys that foster creativity, handmade soap crafted from local organic ingredients or a hand cranked strainer that filters better than any of its electronic counterparts.
The store offered interactive demonstrations of these products and more. Visitors could watch locally raised beef cooked over grills, apple butter slow churned over an open fire and popcorn popped on a wood burning stove, complete with endless free and tasty samples.
These displays demonstrated how customers could effectively utilize Lehmans products at home. Why not show people how good it tastes, how good it smells, how good it feels? asked Ervin.
The demonstrations, goods and foodstuffs are all a testament to Lehmans commitment to offer products that make lasting memories.
We offer wholesome, interactive, multigenerational family fun, said Ervin. In testament to this commitment to an old-fashioned tradition, Lehmans now has an old time Soda Pop Shop with more than 70 varieties of root beer and more than 300 kinds of bottle capped soda pop gracing the shelves, some of which are rare and retro.
Its a microcosm of what we like to do. We take one small thing and do it as well as we can, said Ervin.
With arms and stomachs filled with the stores wares and samples, customers agreed that whatever Lehmans did, they did it well. While taking advantage of the face painting and crafts for children, product demos, merchandise experts and sales on everything from stoves to outdoor furniture, patrons could listen to live music by Honeytown, a local folk bluegrass band that added to the old time atmosphere with a harmony strumming instruments.
Some customers came for the hard-to-find products. We come for the equipment, the quality and non-electric products, said Barbara Stowe, a customer who traveled from northern Michigan to get a part for her hand operated food processor. We love the products, the selection is extensive and varied.
Others came for the party. This is one of the places on the list to come and see. There are a lot of interesting things and a lot of variety, said Paulett Miller of Richmond, Va. So far, Ive tasted pumpkin pies, soda pop and gotten some birdseed.
With the food, music, demonstrations and sales, a celebratory atmosphere permeated the store that had been hit by a flood a little more than six months ago. As customers filled the huge building, which includes four pre-civil war era barns, the only trace of the massive flood were the faint watermarks still just visible about three feet up the sturdy wooden walls. I hear people saying flood? What flood? said Ervin. It was so devastating, but now were having a party. It feels really good.
The fall festival provided a good time for anyone who appreciates the old-fashioned joys of life. Lehmans Old Time Hardware Store is located at 4779 Kidron Road, Dalton 44618.
