Down 2 Earth on Woodstock Square to undergo renovations costing $22,100

WOODSTOCK – A store on Woodstock's Square will see improvements with help from the city's revolving loan fund.

Nina Huffman, who opened Down 2 Earth in 2014, wants to retrofit and expand the store. Down 2 Earth is a specialty shop that offers handcrafted leather goods, Native American jewelry, crystals, teas and consignment items, according to city documents.

The city will loan Huffman $10,000 from its revolving loan fund to go toward the $22,100 project. The fund is dedicated to offering low-interest loans to local business owners who want to relocate to the city or expand current operations. The program is meant to further economic development.

A leather maker who had operated out of the store left last year, but Huffman wants to make her own leather products and allow for customers to view the process, she said.

“Down 2 Earth strives to provide a unique shopping experience on [the] Woodstock Square, and I am looking to amplify that this year,” she said in a memo to the City Council. “With the custom leather maker leaving the store … it opens up the possibility to bring new and exciting improvements to the store.”

Huffman wants to eliminate consignment from Down 2 Earth and begin offering more leather products, jewelry and interactive activities for children, she said.

The Woodstock native said she wants to continue to contribute to the unique business culture on the Square.

“I remember the days of going into a business up here and getting distinctive gifts you didn’t see in a chain store,” she said. “I want others to have similar feelings when they come to Woodstock, and have a fun and enjoyable time while in my place of business.”