COVINGTON, Ind. — If you’ve happened to stop by Galloway’s on the courthouse square in Covington, Ind., lately, you’ve probably noticed a pretty radical transformation.

The paint buckets, wallpaper displays and carpet samples that used to fill the 3,600-square-feet store are gone. Instead, the space is filled with antiques.

“With the declining economy we decided to try something new to stimulate business,” said business owner Stacey Galloway. “We added some antiques and they did really well because of the traffic generated by the other antique stores. We were having so much fun with it that we decided to make the whole store an antique mall.”

With the addition of Galloway’s and Marie Ann-tiques on the square, Covington is strengthening its reputation as the go-to place for antique glassware, primitive furniture and vintage jewelry.

“I’ve heard comments like, ‘That’s just what we need — another antique store’, but people need to realize that this is what draws people and tax dollars to Covington. We’re becoming well-known for our antique stores and I think the community should continue to build on that,” Galloway said, and added that her guest book boasts names from Australia, Russia, Germany and Spain.

Galloway’s forage into the world of antiques started with an Amish auction in Parke County in June. Her husband and co-owner of the business, Paige, was skeptical of the antique store idea at first and not overly enthused about going to an auction. But just like Stacey, he was bit by the bug.

Stacey Galloway said, “I knew absolutely nothing about antiques, but I learn a little more every day. I do a lot of research online and I’ve learned a lot from the other antique dealers. Carol Freese and Harry Hoagland have been wonderful mentors.”

Freese is the owner of House of the Lions Antiques and Harry Hoagland owns Back Home Again Antiques and Collectibles in Covington.

Galloway’s and Marie Ann-tiques has 17 vendor spaces representing a broad mix of styles and time periods.

“I think variety is good, since you never know what a customer is looking for, Galloway said. The store still has room for more vendors and eventually Galloway plans to expand into the office space in the back. “Our goal is to keep it nice in here. You won’t find any flea market merchandise. We also aim to keep our prices reasonable.”

Debbie Martin, Galloway’s part-time employee, spent the better part of October helping transform the home improvement store into a full-fledged antique mall. As it turned out, rearranging old inventory, designing a new store layout, hauling furniture and organizing vendor booths was right down her alley.

“This is my natural habitat. I’ve been buying antiques for myself for a lot of years and I really enjoy it a lot,” Martin said. “But it was a lot of hard work. I don’t know how many times we moved those last rolls of wallpaper.”

An antique furniture buff herself, Martin said the response from customers has been positive so far.

“Some are really surprised when they come in here and see how quickly this changed from home decor to antiques.” According to Galloway, Martin has been invaluable to the new antique store. “Deb is a wonderful ‘picker’ and she has a fantastic eye for antiques,” Galloway said.

Galloway will continue to sell Amish cabinetry and custom window treatments. She’s also rented out what used to be the popcorn room back in the day when the building was a movie theater. The room hasn’t been in use for many years but after Paige spent his free time rewiring and restoring the space, it’s ready to become a gift store stocked with handmade jewelry, wreaths and other crafts.

“We’re very thankful for the local support we had when we sold paint and wallpaper; we had a lot of wonderful customers,” said Galloway. “The economy prompted the change, but we’re really having a ball with the antiques.”

FYI

Galloway's and Marie Ann-tiques is located on the east side of the courthouse square at 318 Fourth St. in Covington, Ind. The store is open from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m EST. Monday through Saturday. For more information, call (765) 793-3502.