Downtown Marion’s newest boutique features a welcoming environment with a variety of charming, interesting, and stylish home decor items on its shelves.
Spruce and Sparrow, owned by Jenny Lust, is located at 194 W. Center St. next to the Marion Area Convention and Visitors Bureau and across the street from Charleston Place. Spruce and Sparrow is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and from noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday. The store is closed on Monday.
Lust, who works for Ridgedale Local Schools, said she has dreamed of owning her own business for many years. She has previous experience working in retail and also worked in the banking industry.
“I’ve always talked about opening a business someday. I’ve always wanted to,” she said. “Just anything, really — coffee shop, restaurant. When I really started thinking about doing it, I thought about a bookstore, because I love to read, but I didn’t think that just having a bookstore would be enough. So then I talked to (downtown real estate developer) Luke Henry and he said there was a need for a home decor store in Marion. And I love that also.”
Lust said she consulted with a friend who owns a home decor store in Powell for advice and insight about how to get started and what did worked for her shop.
“She encouraged me to go ahead and do it,” Lust said.
As an avid reader, Lust has incorporated a selection of books into the lineup of merchandise available at Spruce and Sparrow. Customers can also find candles, wall hangings, apparel, jewelry, coffee mugs, and other home decor items.
“Our main focus is the home decor, which is spread throughout the store, but we have a little bit of everything that we love throughout the