Midtown Makers

Midtown Makers occupies a shopfront at 51-53 Church Street in Ballymena town centre, set up in 2014 to give local craftspeople a retail outlet for handmade work. The shop carries pieces from more than 70 Northern Irish makers, including hand-thrown ceramics, silver and beaded jewellery, knitted and felted textiles, soap, preserves and upcycled home décor, with each maker's stock displayed and sold on a consignment basis. The premises also houses Ballymena's visitor information point, so the till doubles as a source of local maps and event listings. Monthly workshops run from the back of the shop, covering skills from jewellery-making to card-making and acrylic painting. Midtown Makers trades from this single Church Street unit only, and its role as a shopfront for dozens of small producers makes it one of the few outlets in Mid Antrim carrying this range of locally made goods under one roof.