by Emily Van Cleve
Discover some heart for your home at The Marketplace at Poulin Design Center
SIP. SHOP. BE INSPIRED. That’s the motto at the heart of The Marketplace at Poulin Design Center, a retail home decor business that opened in March 2021. Featuring a huge array of carefully selected items—everything from pillows, botanicals, picture frames and candle holders to vases, furniture and housewares—The Marketplace provides one-stop shopping for clients of Poulin Design Center’s remodeling services and community members who want to find a wide range of home decor products under one roof.
“We’re creating an experience at The Marketplace,” says Stephanie Poulin Lawry, operations manager and the daughter of Poulin Design Center’s founders Tom and Terrie Poulin. “We believe in home and all that it encompasses.” Lawry credits her sister, Leslie Dunegan, with the idea for The Marketplace, noting that, “Albuquerque doesn’t have anything else like it.”
With its high ceilings and generous walkways, it’s easy to stroll through the more than 6,000-square-foot bright, airy space. Creatively curated collections not only display items for sale but also offer ideas on how to incorporate the unique items into your own home from inspiring tablescapes to marvelous mantels.
“Home is where we transform everyday moments into memories and cultivate our relationships with our family, friends and community,” Lawry says. “Home connects us all. It’s our sanctuary, a sacred space deserving attention and care. That’s why it was the next logical step here at Poulin, to build this wonderful space where that final task of creating a home, of filling it thoughtfully with the things that comfort, calm and inspire, can be accomplished.”
Creating community at its core, and so that patrons can sit and enjoy the homey atmosphere, The Marketplace contains a café offering craft coffee, loose leaf teas, burritos and homemade pastries. Customers are encouraged to make themselves comfortable and savor a fresh cup of java while surrounded by some of the country’s hottest trending items, seasonal treats, special holiday gifts and crafts made by local artisans.
Additionally, The Marketplace offers classes, workshops and special events. Lawry says plans are in the works to offer interior design services and expand online shopping.
