- November 7, 2024
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The COVID-19 pandemic has been difficult for arts and craft vendors.
Joe Morrison, owner of Sun City Center-based jewelry vendor Rockman Studio, is used to displaying his merchandise often in the Sarasota and Lakewood Ranch areas. This past year, he didn't do a single event from March to October.
"All we did was make jewelry," Morrison said of he and his wife, Irene, during the seven-month hiatus.
His best shows, which are typically in the Tampa area, are yet to return. Outside of Tampa, Morrison said the local arts and craft scene is starting to pick up again. University Town Center's Outdoor Spring Market, which started March 13, is the latest example.
It wasn't just the vendors who missed the markets. Morrison said a woman from Summerfield found his booth early on March 13. The woman told Morrison she'd bought jewelry from him in Summerfield in 2019 and had been searching for him ever since. She was one of many patrons who went home happy.