"I just felt like this was a great venue," said Barbra Scott, who sells her preserved posies in, of all places, a church. And not just any church.
It's the one that once housed the Limelight, where people danced the nights away during the 80s and 90s.
"This was my stomping ground. I was up in that corner and that corner. It's so bizarre," said Scott, who said she never thought she would be selling flowers here.
If it was blasphemy to disco at a church, shopping and eating may not offer much redemption, but that's not the point.
"Retail need to be exciting. That was our goal," developer Jack Menashe said.
It took Menashe a year to turn the former church in a gleaming show house of boutiques and edibles.
Some are located in stalls. Others have their own large areas. And still others, like Marie Belle Chocolates, have several spots.
They've covered just about every category for any shopper -- Clothes, accessories, make up and perfumes, an outdoor component, a dessert section and a gourmet food market.
"This is our first brick and mortar. We've been in business for five years. When this came about, we jumped all over it," Michael Tzezailidis of Jezalin's said.
And maybe business will be blessed.
The marketplace is a bit of a maze, with shops located up on private landings. It can make shopping both entertaining and a little confusing. Luckily, there are maps.
So who will shop here?
"The gourmet market and farmers market are going to cater to the locals. The restaurants and the rest of the shopping are going to cater to the tourists," Menashe said.
It's amazing what you can pack into a church.
The Limelight Marketplace is located at 6th Avenue and 20th Street in Manhattan. It's open everyday from 10 until 10, except Sunday when it closes at 8:00 p.m.
You can learn more by visiting Limelight on the web at:
http://www.limelightmarketplace.com/
http://www.facebook.com/pages/New-York-NY/Limelight-Marketplace/123977387675
