Upper Arlington’s Scioto Made moves from in-home to storefront business

After three years of designing and making wallets and “carrying items” such as handbags out of their Lytham Road home, Wes Adams and his wife, Dana, opened their first storefront, Scioto Made, at 2800 Fishinger Road on Aug. 24.  

The store, located in the Scioto View Center, features 400 square feet of retail space, a roughly 1,100-square-foot backroom where Adams performs small-batch printing and embroidery, does design work and makes wallets, handbags, hats and other merchandise.  

Scioto Made also offers leather goods, T-shirts, beard oils, candles and towels. All items sold at the store are either designed or made in Ohio. 

"I was working out of my house, and we were doing mostly online sales and markets and stuff," Adams said. "I'd grown and was looking to get a new space outside of the house. 

"We live, like, right around the corner from here. So this was perfect." 

As Adams puts it, Scioto Made's brand is "outdoorsy." 

He said the concept is to "celebrate local makers, people that make really cool stuff." 

In doing that, Adams designs and makes items that celebrate Ohio and the natural world and provides products that will help others do the same.  

"Our motto is, 'Simple designs for everyday use,'" he said. "Our stuff's made to be durable, to last, be simple and easy to carry. 

"Our bags are really good for hiking, going to festivals or long visits at parks,” he said. “You're able to carry, kind of, just what you need and not too much."  

In addition to making and selling goods that can help people explore and enjoy the outdoors, Wes and Dana Adams promote awareness about environmental issues and they organize and take part in Scioto River clean-up events.  

They also donate 1% of all sales proceeds to 1% for the Planet, a global network of businesses, individuals and nonprofit organizations that work to address environmental issues through fundraising and legislative lobbying, and are members of the Great Lakes Business Network.  

Additionally, Adams said, he works to make sure his apparel and accessories do not contribute to environmental waste.  

"We try to make durable products that will last to help keep waste out of landfills," he said. "The environmental piece is really important for us. You want to be able to enjoy the outdoors and to keep it pristine and clean. You don't want to go to a remote place and see trash everywhere.  

“There's that impact to it, and it also gets into the animals, the food supply and all of that stuff,” he said. “To us, it's really important to be aware of it and what your impact is on the environment." 

The couple are Scioto Mile's lone employees. However, they hope to add staff as the business grows.  

"The city of Upper Arlington is excited that they have opened their first brick-and-mortar store here within the city," city Development Director Joe Henderson said. "We look forward to them being a part of our business community and can’t wait to watch them grow."  

Although Scioto Made is not a member of the Tri-Village Chamber Partnership, the organization's president and CEO said he was pleased to hear of the addition of a niche shop to the area. 

"A new business to the Tri-Village area is always a huge asset to our communities," David Polakowski said. "It is exciting to hear of Scioto Made opening, especially during the current times."  

Scioto Made’s hours are from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays.  

In addition to in-store sales, the store offers online sales through its website https://sciotomade.com/. 

nellis@thisweeknews.com 

@ThisWeekNate