Mary Gulbrantson started Urban Farmgirl in 2000 as a booth at a suburban Chicago flea market.Twelve years later, Mary was unexpectedly offered a quaint neighborhood shop – formerly a historic corner grocery store building – and Urban Farmgirl as we know it today truly blossomed! The beautiful old building which served as her first location is as much a part of who Urban Farmgirl is as all the things you will find inside. She started on just one floor of the building, but soon expanded to include the upstairs.
Then came Urban Farmgirl’s Main Street Market – an idea hatched on an antiquing road trip! Mary knew the Rockford area needed something like it – so she used all her resources as a past market vendor to host her very own biannual market. Today the May and September markets each showcase around 200 small businesses! You’ll find multiple food trucks & vendors as well as live music on 6 stages throughout the grounds!
As a growing store with a need for more space, Mary opened a second shopping location inside the Urban Farmgirl warehouse in fall of 2020. That location features a 7,500 square foot showroom filled with furniture & home decor.
The most recent addition to Urban Farmgirl is a project very near & dear to Mary’s heart —the renovation of her childhood farm—scheduled to open in 2023 as an Airbnb, retreat & event space.
All of this could not be possible without the support of all of you! We are grateful & humbled for the support everyone has shown Urban Farmgirl. Your support of our little corner of the world means so much!
