“The nature of a third place is one in which the presence of a ‘regular’ is always welcome, although never required.”
– Ray Oldenburg
The top question we’ve received since announcing our idea for Third Space Market is, “why the name?” So, we figure we’d take a little bit of time to give you the full background about third spaces and the role they play in the vision and mission of our store.
A Third Space (or third place) is a place where community happens. It’s a welcoming space beyond home (first place) and work (second place), where people can gather, connect, and unwind. It fosters conversation, creativity, and a sense of belonging—whether it’s a cozy café, favorite bookstore, or a local market. In a thriving community, versatileThird Spaces are essential. These are places where neighbors become friends, ideas take shape, and people feel at home even when they’re not. Third Space Market Gorham is built on this idea, offering a thoughtfully curated selection of local snacks, gifts, and specialty items in an environment that invites connection and discovery.
We’ve reserved a portion of our store (approx. 500 square feet) and designed it with modularity in mind. The space can transform to welcome you for remote co-working, to pop open a can with a friend, or to order in a meal from a local Gorham restaurant while you study. We don’t serve prepared food but are surrounded by professionals who do! So, yes, you can carry in. We also aim to offer the space for private gatherings (capacity to be determined before opening – cafe style seating currently holds 10-15). Our small “living room” seating area can easily convert, with screens available for use as projectors for business style meetings. [You just might have to unplug the Atari.]
We were both born and raised here in southern Maine, and our roots have been firmly planted in Gorham for more than a decade. We see the beauty of this town through the eyes of the child (Tristan) who walked past the Dahlov Ipcar murals each day at Narragansett, or the teenager (Michelle) who drove past its rolling farms to get to basketball summer camp each July. We long for the nostalgia of the communities of our past, while maintaining the convenience of the automated society we’re living in today. (Don’t we all?)
We want to help build our vision of the community, not just expect the community to bend to our will because we live here. So, when the opportunity arose for us to go beyond supporting small business, to becoming small business, we seized it. Carter’s Green Market was a staple in the Gorham community to many and the Carter family has made impact through giving back to Gorham. We feel honored to get to step into their shoes and their retail location here at 18 Elm Street.
In addition to the gathering space, we aim to offer a retail selection of health and home goods, children’s toys, novelty gifts, stationery, handcrafted items, pottery, local art, and more. We also will maintain a rotating stock of packaged foods & bakery items, locally sourced grab and go options, canned beverages and mixers, and soon a small specialized selection of beer and wine (state application in progress). If you ask us to briefly summarize our retail curation strategy we’d say, “We aim to keep it interesting.“
If you can’t find what you’re looking for here or anywhere near, just ask us to find it! Like any old general store, we’ll hop on our rotary phone and reach out to our contacts to see what we can source. Just please keep in mind it could take us a little time, because we’re serious about the rotary phone… each number takes a sec.
We hope our community-first concept, combined with carefully curated gifts and local goods, makes Third Space Market Gorham a place you’ll want to drop by often—just to see what’s up. Truly, you’re welcome to stop in just to hear the sound of a dial tone, grab a k-cup of coffee while you send an email or 10, or sneak away with the other moms for book club (I promise, we’ll tell no one you’re here.) And we hope you’ll think of us when you’re searching for a last-minute gift, a unique sauce or fresh bread, or when you just don’t don’t want to drive to a big box store.
We look forward to seeing you on April 22nd!
– Michelle & Tristan