The first thing children find inside 816 Front Street is the birds. Two parakeets, Ivy and Ink, live at Books and Botanicals, and owner Erica Bordwell told the Brainerd Dispatch that the birds are where young visitors head first. The coffee and tea are free, there's a couch, and soft music plays. She designed the space to feel like home, with careful lighting, and shoppers told her it felt calm inside.
That shop opened August 8. Over the next ten weeks, the places to buy a Brainerd Lakes gift spread out. Along Highway 210 in Baxter, most of the new openings were national brands. Downtown Brainerd added small, owner-run shops in older buildings. And the one store downtown that sold Minnesota and Brainerd souvenirs under a single roof announced it would close and send its product lines to several neighbors. If you're making a holiday gift run in 2026, that means more stops on foot downtown and fewer at one counter.
What opened along Highway 210 this fall
Here's what changed on the Baxter side, since most residents drive past it daily.
- 7 Brew, a drive-through coffee and beverage stand, opened Monday, Oct. 19, on Fairview Drive in front of Westgate Mall.
- Panera Bread opened the same day in a 3,128-square-foot restaurant by Costco, off Elder Drive just off Highway 210.
- Ollie's Bargain Outlet held its grand opening Wednesday, Oct. 28, inside Westgate Mall beside Ashley Furniture, in part of the former JoAnn Fabrics space. The Dispatch reported that a line of shoppers was waiting for the doors to open.
- Chick-fil-A is on the way. Demolition began Oct. 27 at the former Bill's Indoor Shooting Range site off Excelsior Road, and the Dispatch says the developers plan to open in 2027.
These openings make holiday errands quicker, and a coffee on Fairview before a Westgate stop is easy now. The downtown openings this season were a different kind of business. Each one is a single owner's project, in a building with a past, selling things you won't find in a chain store's inventory.
Three downtown storefronts, three older buildings
Books and Botanicals, 816 Front Street. Bordwell says she spotted the brick-fronted building with its large windows on Front Street and knew it would make a perfect little bookstore. She had wanted to open one since she was a girl. She also teaches fourth grade at Baxter Elementary School. The shelves carry romance, romantasy, mysteries, thrillers, a children's section with "Where the Wild Things Are" art on the walls, and plants and gifts, and she plans to add more Minnesota authors. The store's website lists hours of 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends.
Here's how she described the shop to the Brainerd Dispatch:
"It's about community. It's about meeting people. It's about coming in and having the coffee and the tea that is complimentary and having a seat on the couch and visiting."
Dal Furniture and Restoration, South Eighth Street. Dal opened its storefront Thursday, Oct. 1, after two years of working out of a garage. The building was remodeled and repainted. It was previously home to Fusion Jewelry Studio. According to the Dispatch, the shop features refurbished and restored furniture, antiques, vintage pieces, home décor, rugs, "and plenty of things you might not expect to find." If you need a bigger present, such as a restored side table for the cabin or a rug for the entry before guests arrive, this is the place on the list.
The Iron Horse, South Sixth Street. The Iron Horse announced it would offer home décor, furniture and gifts, and scheduled its grand opening for Oct. 17 in the historic First National Bank building. The name is a nod to the nickname for early train locomotives and to the Northern Pacific Railroad's role in Brainerd's founding. In a Facebook post quoted by the Dispatch, the owners said the name also honors the real horses that hauled equipment and broke ground before the railroad. Design Consign, which held the building from 2012 until a retirement sale this past summer, was the previous tenant.
All three are in buildings Brainerd residents have walked past for years. The Iron Horse follows a 14-year local tenant, and Dal grew out of a garage.
Where the Minnesota gift shelf went
This change matters most if you buy holiday gifts for people who live out of state.
For years, the Visit Brainerd Gift Store on South Seventh Street was the easy answer for Minnesota-themed and Brainerd-themed gifts and apparel. It also served as the visitor information center. In August, the store announced it would close Aug. 22, 2026. The sign in its window thanked customers for "6.75 wonderful years in Downtown Brainerd."
The merchandise didn't disappear. Per the Dispatch's report, some of the Minnesota-themed lines were going to other shops:
- The Old Open Window, downtown Brainerd
- The 218 Urban Nest, downtown Brainerd
- Little Threads Kidswear Boutique, downtown Brainerd
- Christmas Point, in Baxter
Visit Brainerd Baxter's marketing office and visitor information services were moving to 14410 Golf Course Drive in Baxter, in the building with Panache Salon and Day Spa. Brainerd History Group walks are now by appointment only, and the Save the Water Tower merchandise once sold in the gift store will turn up at community events.
This change explains why downtown is worth the walk this year. The Minnesota sweatshirt for a cousin in Phoenix and the Brainerd mug for a neighbor who moved away used to be one stop. Now they're spread across three downtown storefronts and a Baxter shop. That spread is also why these new independent shops connect with each other. Books and Botanicals, Dal and The Iron Horse sit within a few blocks of the stores that picked up the souvenir lines, so one downtown parking spot can cover most of a gift list.
One way to run the list on foot
Here's how we'd plan a downtown Saturday with the stores above.
- Start on Front Street at Books and Botanicals when it opens at 10 a.m. Grab the free coffee, let the kids find Ivy and Ink, and pick up books for readers on your list.
- Head to South Sixth Street and the historic First National Bank building, the space The Iron Horse announced for décor, furniture and gifts.
- Stop at South Seventh Street. The former Visit Brainerd storefront is a good reminder to visit the shops that now carry the Minnesota-themed lines.
- Finish on South Eighth Street at Dal Furniture and Restoration for the one-of-a-kind or bigger pieces.
- Save Christmas Point for the Baxter leg of the day, when you're already out near Highway 210.
Mark December 11 and 12
There's one more stop for the calendar, about a month out from today. The Off the Rails Christmas Market runs Friday, Dec. 11, at 9 a.m. through Saturday, Dec. 12, at 3 p.m., at the historic Northern Pacific Center, 1511 Northern Pacific Road in Brainerd. The Brainerd Lakes Chamber listing describes booths of handmade crafts, textiles, original artwork, home décor, gourmet treats, kitchenware and clothing from artisans and small businesses across Minnesota, with live music, food and drinks.
The historic Northern Pacific Center carries the name of the same railroad The Iron Horse honored when it chose its name on South Sixth Street. If you start on Front Street in November and finish at the Northern Pacific Center in December, most of a holiday list can be bought within a short drive of where Brainerd got its start.
If family is coming up to the lake for the holidays and you want a downtown morning that feels local, Laura and Brandon at the Pederson Team are happy to share the stops we'd make and the shops worth a detour. Schedule a Lakeside Consultation, and we'll talk about the season ahead, both on the water and off it.
