81 Market: Where patrons can sip while they shop

Matthew Day

Staff

November 10, 2025

WAUPACA COUNTY – There’s quite a lot going on inside Waupaca’s 81 Market, so much so, Owner Lori Sasse said, that its explanation of scope requires several “slashes.” 

“It is a gourmet food/clothing/home decor/liquor store – with a full bar inside,” she said. 

Varied as it may seem, Sasse said the market’s mix of unique gifts, home goods and spirits are carefully cultivated, and the shopping experience is blended all the better with a freshly poured beverage. 

As the store enters the final stretch of its fifth season – “81 Market is open from Memorial Day until Christmas Eve” – she said shoppers have an even more sensible way to enjoy the store: a newly built indoor seating area. 

“We put in an actual, legit bar that wasn’t just a counter to walk up to and order a drink and walk around and shop, but you can actually sit down [and] meet a friend,” she said. “There we have bistro tables – tables to play a game of cribbage, watch the [Green Bay] Packers game, whatever.” 

Sasse said the addition – which included an upgraded outdoor patio – was completed at the end of September, shortly thereafter earning a “Looking Good!” recognition from ambassadors of the Waupaca Area Chamber of Commerce. 

Needed additions

Though visitors have long appreciated 81 Market’s merchandise, beverages, camaraderie and store soundtrack of Frank Sinatra, Johnny Mercer and other 1940s and ’50s music, Sasse said she noticed as the weather cooled down, the outdoor patio wasn’t cutting it. 

“When it got cold, I found my customers were [inside] upstairs, sitting on my floor,” she said. “Like, if a group of four couples came in, there was nowhere to sit, so they’re sitting on the floor around a couch and a couple chairs, having their bloody Marys on a Sunday morning. And I thought, ‘Okay, this isn’t going to work. We need to do something for y’all to give you more space.’” 

After finding a suitable contractor in September of 2024 to renovate the indoor seating as well as the patio, Sasse said she had already removed the building’s old deck when, due to snags and unceremonious pricing revisions, she ended her agreement with that contractor in March. 

Crediting the “amazing” Waupaca business community, she said she was able to contract a new team to finish the work. 

From carpentry to concrete, plumbing, electrical work and more, Sasse said she was in awe at the way the companies fit 81 Market into their busy schedules on short notice. 

“That just doesn’t happen,” she said. “You know how contractors’ schedules are – they’re super tight, they’ve got their year planned – and from my plumber to my electrician, they all said, ‘We’re going to make this happen for you.’ How cool is that?” 

With the way the addition came together, Sasse said the “Looking Good!” acknowledgement from the Waupaca chamber was extra special – “it means a lot.” 

“This whole project – and this whole business plan – is about these relationships,” she said.

‘A gathering spot’

Sasse said she purchased the property at N2728 County Road QQ in Waupaca more than five years ago. 

Before she turned it into Market 81, she said the building served as a gift and clothing store geared toward women. 

Located in the shop-filled King district, Sasse said she owned the business next door, Chain Link, a Waupaca-themed products and apparel producer. 

When the gift shop owner called to let her know she was retiring and planning to sell her building, Sasse said she asked if she could first consider buying it – even though she didn’t know what she might do with it. 

“I said, ‘Don’t put that [for-sale] sign up – let me come talk to you,’” she said. “So, I developed a business plan – that was in 2020 during COVID-19 – and presented at the Town of Farmington.” 

The town, Sasse said, “loved the business plan” for 81 Market as “a gathering spot, where it’s a mercantile, yet you can have a cocktail while you’re shopping,” and approved the plan, as well as the liquor license. 

Though she said she “refined” the building’s bare, white walls when she took it over, its outdoor patio was already “beautiful” and begging to be filled with friendly visitors. 

The market’s subsequent success, Sasse said, has been sustained by a mix of tourists and area residents, with the latter representing the majority. 

“I would say at least 75% of my customer base is local, [from] within 50 miles of Waupaca,” she said.

Intriguing products, potables 

Per its website (the81market.wordpress.com), the market – pronounced “eight-one,” nodding to its 54981 ZIP code – carries a host of products for the kitchen and liquor cabinet, including olive oils, balsamic vinegars, gourmet foods, specialty liquors, wines, jams, dips, pasta, snacks and more. 

The website further states the store features an array of decorative home goods and clothing, from fashionable garments to fun, local-inspired shirts to summer essentials like beach towels, swimsuits, bags, hats and sandals. 

“We don’t carry anything in our store that I don’t believe in, or I don’t think is going to be a good addition to your household,” Sasse said. “I’m not going to sell something just to make a buck. I’m selling it because I think it’s awesome, and I think it’ll add to your life in some way, shape or form.” 

The majority of the store’s inventory, she said, is produced in Wisconsin. 

“It makes the state that much stronger and better when you have retailers and wholesalers working together in Wisconsin,” she said. “I mean, that’s just Midwest proud, right?” 

Sasse said the store’s demographic includes shoppers in “their 20s all the way up to their 60s and 70s.” 

She said the warm sense of community at 81 Market has fostered an open forum of suggestions for new products, with customers and staff constantly encouraged to add ideas to Sasse’s own research.

“I have customers coming in saying, ‘Hey, I was in Door County, and they have these really cool crackers, but we can’t get them anywhere around here – do you think you could get them?’” she said. “I’ll try to get what I can for my people.” 

The process is similar, Sasse said, for items trending on social media. 

Whether she personally discovers a given product, it is highly recommended/sought by customers or it was sent to 81 Market as a sample from the company, Sasse said all products are thoroughly vetted by the time they hit the store’s shelves. 

“It’s very rare that we have a complete flop,” she said. 

Customers, Sasse said, are likewise largely able to sample the market’s food and drinks before purchasing. 

“I would say 90% of our products that we carry, we sample, so people can try before they buy,” she said. “Some people would say, ‘Well, that’s dumb – what about your profit margins?’ Well, no, because you actually sell more once people try something [and feel] like, ‘Oh, my gosh, that’s so good.’”

Sasse said the market’s ever-changing inventory makes it an exciting visit even for regulars. 

“If you come in once a month, it will never look the same,” she said. “We’re always rotating through a product. Every week we get new products.” 

Though her store is full of interesting inventory, Sasse said her favorite part of 81 Market is the people – customers and staff – all of whom she considers friends. 

From providing the perfect gift for an occasion, celebrating a great day or cheering someone up on a bad day, she said she relishes the chance to “meet [everyone] where they’re at and just be there for them, so they will leave happier than when they walked in.” 

“Knowing we’re making a difference in people’s lives a little bit at a time – that’s enough for me,” she said. 

Charity, fun in 81 

Sasse said 81 Market fully embraces its role as a member of the community by giving back however possible and donating funds from events she hosts. 

Her second-largest event, she said, is held annually the day before Labor Day – Slider Sunday – featuring grass-fed beef from Waupaca producer Whitetail Valley Dairy and Beef. 

“We grill up sliders for the tops of the bloody Marys, we have live music and then we donate all the funds to the K-9 unit here in Waupaca County,” she said. 

Sasse said the largest event to which she contributes is the 715 Harvest Fest, an annual Waupaca event featuring vendors and entertainment. 

“This year, [from 715 Harvest Fest proceeds], we wrote out a check for $20,000 to the Waupaca County Dive Team,” she said. 

Another fun event held at 81 Market three times a year, Sasse said, is Ladies Night. 

“It’s ladies only, and it’s special sales and shopping,” she said. “I have one coming up Nov. 21, the night before the opening of deer-hunting [season]. The theme is ‘Blaze Orange is the New Black.’” 

Whether for charity or simply for fun, Sasse – who still runs Chain Link, in addition to working another full-time job – said she is heavily devoted to contributing to the community. 

“Thanksgiving will be my first day off – all my shops are closed,” she said. 

Though she traditionally closes 81 Market through winter and early spring, Sasse said with the new renovations, she is considering opening for select pop-up events, tastings and the like. 

It’s “completely amazing,” she said, to be a part of and give her time to Waupaca. 

“I think it is the best small town in the state,” she said, “and if it weren’t for these people supporting this business, along with my staff and my friends who support me, there’s no way that this would be possible.” 

The 81 Market is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday through Saturday (plus Wednesdays in the summer) and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays.

Visit the aforementioned website or find 81 Market on social media for more information.