Aundrea “Andie” Martin has always appreciated Amish culture and the products created through Amish practices.
Martin, from the West Lebanon neighborhood of Young Township, Indiana County, has embarked on a mission to bring Amish creations to a larger population.
She’s doing it through her store, The Dutchman Amish Market in Vandergrift.
“I love everything Amish,” said Martin, 47. “The people, the products, their strictness of their faith and adherence to everything.”
The products
Martin was introduced to Amish baked goods, namely the community’s doughnuts, when she moved back to the area from South Carolina in 2023.
Martin and her husband, Dan, opened the shop on Dec. 16. Martin said it took about nine months to buy the building, and they worked another month straight to fix it up in time to meet holiday shopping demands. Dan also did most of the shop’s remodeling before opening day.
“Every week we grow a little bit more and a little bit more,” Martin said.
Martin orders most of her products from Amish communities in the area. The rest comes from local businesses and farms. Martin began making connections for her store’s stock when she visited Lancaster in 2024.
“We really enjoy the area out there, the people there, and their businesses and products,” Martin said. “That’s where I got familiar with all of this.”
She met makers who produce salves and quilted pillows known as quillows.
The baked goods are picked up fresh at 5:30 each morning from an Amish baker in Belsano, Ada Saddler of Shadyside Kitchen, in time for Dutchman’s 7 a.m. daily opening. The store sells cinnamon rolls, homemade bread, banana bread and fried pies.
“What I couldn’t source from the Amish, I source locally,” Martin said.
She stocks raw milk and eggs from Le-Ara Farm in Worthington, Red Ribbon soda pop from Natrona Bottling in Harrison and tallow products from Kasanicky Farm in Gilpin, among other locally produced products. She said another advantage of sourcing local and Amish products is the freshness of the foods.
“A lot of what you’ll see here is just simple,” Martin said. “Simple, pure, Amish.”
The store also features soaps, cheeses, candy sticks, fudge and meats.
“I wanted to have a variety,” Martin said. “I wanted local. I wanted the quality to be equally as good as what we could expect from the Amish.”
Offering a variety of products in her store was also extremely important to Martin when creating the shop.
“I wanted the general store feel — the old country general store where you could come in and get a little bit of everything,” she said.
People can have the staples with the milk, eggs and butter and then treat themselves to sweets or artwork. Local artists sell their wares in the store, including pottery.
As the shop grows, Martin plans to expand product offerings and possibly offer different workshops for customers.
The people
The Dutchman is not a one-woman show.
April Smith, 36, is Martin’s only employee. The Leechburg resident has been working at the store since its opening.
Smith is deaf, and Martin communicates with her through sign language.
Translated through Martin, Smith said she enjoys working at the shop because it’s not stressful.
She wears a few hats at the shop, helping with sales, stocking shelves and cleaning them, among other duties.
Martin’s husband, Dan, 48, also helps out at the shop. An industrial electrician full time, he works at the shop on Saturdays. He enjoys interacting with the store’s customers.
“I like the location,” he said. “The neighbors have been really supportive. … Not just residential, but other businesses, too.”
A nurse by trade, Martin had to leave the profession after encountering health complications in 2024. The Dutchman Amish Market is her first business venture. Her favorite part of owning a business, she said, is the community.
Once word got out that she was opening a shop in what used to be the home of River Road 6 Packs, residents reached out to voice their excitement, she said. Martin’s uncle used to work in the building when it was originally built as a railroad repair shop.
Martin is happy to be able to make people’s days brighter when they come to the shop.
“I get to hand out a little bit of joy every day,” she said.