Hundreds of shoppers came downtown Saturday to shop in retail spaces that were vacant earlier in the week.

They’re not vacant now, though, as the (Re)Stored pop-up shop event, a partnership between Retail Alliance and the Suffolk Department of Economic Development, has brought in nearly 30 retailers to see what it’s like to have a brick-and-mortar store — perhaps in Suffolk.

“I’ve enjoyed being here today,” said Kim Skeeter, who was showing off a variety of handcrafted jewelry in the vacant space that was formerly the Salvation Army thrift store on West Washington Street. She said a lot of people seemed excited and energized because of the event. “We’ve had good traffic.”

Skeeter is a Suffolk resident who happened to learn about the opportunity on Facebook. Her business currently resides online only, but she wouldn’t mind having a physical location if it grew enough to pay for the overhead.

“I think it’s a great idea,” she said. “My hope would be to have a storefront at some point.”

Some of the merchants have storefronts in other cities, such as Pixie Treasures Celtic Shoppe in Virginia Beach.

“It’s been an enjoyable day,” said the kilt-clad Bob Rider, who set up his merchandise in the first floor of the Professional Building on the corner of Main and Washington streets.

He applauded city personnel and police officers who stopped by just to say hello. And they weren’t the only ones.

“We’ve had a lot of foot traffic,” he added.

Ann Davies and her daughter, Margaret Davies, were among the shoppers.

“We were very curious to see what it was all about,” Ann Davies said. “We saw the banner at the farmers’ market and realized it was this weekend.”

Davies, who lives nearby, noted it was “nice to see” so many people in downtown.

“There are tons of people, and they’re not faces I recognize, so they are probably from other cities or just greater Suffolk,” she said.

She and her daughter stopped in at the shop of Susan Ward’s Studio 32, which is located in Sunbury, N.C.

“We were very lucky to get asked to be a part of this,” Ward said. “We have done a lot of sales. It’s really been a great experience, and it’s been so well organized.”

The event continues today from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Children’s festivities and live music also are available for downtown visitors, and it’s the last day to catch some of the specials during Suffolk Restaurant Week.

The merchants are set up in the following buildings:

• The Professional Building, first floor, 100 N. Main St.
• The former Shooting Star Gallery, 118 N. Main St.
• The former Oysterette, 177 N. Main St.
• The former Salvation Army thrift store, 157 W. Washington St.
• The former A.J. Gator’s, 154 W. Washington St.
• 119 E. Washington St.