Our Story

The Grasshopper Shop is currently owned and operated by Sierra Dietz, the daughter of Johanna Strassberg and Ken Schweikert, who founded the company in 1975. Sierra literally grew up in the business: her parents used the window in the original Belfast store as her playpen when she was a baby. After working in retail in Boston after college, Sierra returned to Maine in 2000 to help her parents run the Rockland and Ellsworth stores, and after her mother’s retirement a few years back, Sierra became owner of the Grasshopper Shop of Rockland.

The shop’s roots are in joy, nature, family and community. Johanna and Ken came to Maine after college to join the back-to-the-land movement. The couple were homesteading when they bought a newspaper stand in Belfast called The Grasshopper Shop. They began selling the kind of things coveted by their own community, young families who had come to rural Maine as part of the counterculture movement: leotards, tapestries, natural foods and more. To ensure that the store had something for everyone, there was always a variety of goods on hand, with practical items like woodstoves right next to more whimsical merchandise. This is a philosophy still followed at the Grasshopper Shop of Rockland today.

Over the decades, there have been Grasshopper Shop locations in Belfast, Camden, Bangor, Ellsworth, Searsport, Stonington and Bar Harbor, all owned and run by family members. The recent re-opening of the Belfast store occurred during the summer of 2022. The Rockland location opened in 1997 and has been proud to be a staple of the downtown shopping scene ever since.

When you come into one of the Grasshopper Shops today, you may find Sierra’s own children or husband in the store helping out. Sierra is proud to be keeping her parents’ dream of a family-oriented, entertaining shopping experience going for the next generation of Grasshopper Shop fans.

Inside Our Shop

Sierra takes pride in making sure that the Grasshopper Shop is fully stocked with the kind of items the Grasshopper’s loyal customers have come to expect: things that comfort, charm and surprise, many made locally in Maine or in the USA. Everything on our shelves is hand-selected to make life a little brighter and more joyful, and our wonderful staff are always eager to answer questions and help shoppers find just what they’re looking for. We’re even told that it smells good in here!

Contact Us

Interested in a product or item, or want to receive a heads-up on upcoming sales, events or promotions? Drop us a line by completing the contact form here and we'll get back to you!

Experience a world of simple pleasures.

Visit BELFAST

105 High Street
Belfast, ME 04915
207-218-1366

Visit Rockland

400 Main Street
Rockland, ME 04841
207-596-6156

Open Hours

M-Sat: 9:30am - 6pm
Sun: 10am - 5pm