The Barrel Antique Mall — Attraction in Springfield

Very nice antique store with a large variety of merchandise. The pricing is a little on the high side considering it is located in Springfield IL and not a large major city like Chicago or St Louis. We have visited the shop on several occasions. The first time I was looking for sterling silverware. When I asked the older lady at the counter for some pricing she told me they didn’t have any silver. When I pointed out that they did have some in the case she said that was sold. My wife and I could tell she was lying and that the vendor had not yet raised the price due to silver costs going up and the staff was covering for them. The next time we were in the shop the silverware was still there with a clear price tag on it. I seemed they were conspiring for a certain unknown person who wanted to “bogart” or stockpile silver for themselves. The third and last time we will ever visit the shop, my wife found a simple metal chair with cushion that she wanted a price on. There was no tag so the staff called the vendor and got a price. We were going to purchase the item but when we went to confirm the price at check out, my wife found the posted sale tag. When confirming whether they were $25 or $125 the staff bid up the items with the vendor on the phone with us present. The vendor changed her mind based on the encouragement of the staff. The pair of chairs were worth $25 but not $125 and we left very displeased and felt taken again, without ever having bought any of the items in question. The staff questioned whether the $1 cushion came with the chair. Clearly it did. We will not return and felt that the “bait -n- switch” was a trend. Not a good way to get...

This antique mall is off the beaten path, right next to the VA and State Trooper hall behind Days Inn. Love their parking, which ensures handicap and mall customers have parking spaces. The mall is well organized and clean, and all the booths, along with cases, are visually appealing. By that, I mean it's not overcrowded and easy access for walking in and out. Big shout out to the warm and welcoming ladies at the front counter, so sweet and nice compared to some places. Don't even greet you. Will stop by again when I'm up in that area as there are plenty of treasures...

Really cool stuff but wow the customer service needs some help. I wanted to buy a few items but it was 15 minutes from 5:30 (closing time) and the sales staff didn’t seem to want to be bothered. As soon as my husband and I came in at 5 the two ladies at the front said “You know we close at 5:30 right? That is prompt!” It was only as we were walking out the door that they seemed to care enough to ask if we needed any help looking for anything....