It was a teary day Thursday at North Bay’s unique artists collective, Art on Main.

Members and customers were all heartbroken to hear that this beloved downtown store and gallery is closing its doors for good.

"Oh yeah I'm sad.  Sadness is saying goodbye to something.  I mean you have to realize these people are my friends.  The people in the other stores are our friends.  I don't know if people realize what a great sense of community there is downtown." said Pat Stamp, who runs Art on Main.

The non-profit artist collective was established in 2005 with about 30 founding members.  They all shared space, resources and staff for the common goal of showcasing their art to the community. 

Around 2014, with the increasing popularity of online shopping for art, sales slowed down considerably, and the collective had to rely on renting the space to the film industry to keep afloat.

 Fast forward to 2017, and the money has now run out.

"To, kind of, leave now is very sad. I’m having a teary moment here." said member Terryl Ryan.

Jerry Slote has been shopping at the store since it first opened its doors, and the news of the closing has hit him hard.

"We've got such artisans in this whole area, so many gifted people, and they produce art work that moves you." said Slote.

Art on Main will officially close its doors on December 30th.  Management is hoping other local downtown stores will take in the work of some of the artists that will no longer have a home for displaying their work.