About an hour north of Pittsburgh is a borough that’s been transformed by a retail bonanza.

At first glance, Volant might look like every other town in rural Western Pennsylvania. But take a quick drive down Main Street and you’ll happen upon restaurants, wineries and shops filled with extravagant goods. Antiques, homemade crafts, decor and more holiday gift-giving options are all within a single five-minute walk.

Upon driving in, you’ll likely notice Volant Mills — a former gristmill closed in the early 1960s that used running water from the nearby Neshannock Creek.

“It sat empty until approximately 1980, when a gentleman named Bill Kingery purchased it and converted it into a retail shop,” said Cheryl Geidner, manager of Volant Mills.

At the time, there were only a few other retail

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