Proven Winners takes ownership of former Pen’s Point shopping center in DeKalb

DEKALB - Pen’s Point Market in DeKalb is under new ownership through Sycamore-based Proven Winners, which recently relocated to the shopping center at 1600 E. Lincoln Highway.

“We just started to outgrow the space that was currently being occupied,” said Marshall Dirks, director of marketing and E-Commerce for the Proven Winners, which previously had its home at 111 E. Elm St. in Sycamore. The company operates as a nursery, landscaping and gardening center, and its Sycamore location is part of its marketing arm.

Dirks said the company is not only using the space for California-based Proven Winners products, but also plans to expand its administrative operations.

In the early 70s, the building was occupied by Blain’s Farm and Fleet, which has since moved to Sycamore. Later, greeting card company Creatings moved into the space and it became known as Pen’s Point Market.

The building was purchased by Proven Winners on Sept. 17, Dirks said. The California-based Proven Winners is a family-owned business which started as a small plant distribution company in 1992 and has since grown. Dirks said the new DeKalb space will continue as its marketing arm of the plant company, with operations focused on marketing plant brands to home gardeners, a niche which has seen growth especially throughout the pandemic.

Proven Winners operates nationwide and in other countries such as Europe, South Africa and Japan. Dirks said the Sycamore branch started with five employees and has since grown to 25, as the company looks to grow within the city and keep operations local.

The remodel of the Pen’s Point Market space has allowed the company to hire local contractors, plumbers and painters, Dirks said. He said the plan is to make the space 100% solar powered, aided by a solar energy company based out of Bloomington.

All of the local businesses that are under lease currently located in the market will be staying put, Dirks said.

DeKalb City Manager Bill Nicklas said the company’s “will power should lead to more growth and development in the city of DeKalb.”

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story spelled Marshall Dirks’s last name wrong. It has been corrected as of 9:48 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021. Also, the former Sycamore address for Proven Winners was clarified for the record.