Every November, the shops that line downtownTurlock’s streets transform their interiors into holiday storefronts in anticipation for Christmas shoppers. Typically known as the holiday open house, the Downtown Turlock Merchant Alliance has switched things up this year, with 13 businesses coming together for a Shop the Blocks event that will celebrate the quickly-approaching holidays and their retail cheer.

“Customers would come in and tell us that we should all have our holiday open houses on the same day,” said Candace Gonsalves of Farm House. “So we said, ‘Let’s create something really amazing for our shoppers.”

Downtown Turlock’s most loyal supporters, the shoppers, will be treated to a limousine bus shuttle during Shop the Blocks, complete with champagne and a hostess made possible through donations from each participating business. The limousine bus will be operating on a set loop, traveling to each of the businesses and shoppers are free to hop on and off as they please.

Businesses taking part in Shop the Blocks include Farm House, Rustic Metal Designs (inside of Farm House), Glitz Fine Clothing, Emporium, Back Home Furniture and Décor, Treasure Hunters, Rustic Roots, OneSixteen Bijou, Envy Fine Clothing, Shabby Addy, Bella Forte, Ooolala Bellissimo, Joy Dravecky Jewelry and Needful Things.

“From the very beginning I’ve said we should all work together,” said Gonsalves, who is a member of DTMA. “The more we can promote each other, the more we promote downtown Turlock and promote ourselves.”

Each store will be holding individual promotions during the Shop the Block event said Gonsalves, such as the “moolah” store credit Farm House will be giving to shoppers. Participating businesses also donated gift cards as prizes for a raffle, which shoppers can enter at each store. The more stores a shopper enters, the more opportunities he or she will have to win either a small prize or the grand prize – gift cards to all of the participating businesses.

Gonsalves believes that not only does the Shop the Blocks event bring the downtown businesses together, but also will kick start holiday cheer in downtown Turlock.

“All of the shops downtown do a great job of really transforming their space to get people in the holiday spirit,” said Gonsalves. “It’s amazing to me to see that Turlock is now a destination place, and for us to keep it that way means we have to constantly be working together.”

Shop the Blocks will take place from noon to 5 p.m. on Nov. 6.