That place is The Nordic Maid shop on Front Street — possibly the only store that would get such strange orders as one for a license plate that says “Parking for Norwegians only” to be mailed… well, to Norway.

Sisters Julie Elsner and Jeanne Snouwaert opened the store about a decade ago simply with the goal of filling a local niche for Scandinavian wares, but have since found customers as far as Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia and other parts of the world.

The pair are not strangers to Scandinavian culture: Their grandparents on the paternal side came from Sweden, and have roots in the community going back to the 1890s. Since opening the store, Snouwaert traveled to Sweden for the first time. “(The business) reawakened a lot of things,” she said.

The Nordic Maid’s selection ranges from children’s books, whimsical T-shirts and throws to crystal, teapots and carvings. Trolls and Vikings live in harmony on nearby shelves. Those looking for a fun gift with a little attitude will find T-shirts saying “What part of Uff da don’t you understand,” and owners whose dogs speak Norwegian could even buy a dog bowl that says “Wuff da!” The sisters definitely have a sense of humor.

They find their products through various ways, and say that sometimes the products find them. Much of the selection is driven by customer demand rather than the business partners’ personal tastes, however. “Sometimes we both really like something but we’ve learned over the years it doesn’t mean anything,” Elsner said. “We learned quickly to listen to our customers.”

The store accepts special orders, and the sisters are still surprised by some of the requests — like an order for about 100 etched crystal wine glasses for a Navy ship reunion, or a few dozen Viking ships for a Missouri college. They acknowledge special orders can be quite challenging, especially if they have to track down unique items. But they keep doing it. “We’re people pleasers,” Elsner said. “We don’t like to disappoint people.”

In addition to a loyal and growing customer base around Kitsap, they ship purchases all around the globe, thanks to the online store (www.nordicmaid.com). “It’s like managing two stores, except the Web is always open,” Elsner said.

The business is among the few longest-owned shops remaining downtown. The two women say the landscape has changed quite a bit, and recall a time when they had to travel to Bremerton or Seattle for many purchases, and downtown was home mostly to grocery stores, meat markets and banks. Through the years, those businesses were replaced by gift and specialty stores, restaurants and boutique shops, turning downtown into a shopping destination.

“I was amazed when I started working downtown how many people came to Poulsbo from around the country or around the world,” said Elsner, who started out in retail part-time after being hired by their older sister, Joan Carson, whose husband owned Carson Drugs. Carson had helped the two sisters started with their new venture, and other family members get enrolled to help from time to time.

Although Snouwaert had an extensive retail background, it was actually Elsner, the older of the two, who pulled her into the idea of opening a business together. Carson Drugs and another store that both carried Scandinavian products had closed, and the two felt they needed to fill the need. “We thought we’d play store for a while,” Elsner said.

More than 10 years later, they are still “playing” — and despite being in 24/7 work mode and “never farther away (from the store) than a cell phone call,” they enjoy the challenges that come with growing a successful enterprise.