Trio of Guilford Shops to Close

At the counter of his unique Quonset hut at 20 Church Street, Café Grounded business owner Andrew Speziale said he's closing the café with a bang.

"I'm not going out of business and looking like a dog with his tail between his legs," he said. "Customers and employees make a restaurant and I had the best. This isn't a defeat."

Speziale isn't alone. Joanne Basile, owner of Paws by the Green at 14 Water Street, is closing the doors to her pet-friendly supply store on Sept. 15. Deb Harris, who first started her business Cook's Kitchen in Madison and moved to a newly built building on Route 1, has placed everything on sale (including the kitchen sink) and, once the stock is gone, the store will close its doors.

For small business owners who are the sole proprietors and chief cook and bottle washer, running and keeping a successful business isn't easy, said Basile.

"We are closing due to a confluence of events," she said. "Clearly, the economy played a role in this even though our products are priced fairly."

Speziale, who purchased his business three years ago, said there were several factors that led to his closing. For one, the location and style of the business demanded more turnover.

"There were not enough customers to make it work," he said. "But I do think another business, a family run business, would do well here."

Speziale said he was the operator, owner, and executive chef.

"I tried to do it all," he said.

Harris said she could have waited things out, but "it's no fun."

"It's been a great run for seven years," Harris said. "When I opened in 2003 everyone was building, building, building. With this economy, people are not building new and they're not renovating their kitchens like before."

At the height of business, Harris employed nine full-time staff members with extras at Christmas. Recently, she had three part-time employees.

Harris, who still retains a lease on the building, said the spot is up for ideas, including housing a restaurant, café, or a specialty store.

"One of my friends told me that 'No one goes out of business like you,'" said Harris. "It's not the end, just the end of a chapter in my life."

For his future, Speziale, known to many as the guy who gives cooking lessons at the community center, will continue the lessons and add more to the lesson menu. He teaches cooking classes for kids (5th- to 8th grades) and adults. He hopes to add more classes for high-school-aged kids.

Speziale will serve breakfast and lunch at Café Grounded until Sunday, Sept. 12.

As she prepares to move out, Basile said she hopes town officials will work to keep the Green lively, maintain the focus on retail, and to "think hard before future irrevocable decisions are made."

She hopes they will focus on the Green, not to the exclusion of the rest of the town, but to ensure that it stays vibrant through tourism efforts, for example.

"Tourism should become a collaborative effort between the shop owners and the town," she said.

One avid Guilford cook feels as if a bit of the town's uniqueness will be gone forever. Suzanne Durno, who shopped at Cook's Kitchen and partook in a wintertime cooking class on soups, said the closing of the shop makes her just feel sad.

"I feel like we are losing our uniqueness as a town little by little," she said, referring to the closing of the town's small boutiques, shops, and stores.

Richard Wallace, chairman of the Economic Development Commission, said in hard economic times, everyone feels the hit, not just the business owners.

"The landlords, mortgage payers, consumers, as well as the business owners are feeling the hard effects of the economy," said Wallace.

Consumers are deferring purchases and getting back to basics, he said. The slowdown for businesses is an effect of the economy and nothing to do with what the town has done or has not done.

"This is not due to Costco coming to town," he said.