WILLIAMSVILLE — I live within a half mile of a general store.
I used to walk there when I needed milk, a newspaper, or a social interlude. But sometime last spring the store closed for renovations. The current owner, who had already transformed this backwater store into a high-end delicatessen, planned to turn it into a bistro, selling milk and news on the side.
A new septic system went in last summer, after which work halted, and the place has been shuttered ever since. There's lots of speculation about what's going to happen to the store, but with the store closed, there's nowhere for neighbors to meet informally, and the social fabric of my village has suffered.
So, when I walked into the Craftsbury General Store on a recent ski trip, I was alert to the vibrant buzz in this venerable, old place.
Notable was a display listing the ten different owners since the store's establishment in 1860. The longest tenure was 26 years; the shortest, just two. But what's most remarkable is that the store is now owned by the community.
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After running the store successfully for eight years, David Stember, its last sole proprietor, faced the twin challenges that force most little stores out of business: too little income for too much work. In a word: burnout.
Rather than give up, David approached the community for help, formed a subchapter S corporation, and sold the store to stockholders. Private investors have bought in, recapitalizing the enterprise, and implementing a series of improvements outlined in the long-range business plan developed by the Board of Directors, which now oversees the place. David, who owns 30 percent of the stock, still works in the store, as an employee.
In addition to milk and newspapers, the Craftsbury General Store has a small cooler filled with an impressive variety of fresh produce. Its grocery shelves offer a select assortment of household items and pantry staples, from ant traps to ziti. At the back is the newly remodeled, commercial kitchen, which turns out soup, sandwiches, and salads. A small meat case offers prime cuts of beef, pork, and poultry for sale.
Included in the kitchen renovation were provisions for a commercial bread bakery and plans to rent the kitchen to small-time producers of specialty items, such as jams, to be sold at the store. Indeed, the store is already filled with locally produced foodstuffs and crafts, many of which will soon be available for sale on-line. Long-range plans include opening a café on the second floor.
The store plays an important role in the local economy. With 13 employees, the Craftsbury General Store is the third largest employer in town. While the store can't yet afford health insurance for its employees, it does offer a living wage and a stock option; 10 percent of the shares are reserved for employees. It also saves its patrons a bundle on gas.
With a 40-minute drive from the nearest grocery store - even a longer trip from the nearest big-box emporiums - the store's presence benefits both local shoppers and investors. The corporation's business plan goes beyond mere convenience, however, and actively promotes not just buying locally, but buying local - food and merchandise produced on the nearby farms and homesteads. The store sells cheese from Jasper Hill Farm in Greensboro, local honey, and homemade breads, and the store is looking for one or more small producers to provide a weekly supply of eggs. There's also a plan to create a group-buying scheme, where people can purchase grass-fed beef, pork, and lamb raised right nearby.
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Stember, a small business consultant earlier in life, talks about how stewardship of this small enterprise increases the town's social capital. “The store really serves the town,” he says, and the truth is borne out as locals and tourists alike come and go, making small talk as well as small purchases in the time it takes me to enjoy my lunch.
The community involvement is palpable, even to a transient skier, like me. It reminded me of the era when Rita and Barrett Bush owned the Williamsville General Store and lived upstairs. This was back in the sixties and seventies, when the store was a friendly, local market where you could buy good beef, cheddar off the wheel, and gas for the car. More importantly, it was a place where Barrett and Rita would welcome your trade, even if it was just a nickel exchanged for a candy bar.
In our contemporary lives, where we live in our cars and expect to find huge quantities of cheap merchandise at any hour of the day, it has become unreasonable and even unrealistic to expect a family to support themselves running a small, country store. But as the price of gas rises, and as we discover that the cost we've paid in return for driving anywhere to purchase anything has been to gut our local communities and economies, the idea of the local, general store becomes more appealing.
And community ownership may turn out to be the best model for modern times. the Craftsbury General Store is leading the way and discovering that despite the difficulties and risks involved, community ownership is a model that can work. It can boost the local economy, it can help reduce our carbon footprint, and it can help revive our local community.
As Stember says with a certain amount of pride and awe, “I didn't really envision the level of excitement and participation shared ownership would inspire. The level of enthusiasm, commitment, and the willing hands-on participation we are experiencing through community ownership is well beyond anything I ever expected.”
Community ownership of our local store may be an idea whose time is here.