PUTNEY — A couple who are no strangers to the lifestyle of small-town merchandising and building community will purchase the Putney General Store on Sept. 4 and plan to begin working the next day.
“We expect to achieve great things for the general store, for the town of Putney, the surrounding area and for the community at large,” said Kim Cosco, who has owned and run a general store in the Boston area for eight years with her husband, Mike.
“When we walked into the Putney General Store, we both felt like we have been in training for the past eight years to run this much bigger, but otherwise similar, store,” Kim said.
The building itself is owned by the Putney Historical Society (PHS), which acquired the property in 2008 to ensure that the space always contains Vermont's oldest general store, which has operated more or less continuously since 1796.
Kim found the ad for the Putney General Store - affectionately known locally as the “G-Store” - on Craigslist by accident, Mike said, when she originally was looking for furniture.
They have agreed to purchase the business and its assets for $120,000, Mike said, and they will bring more working capital to use for equipment upgrades, repairs, and new signs.
According to the advertisement for the business, the sale includes the inventory of groceries, wine, beer, health and beauty, basic hardware, and local products.
The five-year renewable lease for the building and equipment was advertised at $3,600 per month.
Although the couple is currently renting a two-bedroom home in Putney, their plan is to “find a good piece of land and build a net-zero energy efficient farmhouse,” Mike said. He is hoping it will be within a few miles of the store.
They have two children - a son, 21, who will be staying in Peabody, Mass., and a daughter, 18, who just started studying performing arts at the University of New Hampshire in Durham.
The couple has owned and operated West Village Provisions General Store and Eatery in Boxford, Mass., about 20 miles north of Boston.
In addition to retail experience, Kim has held other titles such as PTO president, substitute teacher and stay-at-home mom.
Mike holds a marketing management degree from Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University. He's also been a youth soccer coach and started running a farmers' market for the first four years that he ran the Massachusetts store.
“He has been the kitchen manager, creating the menus and running all aspects of the thriving restaurant,” said Kim. “He carefully trains staff to take care and put thought, and love, into what they are making.”
From Boxford to Putney
At West Village Provisions, which they have owned since 2011, the Coscos balanced the quintessential general store inventory of milk and eggs with natural groceries, and gifts from more than 20 artists, makers, and authors in the vicinity, according to the business's website.
According to a story at the time from wickedlocal.com, the couple purchased a business that was long-established but moribund, with a shuttered kitchen and half-bare shelves.
At least by the accounts of their Massachusetts customers who are wishing them luck in their new venture, the couple invigorated the store and made it a central part of the community.
“The store's core mission is to promote the health of our community,” the Coscos wrote on the store website. “We operate every aspect of the business with honesty and integrity. We mean what we say, and listen to everything you have to say.” The couple also cited the environment, buying local, and cultivating the concept of a “third place,” a location somewhere other than one's home or workspace as a destination for building local relationships and ultimately community.
Mike and Kim are selling that business to one of their employees.
In Putney, “We envision an old-fashioned general store for the 21st century,” Mike said. “We intend to intertwine modernity and tradition.”
He sees the general store - with a space that is five times the space as West Village Provisions - as a place that “will invite people to come in and take a step back from their hectic lives, finding a happy and peaceful place to get whatever it is they need, whether it's a good meal, some grocery item for later, beer for the game, a quaint Vermont experience, or just some good company.”
A music system will be added to both floors. Downstairs will include a wide range of music like jazz greats, Sinatra, Ray Charles, Elvis, the Beatles, upbeat piano tracks, and popular songs from the past 50 years. Upstairs will feature more contemporary and subtle music, said Mike.
A selection of souvenir items will be displayed near the front of the store, including maple syrup products, postcards, T-shirts, and items made in Windham County and the surrounding area.
The Coscos have a plan to “to extinguish the $35,000-per-year electric bill.” Mike said they are seeking state and federal approval to install a small hydro power plant behind the store near Sacketts Brook. “Vermont has good programs to help us get through the administrative hurdles,” he said.
A new gift shop
On the second floor, vacant since the closing of a pharmacy operated by a previous owner, Jim Heal, Kim plans to start the new Phoenix Gifts upstairs from scratch.
The casual gift shop upstairs will sell locally crafted goods, Vermont and New England made products and unique, interesting items sourced from around the world like soaps, lotions, candles, local art, jewelry, clothing, home decor, toys, candy, books, greeting cards and gifts for all occasions with a product mix that shifts seasonally for holidays, according to the Coscos.
With a liberal arts degree and a resume including several retail management positions, the longest as manager of the largest Hallmark Gold Crown Store in New England, Kim says she chooses products that speak to her personally, whether it's locally made, eco-friendly, fair trade, or just plain beautiful, fun, or delicious.
The gift shop's name pays homage to the store's history of rising from the ashes.
The second floor was destroyed by an electrical fire in 2008, and in 2009, as the Historical Society was nearing the end of renovations from that blaze and negotiating with potential proprietors to lease the space for the store, a second blaze burned the iconic store to the ground. The cause of the fire was determined to be arson, and no one has been charged with the crime.
The store, rebuilt from the ground up, reopened in 2010.
On Aug. 28, the Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation (BDCC) approved a $50,000 loan to get the space ready for the gift shop and stock it with gifts. Kim is hoping to open it during October.
Board members stepped up to keep store running
After the death of proprietor Jim Heal in 2016 and the inability of his family to keep the store open in the midst of their grief, the leadership of the Putney Historical Society scrambled to find a new tenant.
After a 3{1/2}-month closure, the store reopened in 2017, but without a tenant.
Board member Lyssa Papazian, a historic preservation consultant who had been instrumental in the initial purchase of the fire-damaged landmark and then its subsequent rebuilding, stepped up to co-manage the store.
That temporary task ended up lasting 2{1/2} years.
Papazian praises “our core staff who've been with us for years” and said that those employees will also work for the new owners, “which will be great continuity.”
She said what she will miss the most is the interaction with the customers.
“I never could have done it without Betsy,” she said, referring to the other co-manager, Betsy MacIsaac, another historical society board member.
MacIsaac said she feels a little bittersweet about the end to her 2{1/2}-year volunteer stint.
Although she really enjoyed working with Papazian and the community, she is “looking forward for the new ownership to take the store forward to bigger and better places.”
MacIsaac said she will return to her farm and family, and having a little more free time.
The town of Putney presented its 2018 Community Service Award to Papazian and MacIsaac for their roles in keeping the store alive.
Becoming more sociable
Papazian plans to return to her historic preservation consulting business that she runs from her home.
But before that happens, for the first few weeks, she plans to train the Coscos on the current store systems.
Under the new ownership, the store will start by retaining its current schedule - from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. - Mike said.
In addition to some of the other changes they discussed, the Coscos plan to create a larger seating area in the front and push the groceries to the back a little, he said, creating a more sociable area where people can see their neighbors and friends at tables when they enter.
“It's very satisfying to see strangers pull up a chair and form new relationships,” he said.
What about the “Viagra Club,” the group of men of a certain age who typically meet Saturday mornings at the store?
“Their table will stay right there,” Kim said.