York Corner
Although there were still haunting vestiges of snow here and there last Sunday, all the cars lined up outside of Flo's at noon once again were yet another sign of spring.
But we weren't at Flo's. We were, instead, diagonally across the street on Mountain Road, at Cottage Home, where we found proprietors Judy and David Brown both present and graciously willing to answer all our questions.
One of the first of those had to do with when they'd bought the place - and we were a little shocked to hear the answer: 2002. We'd interviewed Paul Mazgelis and Roland Labrie before that, when they were residents there and Roland was selling painted furniture out of the shop he'd carved out of the barn attached to the house, but we hadn't been back since, so it was clear that we had some catching up to do.
Judy and David began by offering us a very professionally executed glossy flyer on the front page of which the business is described as offering "Distinctive Furnishings, Design & Accents." That means, we discovered, everything from tables, chair, sofas and cabinets, to lamps, artwork, pillows, pottery, glassware, soaps, clocks, statuary, flatware, rugs and much more, all in profuse variety, with even more variety available in colors that can be custom-ordered.
But the Browns also offer services: "A full range of interior design support," their flyer reads, including not only "the perfect accessory for a living-room corner" and "personalized design ideas for a bedroom," but "complete decorating services for all your needs," from "In-Home Consultation" through "Color Scheme Planning" and "Room Planning" to delivery and installation.
And sometimes people do come to Cottage Home, Judy told us, not only for her decorator's eye but for everything needed to decorate a home, "right down," she said, "to the cheese spreader."
The "Cottage" in the business' title, she and David told us, is the term for what's "in" in décor these days. Designed to replicate the relaxed and casual atmosphere of a summer cottage, it entails lots of white or light and airy colors while emphasizing ease of care and comfort - though some of its designs, the Browns added, "might be fairly sophisticated."
"'Cottage' has replaced 'Country'," Judy said, where "country" means darker colors and a leaning toward the primitive.
That concentration helps narrow the focus of their business, we could see, though it was also clear that their inventory remained extensive enough to appeal to a pretty wide range of tastes.
When we asked what backgrounds they'd brought to this enterprise, the Browns reported that neither had had experience in retail trade.
David had, however, been vice president and general manager for several companies that make processing equipment - two Swedish firms and one U.S. one, for a total of 22 years - and, in that capacity, had traveled, regularly, all over the world.
During that travel time, Judy's job was tending the Browns' three children, who are now ages 22, 27 and 30 - and she laughed on Sunday about how David's earlier frequent absences were probably contributing to their being able to work together closely every day now.
Judy had grown up in Cleveland, they told us when we asked, and David, in Pittsburgh, and they'd met in college at Case Western Reserve. They'd spent most of their married life in the Philadelphia area, they said, then five years in Atlanta prior to coming to York.
Why this business, in this spot - and why now?
"It was time to do something else," David said, explaining that the new business did not represent a retirement yet but a change. He added, "We'd always wanted to live up on the coast here, and there was no other easy way to do that except this."
They researched various business options, they reported, before making the move - a printing franchise and a maid service among them - but settled on the decorating challenge because "Judy had done a lot of decorating and had always been interested in it." The Route 1 corner location, moreover, was a good one for a business, they thought, and it included on-site housing - an appealing prospect to one who'd had enough of traveling.
Adding to the locale's attraction was the fact that David has relatives on the New Hampshire coast.
Now, noting that "not having corporate politics is nice," David termed having their own business "fun and a lot of work and challenging, all at the same time."
Judy added, "It's never finished. Every day is different. At the end of every day you make a list - and it keeps going."
Much of what makes the business especially challenging, the Browns suggested, is an abundance - maybe an over-abundance? - of competition.
"The whole New England coast is very retail- rich," they said, and reported that something like 50 New England retailers had failed in the last year or so. "It's a very competitive climate," they emphasized.
Next week we'll report here a little more on some of the steps the Browns have taken to meet that competition - and on two customers we met there, two women, who taught us a bit about quite a different business
Would you believe burial vaults?
Stay tuned!
