It's the holidays: Shop late in Millerton

 

 

MILLERTON — There are plenty of reasons people head to Millerton to shop for Christmas — the variety of stores, the unusual items
available, the friendly shop owners, the quaint village atmosphere. Now there’s one more reason to add to the list: Businesses are staying open later through the holiday season. In years past, the village has held a single Shop Late Night.

This year, "The merchants got together and decided to try and stay open beyond normal business hours, beyond 5 o’clock," 7 Dutchess co-owner Mimi Harney said. "It’s to offer working people time to shop after work through the holidays."

It’s also a way to make the shopping experience more special. Most participating stores are offering something extra to their customers: cider, wine, sweet treats, etc., to enjoy while making decisions about what to buy for whom. Some stores are also offering discounts.

"It’s a way to offer something fun and kind of have a party through town," Harney said, adding that there will now be something new added to the Shop Late nights that have happened in the village in the past.

"Now many of the stores will also be staying open Friday and Saturday until 6 or 7 both nights."

As for Harney’s 7 Dutchess, she said her store will "stay open as long as it needs to while people are shopping" to find what they need. And just maybe, she said, merchants will see enough of an increase in business to consider extending their hours even after the holidays are over.

"We’re learning from the veterans, Terni’s, Saperstein’s, the Oblongs, they all stay open past 5 p.m., their normal business hours are beyond 5," Harney said. "Basically as a town we have people who want to come to shop after five in general. Shop Late is part of that push."

Meanwhile, the addition of Fridays in conjunction with the weekly Shop Late Saturdays is something Kamilla Najdek of Kamilla’s Floral Design thinks the village will benefit from this holiday season.

"Some of the merchants suggested that Fridays are a better day for staying open later, and also if people have plans and they can’t make it Friday, but can come Saturday, or vice versa, we want to try to make it convenient for them and to accommodate as many people as possible," she said. "We [the Millerton Merchants and Business Group] would like to hear people’s feedback, to know what people want or like."

So far, Najdek said her sense is that the marketing strategy has been working pretty well.

"I see new people every day," she said. "There’s something about Millerton. I think a lot of the merchants and businesses are very friendly, so people love to come and socialize and get great service. The stores all have their own personalities."

Even in the face of the economic downturn, Harney said she’s hopeful Millerton merchants will survive the financial challenges now facing so many.

"I think it’s been OK," she said. "Although it could be busier. Because of the economy I think people have been shopping more carefully, but I think it’s OK.

"I think a few of us can report some decent sales," she added. "We’ve been hoping for bigger weekends, but there hasn’t been a rush of people, although some have appreciated the later hours. I think it’s something that has to catch on and grow. But most think it’s worth the effort and are happy we’ve extended our hours."

The Shop Late nights will keep stores open until 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays through Dec. 27.

Latest News

Cycling season: A roundup of our region’s rentals and where to ride them

Cyclists head south on the rail trail from Copake Falls.

Alec Linden

After a shaky start, summer has well and truly descended upon the Litchfield, Berkshire and Taconic hills, and there is no better way to get out and enjoy long-awaited good weather than on two wheels. Below, find a brief guide for those who feel the pull of the rail trail, but have yet to purchase their own ten-speed. Temporary rides are available in the tri-corner region, and their purveyors are eager to get residents of all ages, abilities and inclinations out into the open road (or bike path).

For those lucky enough to already possess their own bike, perhaps the routes described will inspire a new way to spend a Sunday afternoon. For more, visit lakevillejournal.com/tag/bike-route to check out two ride-guides from local cyclists that will appeal to enthusiasts of many levels looking for a varied trip through the region’s stunning summer scenery.

Keep ReadingShow less
A trip to The Clark to find ‘A Room of Her Own’

Gluck, Medallion (You/We), 1936, oil on canvas. Ömer Koç Collection.

© 2025 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / DACS, London

Provided

‘A Room of Her Own,” the exhibition of the art of twenty-five women artists working in Great Britain between the last half of the Victorian Era and the end of WWII at The Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts,is best understood as a case study in what it took for women artists to gain a foothold in the male-dominated art world. The 87 wildly variegated works of art range from paintings, drawings and prints, to ceramics, stained glass and the decorative arts, with artistic styles ranging from the Pre-Raphaelites to Cubist-style modernists.

Curator Alexis Goodwin’s starting point is Virginia Wolfe’s famous 1929 essay, “A Room of One’s Own,” which argues that for women to write fiction, they first need to have their own physical space in which to write. The proposition seems close to self-evident, but when women were mostly confined to the roles of wife and mother, it was revolutionary. Goodwin applies Wolfe’s idea about women writers to women visual artists, arguing that as was the case with writers, they needed their own physical spaces before they could make art. Although some artists in the exhibition did this by carving out corners within their homes, the more driven and financially independent set up art studios outside their homes. Interestingly, only 7 of the 25 women had children.

Keep ReadingShow less
Bringing Du Bois home: a tribute in bronze
Sculptor Richard Blake in his studio at work on his sculpture of W.E.B. Du Bois.
Provided
“I believe in Liberty for all men: the space to stretch their arms and their souls, the right to breathe and the right to vote, the freedom to choose their friends, enjoy the sunshine, and ride on the railroads, uncursed by color; thinking, dreaming, working as they will in a kingdom of beauty and love.” —W.E.B. Du Bois

On Saturday, July 19, a life-sized bronze sculpture of W.E.B. Du Bois will be unveiled at 2 p.m. in front of the Mason Public Library on Main Street in Du Bois’ hometown of Great Barrington, Massachusetts.

All are welcome to attend this free public event, the highlight of a weekend-long celebration. Speakers include former Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, Pulitzer-prize winning biographer of Du Bois David Levering Lewis, ,\and Imari K. Paris Jeffries from Embrace Boston whose mission is, “To dismantle structural racism through our work at the intersection of arts, culture, community, research and policy.”

Keep ReadingShow less
The Bad Cinema desk goes international

I’m confused! I look a little like Vincent Price, but I sound nothing like him! And why is that tree trying to eat my wife?

Provided

Gerardo De Leon and Eddie Romero, two major names in the Filipino film world, made four “Blood Island” films between them. The first was released in 1959 and is a modest but stylish black and white horror movie. The remaining three were made a decade-plus later, and are properly schlocky.

The whole shebang is now available in a slipcased set from Severin Films.

Keep ReadingShow less