A Main Street gem prepares to close its doors

SALISBURY — When Joni Peck Ford opened her first retail store, Garlande, Ltd., on Academy Street 25 years ago this June with her then-business partner, Sandra Stevenson, there were many stores that shared the town’s commercial center with her.

Reminiscing last week at The Perfect Pear on Main Street (across from The White Hart), which she has co-owned with Heidi Beneke Main since 1998, and which they are in the process of closing down for good, Peck Ford listed some of those now-historic shops and inns: Babette’s, For the Birds, The Linen Press, Thornhill Florist, Friendship Artisans, the Knitting Store, the Village Store, the Connecticut Yankee, Shagroy Market, the Ragamont Inn and “a pillar of the community,†The White Hart Inn.

“Bud Trotta had the package store then, before he sold it to Joe Mulligan [Salisbury Package Store], and which is now Salisbury Wines,†Peck Ford said. “Thornhill is the last of those under the same ownership. It was an active business community, then and now, where one of the shops went from being Thornhill, to Chiawalla, to Walker-Lansing and is now At Home in the Country.â€

She moved Garlande, Ltd., from Academy Street to Main Street in 1989.

“Salisbury has taken so much pride in Main Street businesses, and that’s what has made it a healthy, vibrant community,†Ford said.

Her hope, and Beneke Main’s, is that a variety of downtown stores and restaurants continue to thrive well into the future, with independent ownership maintained and valued in the center of town and the merchants all working together.

“All have the same goals, and there’s strength in numbers. Lakeville and Salisbury should be seen as one, and the growth in Millerton is not a negative thing, it’s positive.â€

Those who visit and shop in the area benefit from having three centers so close to one another, giving them more variety, more choices, she believes.

“There are so many wonderful businesses here now, and they take great pride in presenting themselves. And even with these businesses, it’s stayed rural and picturesque, it hasn’t become urbanized, with corporate ownership.â€

Beneke Main and Peck Ford have no regrets.

“We had a great run and amazing customers,†Peck Ford said. “The outpouring since we announced our closing has been amazing. We’ve gotten calls, letters and e-mails of support.â€

They’ve built relationships with whole families of customers, she said, some who have children in the area prep schools, such as Hotchkiss and Salisbury School.

“It’s been years of building relationships, and it’s hard to lose that interaction. It’s bittersweet, we loved what we were doing.â€

But circumstances in each of their lives dictated that it was time for a transition, and they remain hopeful as they try to sell the building where Perfect Pear is located that it will be maintained as retail space.

They believe Salisbury is a town whose business community should flourish, with a range of shops that represent the community.

“We want it to be a destination spot,†said Beneke Main.

She and Peck Ford both noted that the small retail shops, eateries, galleries and more draw people and that, while towns have to be protected, it is possible to have a respectful growth pattern that is good for the entire region.

“Main Street should be recognized as being part of what you value as a homeowner here,†Peck Ford said. “People need to ask themselves, and then make a real choice, what they’d like Main Street to represent, and then support those businesses.â€

Online buying, often with free shipping at the holidays, affected their sales over the past couple of years, she said, but personal interaction matters. If residents want their towns to remain active and to prosper, they need to support their town’s businesses.

“We need to recognize that every aspect of the community matters in understanding the big picture, having an awareness of the whole community, including business, education (including the public and private schools), real estate, and transportation,†Peck Ford said. “The issue of rising gas prices makes it more important than ever to keep supporting our towns, trying to shop within a 5-mile radius. Staying home is going green.â€

Both Peck Ford and Beneke Main have moved on to other work, Beneke Main at J. Stack in Salisbury and Peck Ford in Great Barrington. They will consider continuing custom work, such as party planning and weddings, and can be reached at perfectpear@mindspring.com.