Up and down Liberty Street and in other parts of the city, City of Newburgh, residents and visitors enjoyed the various businesses on Saturday, November 26, kicking off the fourth annual Shop Small Newburgh.

During the course of the weekend, patrons were able to visit a total of 38 businesses located in the city: 2 Alices Coffee Lounge, APG Pilates, Attallah Drip, Blanca’s Tailoring, Colorcube Print Co. Crab A Bag, Craft Draft, Cream & Cream Vintage, DMU Music Inc, Estilo Muñeca Boutique, LLC, Field Trip, Grit Works, Hales Hardware & Home Supplies, Hendley & Co, Hudson Valley Beauty Lab & Medi Spa, Hudson Valley House Parts, I Grind W/Curtis Walker and Yoga W/Bibi, Kabil & Noil, Krispy Fresh Cutz, Liberty and Beauty, Liberty Street Bistro, Mama Roux, M. Lewis Boutique, Ms. Fairfax, Newburgh Art Supply, Newburgh Brewing Co., Newburgh Flour Shop, Newburgh Mercantile, Newburgher HQ, Next Wave Food Truck, North Plank Road Tavern, Seoul Kitchen, Shapiro’s Furniture Barn, Society of Lash, Spirits Lab Distilling Co, Terrace Tavern & Richie Kitchen, The Spot Smoke Shop and Toasted.

Shop Small Newburgh was organized by Jacqui Watkins, owner of Newburgh Mercantile, Cher Vick, a blogger from Newburgh Restoration and Angela Paul-Gaito, owner of APG Pilates.

Beginning the trip around the businesses, residents collect a passport pamphlet from Grit Works which lists all the businesses with addresses and other information about discounts and offers.

On the front of the passport it reads the following statistic, that for ‘every dollar spent at a small business $0.67 stays in the community’.On the back of the pamphlet is a page where patrons can get a stamp from the business that identifies that they went into the business.

Several business owners spoke with the Times about the event, coming back from COVID and thanking their customers for their support:

Newburgh Mercantile
Jacqui Watkins, owner of Newburgh Mercantile, was truly excited for the Shop Small weekend to arrive. This is her third year in organizing this event with Vick and Paul-Gaito. Seven years ago in November, Newburgh Mercantile opened at 75 Broadway, but has been in Newburgh since 1998. “Our community is the reason why we’re still here,” Watkins said. “Our customers appreciate that we are part of the community.”

Newburgh Mercantile began as a small pop-up shop boutique to now operating as a full functioning business with various gift items, custom framework and other items for yourself or others. Walking into the store, customers can come buy stationeries, candles, chocolate or other small accessories for their space.

When it came to organizing Shop Small, Watkins said the process had been smooth and the businesses were eager to sign on to be a part of the weekend. During the course of the pandemic, the store was forced to close and online orders and community support kept the store going. Heading into the holiday season and beyond, Watkins encourages others to appreciate small business and expresses her thanks to all that support small businesses.

“Remember that we’re here,” Watkins said. “I just hope that people remember to think about using the small business.”

Krispy Fresh Cutz
Located at 89 Broadway in the City of Newburgh is Krispy Fresh Cutz, owned by barber Moleek Murphy. Murphy is a long-time resident of the City of Newburgh and has been a barber for 26 years, starting his career at the age of 16. “I love cutting hair,” Murphy said. Murphy admits that this profession is what kept him on the right track in life. As a father, he hopes to instill those lessons he learned along the way to his children, staying away from street life.

In his shop, Murphy has three barbers and a hair stylist that operate out of the space. With only having been at his location for a year, Murphy had to close the shop during the course of the pandemic. During that time, he was still cutting hair. Even when coming and going and wearing masks, he is thankful that he did not catch the virus while serving his customers. “I had to shut down the barbershop for a good four months, but I was going to people’s houses to cut,” Murphy said.

For Murphy, when he cuts his customers hair, he feels a sense of personal accomplishment and pride seeing his customers appreciate his work. Murphy’s message to readers is to come to Newburgh and enjoy what it has to offer because there are still good people in Newburgh.

Cream & Cream Vintage
For the last five years, located at 101 Liberty Street, is where Cream & Cream Vintage has operated. The space is a women’s fashion boutique offering a variety of women’s fashion and accessories.

As soon as customers walk in the door, be they regulars or new faces, owner Amal Ishak is there to greet them with a smile and conversation. During the midst of the pandemic, “frightening” is how she describes the situation last year with all the unknowns.
When it comes to her shop, Ishak says the kind of interactions and experiences are not the same as going to a big retail store or shopping mall. Here at Cream, it is more communal and personal. “I know everyone here by name, I know their sizes, I know what they like,” Ishak said.

As the stores continue to operate, she is grateful to see her customers back in her store, around the neighborhood and supporting local small businesses in general. “It’s amazing to see everybody back,” Ishak said. “Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I wouldn’t exist without my people.”

The Spot Smoke Shop
The Spot Smoke Shop, owned by Thomas Sheehan, only has five months under its belt. According to Sheehan, the store was originally supposed to be open last year. However, the pandemic put the opening of the store on pause for the time being. In just a few short months, Sheehan has received support from the community and business owners in the direct area. In time, Sheehan’s hopeful goal is to continue to grow the store alongside the other businesses as the city itself grows and moves forward in the right direction, both financially and socially. “There’s a great community presence here,” Sheehan said. “I’m going nowhere.” While Sheehan recognizes the past stigmas, history and sense of apprehension, his message to readers is to come out, see the waterfront, walk Broadway, come into the stores and talk to the owners. “Just give us a chance down here, come see us. We have a lot to offer,” Sheehan said.

APG Pilates
Angela Paul-Gaito, owner and instructor at APG Pilates, has been teaching pilates in the area since 2009. On North Plank Road in 2012 is where she first started operating her business. In 2014, she moved to Liberty Street and has been in the same store space for the last seven years. When working with Paul-Gaito in her studio, her clients will work on core strength and muscles as she encourages self-confidence and hard work each session. Coming back from the COVID lockdown, Paul-Gaito is happy to see customers come back and take part in her classes and programs. At first, she did not know what the future of the business would be. During that time, she was worried for her customers’ health and affording rent. Fortunately she had an understanding landlord and was able to teach classes online to continue operating. For now, Paul-Gaito said APG Pilates offers small classes both at the studio and Downing Park to help spread the message of the return of the studio. “Please keep supporting Newburgh, believe in Newburgh,” Paul-Gaito said.

Crab A Bag

Only a few days away, Crab A Bag will be officially opening its doors on Liberty Street on Sunday, December 4. Crab A Bag is a new seafood restaurant owned and managed by Ronnie and Tiffany Maisonet. According to Ronnie, he enjoys cooking seafood, comes from a family that cooked seafood in his household and was encouraged by his family to start a business. Prior to the restaurant, he said there was the possibility of a food truck instead of a store space. As Ronnie was looking into his next career, he came across the store space for rent, saw a crab barrel inside, in the corner and called his wife to tell her that this store needed to be theirs. Now, Crab A Bag joined the Shop Small Newburgh event, offering free samplers to anyone that came in. “It’s very nerve wracking, it’s something new to us,” Tiffany said. “We’re getting to know people, we’re getting to know the city, and people are actually excited to know us.” Opening in the midst of the pandemic, the Maisonet’s were unsure of what lay ahead, but they were both ready to open and share their food to the community. Tiffany says that when you enter the store, you will enter a store that treats you like family. “Come check us out, come get the best seafood you’re going to taste in this whole entire area,” Ronnie said.

M. Lewis Boutique
“I’m just glad to be a part of it,” Michael Carter, owner of M. Lewis Boutique said, discussing Shop Small Newburgh. M. Lewis Boutique is a trendy men’s fashion boutique located at 110 Liberty Street. Carter has lived in the City of Newburgh for the past four and a half years. The store space itself has operated for over two years.

Carter said that his business has been part of the Shop Small Newburgh event since its initial inception. With the design of his store, Carter creates a warm and welcoming atmosphere that customers appreciate from him.

During the course of the pandemic, the store was told to shut down and transitioned to an online store in order to continue operating. In the days ahead, Carter hopes to continue to be a part of the new direction that the city is moving towards with businesses both along Liberty Street and beyond.

Toasted
Toasted, located at 45 Liberty Street is owned by Sam Satanovsky. This is the first year for Toasted to be a part of the Shop Small event. “It was awesome,” Satanovsky said.

The shop itself has only been open for eight months and Toasted is Satanovsky’s first go around as an owner. He has been in the restaurant industry since he was 16.

During the course of the pandemic, supply chain issues and maintaining his staff during the pandemic were some of the challenges that Toasted faced when operating but they pulled through. With Shop Small Newburgh, Toasted itself received an influx of customers that were totally brand new to the store and for Satanovsky, he said it was a great experience for the business.

Explaining Toasted to customers and readers, Toasted is a three concept place that offers casual lunches, sit down dinners that are now available and hosts community events such as club nights and comedy nights.

Toasted is thankful for the support of their customers and is looking forward to expansion projects coming soon in the new year. “Small business, mom and pop shops, and what not are the lifeblood of the American economy,” Satanovsky said. “It’s important to remember that these little shops exist in your town, especially in a place like Newburgh.”

Kabil & Noil & Estilo Muñeca
Clara Godinez, owns Kabil & Noil. Glenny Medina owns Estilo Muñeca. Both boutiques operate at 118 Liberty Street. “It’s our first time,” Godinez said. “To be part of the community, to experience the local businesses doing something together, it’s very exciting for us.” “I love the fact that Newburgh is very supportive and they are all about community,” Medina said. “We want to show the neighborhood and show the community that we’re here for them too.” Both boutiques opened in the space during this past February and took a leap of faith in establishing this business here in Newburgh. Both women come from families that operate businesses within the local community. Godinez has worked in the restaurant industry and Medina worked in insurance and now both of them have launched their shops, both physically and online. Medina’s goal with her store and brand is to make her customers feel good in her clothing. Godinez’s goal with her brand and store is to promote her products, some that are handmade, while promoting her latin heritage. Both are thankful for the support and are happy to be a part of this growing community.