Blooms to retire, landmark downtown Laconia store on the market

Gary and Marty Bloom, still bullish on the future of downtown Laconia, announced yesterday that they have put Bloom’s Variety and the real estate where it is located at the corner of Main and Hanover Streets on the market. They intend to retire by June 1, but will still call Belmont home. Except for a possible winter foray to a warmer clime, they will be here in the Lakes Region to help new owners of the business.

Bloom’s, its predecessor J.J. Newberry’s, and, before that, Landau’s Variety, have always been a landmark downtown destination for folks from across the Lakes Region who were looking for a pack of candy they could sneak into the adjacent Colonial Theatre, a house ware item they couldn’t find anywhere else, or any one of 40,000 other items in between.

The Bloom’s corner has also been a Christmas holiday bell ringer location for the Salvation Army for at least five decades. The only kettle location in Laconia collected more than $13,000 this past holiday season.

According to the Blooms, there has been interest on the part of potential buyers for both the business and the building where it has been located since the end of World War II. “We are hopeful, even optimistic, that the business will sell quickly, and both of us want to be as helpful as we possibly can to new owners,” Bloom said.

“The building has lots of possibilities,” he continued. “With over 25,000 square feet of space, there is potential for subdivision of the property to accommodate separate businesses.”

“Parts of this business are extremely successful. Stationary, small hardware items, toys, house wares, convenience foods, and, interestingly, spices, are all good sellers here. We have even added a line of sporting goods that has been well received. More to the point,” Bloom said, “this store offers so much variety that it really can compete in the downtown environment.”

The Blooms are also hopeful that new interest in re-opening the lunch counter will bear fruit. A prospective operator is now working on obtaining the necessary permits and licenses from state and local health agencies. The lunch counter was most recently operated as Poor Georges. In the early days of Landau and J.J. Newberry’s, the lunch counter was a meeting place on a daily basis for Laconia’s business people.

Both Bloom’s believe that downtown Laconia has a great future, “but its resurgence will take time. A younger generation has to take the reins of the effort for Main Street to achieve its potential.”

Bloom’s Variety currently has 10 employees, with Mr. Bloom being one. Three are full-time; seven are part-time.

Rita Wetzel, who is often referred to as the “face” of Blooms, has been with the store for more than 30 years. Bloom reported that he and his wife have met with each employee to make sure they understand the reasons for the decision and the potential for the future. “All of them have been very supportive,” he commented.

Reaction to the Bloom’s announcement was one of disappointment and hope. Lunch customers at one downtown establishment expressed concern that downtown Laconia would not be downtown Laconia without Blooms and the hope that an energetic buyer would be found quickly.

Warren Clement, proprietor of the Sundial Shoppe, located across Main Street, from Blooms commented that many people “just don’t realize the breadth and depth of what Gary Bloom has there. He has always kept his shelves full, his staff is extremely knowledgeable, and he is there every single day.”

“I would venture to guess,” Clement continued, “that Bloom’s does more individual transactions on a daily basis than 90-percent of all of the downtown stores. From my point of view, Bloom’s provides the footsteps that the rest of us who do business here desperately need.”

According to Kevin Sullivan, longtime owner of Melnick’s Shoe and Apparel and now a real estate sales associate with Coldwell Banker Commercial Weeks Associates, “the corner of Main and Hanover has been a landmark variety store location for almost as long as Laconia has been around. I wish the best for the Bloom’s as they seek out just the right person or group to carry the baton and continue the tradition.”

“On a more personal note,” Sullivan said, “It’s hard for me to imagine how I will decorate my house for the Christmas holidays without help from Bloom’s.” That sentiment will be shared by many in the Lakes Region.

The property has been listed with the Granite Realty Group. One of Granite’s principal brokers is Eliza Leadbeater, former executive director of the Belknap County Economic Development Council. BCEDC, under Leadbeater’s leadership, was instrumental in assisting the Blooms with the purchase of the property and the business when Newberry’s closed in 1996 as a result of its parent company filing for bankruptcy.