Paperie brings note of elegance
Published 2:00 pm Thursday, October 30, 2003
Customers who belly up to Grace and Company Paperie’s “card bar” may expect a generous helping of the hospitality that is the new paper store’s stock in trade.
“That’s the thing we’ve been hearing since we opened: ‘It’s so inviting, it’s like a house,” said Netti Domenichelli, who opened the new Madison Avenue boutique with her husband, Brent Gregoire.
“‘Grace and Company’ stands for ‘gracious entertaining’ for all your company,’” she said. “We think of the store as really an extension of our home.”
The boutique specializes in the special, the custom-tailored and the unique.
“If you’re going to a party you might come here and get a great hostess gift,” Domenichelli said. “You might find something special to put in a guest’s bathroom, or fabulous boxed notes.”
Grace and Company features product lines hard to find in the West Sound, such as William Arthur and Dempsey and Carol.
The proprietors are open to customers’ particular needs, as well.
“People come in and say, ‘You should carry this or that line,’” Domenichelli said. “We say: ‘Your special order is our privilege.”
Domenichelli also offers customers guidance in developing an entertaining concept – the kind of help that can make working out the party details hassle-free.
The concept for the store grew from personal experiences in party planning.
Domenichelli, who calls herself “the party planner in my circle,” was planning a baby shower for a friend in San Francisco 18 months ago, when she was struck by how overwhelming the welter of details involved in pulling off a party – the invitations, menu cards, party favors – might be for some.
“It just kind of occurred to me,” she said. “Why not a small boutique catering to personalized solutions for all your entertaining needs?”
The store was also a way to become more a part of a new community.
The couple moved back to Gregoire’s native Pacific Northwest from southern California three years ago, and came to Bainbridge after a year in Issaquah.
After spending a decade in marketing and advertising, Domenichelli wanted to structure a business that would allow her to stay home with her children: Connor, a Hazel Creek Montessori preschooler, and Blakely first-grader Riley.
Intimate approach
In researching island demographics and “psychographics,” Domenichelli found that “entertaining here is intimate. It’s three couples instead of 50 people on a beach.”
The new store speaks to that sense of intimacy. Dressed in restful blue-green walls with white trim, the 700-square foot space is located in the new Earl Miller office building on Madison Avenue, one block south of Winslow Way.
The pair chose the spot after a search for retail space on Winslow Way last summer proved fruitless.
“I’m sure it’s no secret that retail space in Winslow is in demand,” Domenichelli said.
“We feel that the energy created on Winslow Way will naturally flow to the marina, and what better way to get that started than with a destination store.”
Domenichelli and Gregoire are aiming for the repeat business they know will make the shop viable. The complex features behind-building parking that may help attract customers.
“I started this to be something of value to the community,” Domenichelli said. “I perceive it as a place to find really cool things for friends and family and to make every communication truly personal.”
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Grace and Company Paperie is located at 271 Madison Ave. South. Store hours are 10-6 Tues.-Sat., 11-4 Sun. and by appointment.
Call 780-5498 for more information, or visit www.gcpaperie.com.
