PORT TOWNSEND — After three months of weekly meetings, a local business group went public Monday with its plans to open a mercantile store to fill the void left by the closure of Swain’s Outdoor earlier this year.
“We aren’t out to compete with existing businesses,” Quimper Mercantile Co. CEO Peter Quinn said in an address to the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce on Monday.
The two compelling reasons for supporting the mercantile are environmental and economic; it saves fuel consumption while generating local sales tax, he said.
“We are just looking to fill a need that isn’t being filled, and if someone else gets there first, that’s fine with us,” Quinn said.
The newly formed company is about to enter a “dark period” where no specific financial details can be discussed as it prepares its initial public stock offering.
Quinn said the offering is expected to generate enough capital for the store to open its doors and stock its shelves but would not say how much is needed to accomplish this.
In a best-case situation, the store could open before the end this year, “but only if our offering is successful and our location is secured,” he said.
“There is a lot of water to paddle before we reach that point,” he said.
In January, Swain’s Outdoor — a separate retailer from Swain’s General Store in Port Angeles, which remains opens — announced that it was closing its doors, ending the ability for people to purchase clothes, shoes and other dry goods items in downtown Port Townsend.
Private meetings about replacing Swain’s began before the store shuttered, with several meetings attempting to determine the direction of the venture.
After conducting a public survey and discussing various options, the mercantile group has made some decisions, although many factors are still undetermined.
The new company will be structured as a public corporation owned by stockholders who will be restricted to a certain amount to prevent one person from owning majority shares. All stockholders must live in Washington state.
Many of the items carried will be unavailable elsewhere in town, such as underwear and sewing supplies but the inventory will not necessarily match that of the former Swain’s.
Quinn noted that since Swain’s closed, outlets like Henery’s Hardware and Don’s Pharmacy have offered those goods.
“We will sell a variety of things, but just because Swain’s used to sell something it doesn’t mean that we will get to sell it,” he said.
While the closing of Swain’s Outdoor at 1121 Water St. provided the impetus for the development of the mercantile group, the new store would not necessarily occupy that space, Quinn said.
The now-empty store has around 2,200 square feet. The new store might not need that much space, depending on inventory, Quinn said.
“We are not sure about what we will be offering, so we don’t know how much space we will need,” he said.
The store will offer all of its goods in one place and most likely will not use multiple locations, he said.
If the former Swain’s space doesn’t pan out, the company could build a new location to suit its needs and use a temporary location in the meantime, according to Quinn.
The online survey opened in March and drew 850 responses, which represented 10 percent of the population of Port Townsend — although not all the respondents were in the city limit.
The 22-question survey asked for details about what people would or would not buy, finding that people would rather shop closer to home and that 77.9 percent of the respondents would shop at a new general store with competitive pricing and selection to those out of town.
After securing financing and finding a location, the group will proceed with a concept and design and begin hiring people.
In addition to Quinn, board of directors members are Gigi Callaizakas, Shannon Davis, Frank DePalma, James Frazier, Marty Gay, Ian Keith, Steve Moore, Shelby Smith, Deborah Stinson and Tim Whyte. Port Townsend/Jefferson County Leader Editor and Publisher Scott Wilson is on the advisory board.
In the meantime it has established a Facebook page that can be accessed from within the social network or externally as www.quimpermerc.com.
For more information write info@quimpermerc.com.
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
