Concord Retail Businesses, Restaurants Prepare To Reopen: Watch

CONCORD, NH — Businesses in Concord, some that closed and others that were open on a limited basis during the new coronavirus pandemic, are beginning the process of preparing to reopen after new guidance issued by the state of New Hampshire.

The reopening process has been complicated for some but easier for others; but it is a slow roll, either way, with guidelines that are sometimes realistic to follow and other times not. A number of businesses in Concord chose not to speak about their plans — with some readily admitting that they don't know what they were going to do.

But others have been taking the time to prepare — and even spruced things up a bit.

Two eateries downtown, The Barley House on North Main Street and The Draft on South Main Street, took the closure time as an opportunity to revamp their indoor settings. Neither restaurant has completed their work, which is OK, since the first part of reopening restaurants in the state is based on outside seating only May 18.

The Barley House has been opened for takeout during the pandemic — starting with Friday and Saturday only to-go orders and then, adding Thursdays, too.

Takeout has worked, to a limited extent, said owner Brian Shea. During the past 11 weeks, Shea and staffers have been working on changing décor, cleaning, and navigating through the Payroll Protection Act process, too. Shea also ran a 20th anniversary fundraising effort that featured T-shirts and shot glasses. But he and his staff miss the customer interaction of being completely open.

"We're really excited," he said. "The first time we're able to do sidewalk seating, and talk to the customers, face-to-face, and engage … absolutely, we're really excited about that."

Andy Sanborn, a co-owner of The Draft, took advantage of the closure to refresh things inside the sports bar and grill, too.

After 15 years, he said, it was overdue. When it reopens, the televisions and the snake-shaped bar will still be there. But the motif will look a little bit more like the Concord Casino, a charitable casino that offers card games and slot machines, that opened inside the restaurant in 2019.

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"Every once and a while," he said, "you kind of need to give it that deep clean and make renovations and do changes."

Menu updates are also underway.

Right now, legislative leaders were grappling with what to do with gambling chips, cards, and automated games due to COVID-19. But that, Sanborn said, will work itself out.

At True Confections, the candy and gift shop on Loudon Road, owners Sue and Paul Foskitt kept the store opened in varying ways.

First, it was limited days and hours; then, they expanded, and offered curbside pickup in the back and mail order, too.

"We were three days for a while," said Sue Foskitt, "and then went to four days."

They were surprised at how busy it was for Easter and were grateful regular customers put in orders so they could stay in business.

While most of the store is closed off to customers, long-time employee Ginger Card said the trio can manually fill any order. Fudge, which used to be served on demand, is now wrapped and ready to go, and ice cream orders, too, can be easily filled. The store serves Memories Ice Cream out of Kingston — some of the best ice cream in the state — so if you can't drive down to the Seacoast, it's available in Concord.

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"We're suggesting, still, call ahead," Paul Foskitt said, as they slowly expand hours.

One business that won't be staying open is The Ricker Room at the Office Suite on Loudon Road.

The meeting space company is owned by Kim Lyden-Ricker, and once also had a café, in the space where True Confections in now located. She told Patch she did not feel there would be a market for meeting spaces in the city any time in the future due to the pandemic.

One thing during the entire COVID-19 situation that was surprising was the closure of shoe stores around the city and region to the public. Since when are shoes not essential?

Some of the stores, however, were creative with their closures: Runner's Alley on North Main Street offered curbside pickup and a "virtual right fit" process which allowed a store employee to navigate the fitting process via Zoom.

Another store on North Main Street, Joe King's Shoe Shop, also offered curbside pickup as well as selling shoes on eBay, a process that Gabe, a sales associate, said went well.

"It worked," he said. "We made a ton of money off it. We're actually working on expanding our website now to get more products out."

The store will be open by appointment moving forward but its doors will be locked to keep employees and customers safe. Masks must be worn and the store has plenty of hand sanitizer, he said.

"We're also ordering some UV wands," he said, in an effort to disinfect the shoes after people try them on.

Kristine Kennedy, a fine jeweler on Warren Street, closed her doors on March 19 but still created new items during her shop's closure.

"I'm still working," she said, "for sanity … creativity … and feeling normal, as much as possible."

Kennedy will be reopening, by appointment, to start, via Facebook and email, with mandatory masks and hand sanitizer. While she regularly cleans display glass cases anyway, she is also stepping up safety and regularly disinfecting as part of her reopen process. Kennedy was "thrilled" to still be in business but, admittedly, wished it were December again when downtown was bustling with business.

One pivot Kennedy has made was to start repurposing and working on new pieces interactively with customers who want to change old jewelry pieces into new designs, a process that she found creative.

"I'm fortunate I have a pretty nice following of people that know I make really special customized things," Kennedy said.

Taylor Falls, a spokeswoman for the Steeplegate Mall, said it was permitted to reopen beginning Monday but reopening dates would vary by retailer once the mall decides to reopen. At post time, an exact date the mall would reopen as well as a list of retailers who would be opening was not available.

Are you a business that is reopening in Concord? Please post your information on the Patch Open Small Business List so we can let all our readers know.

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