Village Stores Give Away Valentine's Day Chocolate

Thankfully, the Maplewood Village Alliance and several village merchants made the heart-shaped holiday a more pleasant experience for one and all by offering free chocolates to shoppers.

Did it work? Check photographer Nilsa de la Cruz's photo gallery to find out.

But the chocolate isn't merely seasonal and delicious. According to Village Manager Amy Koehler, the chief administrator of the Alliance, it’s a harbinger of increased downtown events to come. 

“We want to get people down to the village and we want them to shop,” Koehler said.

The Alliance is ramping up its events schedule, first with the Valentine’s Day chocolate giveaway, then two Feb. 21 ribbon cutting events for the newly opened Maplewood Avenue stores Words Bookstore and CORE Mind and Body Fitness Studio.  The Village’s inaugural restaurant week, where village restaurants offer special menus and promotions, follows in the first week of March.

Koehler said merchants who have recently opened up shop in the village are implementing new and innovative promotional events. Michele Bessey, owner of the imaginative and eclectic gift shop Perch Home, came up with the idea of having village merchants give out the candy, Koehler said.

“She did a lot of the legwork,” Koehler said. “She designed the poster and went from store to store to get people involved.”

The candy will vary from store to store, as the merchants are buying it themselves (word to the wise: a chocolate fountain is rumored to be present at No. 165 And a spy on Friday saw over-sized chocolate bars at Perch).

Arturo’s Osterio and Pizzeria owner Dan Richer suggested the restaurant week, which he hopes will attract customers from outside Maplewood’s borders.

“Not that I’m tired of seeing the same faces,” he joked.

Richer said the village’s secluded nature is a handicap for businesses, as people in neighboring towns may not know Maplewood village exists.

“I’ve lived in New Jersey all my life, and growing up I never heard of Maplewood,” Richer said. “I live in Summit, and my neighbors have never heard of Maplewood.”

He cited lack of signage from major highways directing people to the village as a reason for Maplewood’s low profile, and the small number of roads leading into the village as another. The village’s neighborhood feel, he said, could also be a strength for promotional events.

“We don’t do enough downtown community events in the streets,” Richer said, adding that he’s helping to organize an outdoor food festival he hopes will debut this summer.

Did the free chocolate lure you to the Village? Have ideas for downtown? Let us know: adamb@patch.com.