Nestled near Starbucks – now undergoing renovation on Greenwich Avenue – is a store where the curatorial spirit is writ large.
On one shelf sits Chic Fire’s Steve Fire Extinguisher, emblazoned with an image of movie star Steve McQueen, who epitomized 1960s and ’70s cool, and one of his race cars. (Shoppers of a certain vintage will remember that he played a fire chief in the 1974 film “The Towering Inferno.”) On another sits Spencer Peterman’s Spalted/Ambrosia Maple Harvest Wood Bowl, made from a discarded log, which gives it a marbleized appearance.
There are soups by 18 Chestnuts, including a butternut squash and pear concoction that’s tangier than the traditional squash and Golden Delicious apples pairing; Cuddle + Kind handknit, anthropomorphic animal dolls, with each providing 10 meals to the underserved worldwide; Saint Jane skincare and cosmetics products; Softies’ blankets and socks; barware and poker sets; fine jewelry; and coffee-table books by Assouline, Abrams and Chronicle Books, including Assouline’s “James Bond Destinations.”
You’ll find all these and more at 365 Collective by Abigail Fox + Serendipity, a roughly 800-square-foot store that opened Dec. 20 in time for the holidays but didn’t make its official bow until the first weekend in March, said co-owner Suni Unger. The store and its new online shopping platform (200,000-plus average monthly page views) represent the partnerships of Abigail Fox Designs, a former gift and clothing store in Old Greenwich that still has a shop in Nantucket, Massachusetts; Unger’s Serendipity Magazine,; and its Greenwich Wine + Food experiences. The new venture, under parent company Unger Publishing LLC, features not only the brick-and-mortar store at 315 Greenwich Ave. but an online magazine and newsletters offering daily content on food, home, real estate, travel and wellness; and corporate and event gift design for everyone from brides to PepsiCo, with a distribution center in Cos Cob.
“Abby was always a contributing editor with our products,” said Unger, who met Fox in 2006. “This just seemed like a perfect match.”
Given 365’s publishing pedigree, the store’s emphasis on storytelling is as unsurprising as it is unusual. Over hot chocolate topped with marshmallows – visitors have a choice of that or coffee as they browse — Fox and Unger point with pride to items as well as the tales of each product line’s makers, unspooled in detail on the website.
“When you buy (something), there’s a story to it,” Unger said. “We want everyone to know we curate every product.”
Ten-year-old, Florida-based Chic Fire seeks to make fire safety apparent through stylishness, reasoning that an attractive extinguisher can be prominently placed in the event it is needed. In its western Massachusetts workshops, Petermans Bowls and Boards Inc. upcycles fallen maples in the early stages of decomposition to fashion nesting bowls and boards that Spencer Peterman can personalize.
Softies’ blankets and socks began their lives in Minnesota in 2005 when Dennis Murphy, a veteran, decided to start his own company with help from wife Peggy after 40 years in women’s clothing sales and manufacturing. The plush products have become a comfort to her in her 19-year battle with leukemia.
These are the stories of small business owners – many of them women, minorities and veterans, people who give back to others, just as together Abigail Fox and Serendipity have given more than $1 million to various causes since these businesses were launched in 2008 and 2010 respectively.
This emphasis on small business stories comes at a time when the Small Business Administration (SBA) finds itself particularly challenged. According to Inc., “the agency’s 7(a) portfolio, which extends low-interest loans backed by the government, saw cash flow run negative by roughly $274 million through the first half of 2024.” Compounding the hurdles for some applicants: The federal government is closing SBA offices in such immigrant “sanctuary cities” as New York, Boston, Atlanta, Chicago, Denver and Seattle.
But 365 Collective has the backs of small businesses. “In the coming weeks, we are excited to begin hosting our promised event activations,” Fox has noted in the press materials, “which will include meetings with makers and artisans, book signings, wellness workshops, culinary experiences and more.”
On Friday, March 28, and Saturday, March 29, (10 a.m. to 5 p.m.), it’s “Experience Vintage!”, with one-of-a-kind pieces set to trend in 2025.
Saturday, April 5 (10 a.m. to 3 p.m.), it’s the Permanent Bracelet Event with Nicole Zusi of Forlanya Jewelry. Zusi crafts custom-fitted, clasp-free bracelets that are welded in real-time.
Saturday, April 26 (11 a.m. to 5 p.m.) it’s “Shoes & Brews,” with Woolloomooloo footwear found James Rowley, IPAs and craft stouts.
Saturday, May 3 (10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) – Zusi returns for a trunk show and live jewelry design.
Saturday, May 10 (10 a.m. to 5 p.m.) – It’s a Special Mother’s Day Gifting Featuring Jewelry Designer Isabel Dunay, a Greenwich native.
Store hours are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays.
