HARTFORD, Conn. — Many businesses in downtown Hartford were busy with customers on Small Business Saturday.
One of them is Emery’s Specialty Sweets & Sodas, located on 196 Trumbull St.
“We have a really great location, especially right now. We have a UConn game tonight, so we get a ton of traffic from that, the wolf pack, the concerts at the XL Center, and then we're walking distance to the yard goats,” Heather Shonta, manager and event manager Emery’s and the 196 Club, said. “So, it's good there’s different stuff for the family all around. You don't have to just go to the concert and then go home. There’s a ton of new stuff to explore.”
The business has been open since 2023, and Shonta says they will celebrate their one year anniversary on Dec. 5.
Shonta added that everything they sell is fresh and local. They have different items available such as sodas, milkshakes, coffee and candy.
Jesse Mathewson, Puneet Nanda and their family stopped past Emery’s for a sweet treat before going to the UConn men's basketball game Saturday night.
“I got an Irish coffee. The kids had some hot chocolate and a scoop of ice cream. My wife got Mexican hot chocolate,” Mathewson said.
Nada says he didn’t get anything this time, but his daughters ordered a vanilla soda and a hot chocolate.
College students Jankai Nair and Simar Bhogal also decided to visit the shop.
“We've been planning to come here for a while, and since we were on holiday, we decided to come,” Nair said.
While they were there, not only did they enjoy a delicious drink, but they also bought an item from another small business that was being featured in the space.
“It started out as a jewelry-based business and then it branched out to using sea glass for a variety of different products,” Victoria Woolard, owner of Stillwaters USA, said.
Woolard reached out to Emery's so she could sell her items there on Saturday.
“I don’t have a brick and mortar myself. So, being able to have people being open to collaborating is such a great feeling because it kind of helps out one business and it kind of helps out the other,” Woolard said.
Stillwaters USA has been open for four years now. The business idea began with Woolard picking up shells on the beach.
She taught herself on how to turn sea glass into a product she could sell by watching videos. Now, she hosts workshops so others can learn too.
In Emery’s, there was another small business hidden behind a door.
It’s called the 196 Club and it’s a cocktail bar.
“It's definitely kind of dimly lit, kind of like the older fashion, sophisticated craft cocktail bar,” Jack Forbes, bar manager for the 196 Club, said.
Despite the vibes, Forbes says there isn’t a strict dress code.
“We try to keep it relatively upscale, just because we have a lot of people joining us for special occasions, nice nights out. So, we try to limit anything like athletic wear. But we're not really strict. We're kind of all inclusive. We just want people to show up kind of as they are and have a good time,” Forbes said.
Shonta says they are ready to book holiday parties and private events at the 196 Club. You can click here for more information.
She added that they have a special catering menu. There can be up to 150 people in a party.
Many people agree that supporting these small businesses is essential.
"I just think that Hartford, like in general, there's so many small businesses around, and so many smaller shops that are so cool that what they're doing is so much fun, but not as many people go because everybody goes to the big chains," Bhogal said. "So, we try to explore as much as we can, and we try to go to smaller places, smaller shops around West Hartford and downtown just so that we get to know the place more."
Matthewson says small businesses are the linchpin of the community.
“And I think it's important that Hartford, the state's capital city, remains a draw for people in the state,” Matthewson added.
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Cayla Cade is a reporter at FOX61 News. She can be reached at ccade@fox61.com. Follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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