Hollander's Kitchen Store in Kerrytown closing at end of May
Tom Hollander, owner of the Hollander's in Ann Arbor's Kerrytown, said he will be closing the Hollander's Kitchen Store at the end of May.
Hollander's, located in Ann Arbor's Kerrytown, will be closing the Hollander's Kitchen Store on May 31.
Courtney Sacco | AnnArbor.com
"The Kitchen Store has done well, but we've got our hands full," said Tom Hollander, who co-owns Hollander's with his wife Cindy Hollander. "It's been a great store, but when we took it on four years ago, we knew we needed to get someone to manage it, and it hasn't worked out. We've had to spend more time up there than we wanted."
The Kitchen Store is on the second story inside the Kerrytown Shops while the rest of Hollander's — which specializes in decorative papers and hand bookbinding supplies— is located on the main level in Kerrytown with a space for its workshops in the basement. Hollander's paper store will continue to operate as usual.
Tom and Cindy Hollander began their business in 1986 selling handcrafted boxes and desk accessories from their home. They opened the retail store in the Kerrytown Shops in 1991, and added the Kitchen Store in 2009.
Tom Hollander said he is hopeful another kitchen store will take over the space because a lot of people like having a kitchen store in Kerrytown.
"We'll miss it, but we're well-entrenched with the paper store and feel positive about everything else going on," said Tom Hollander.
Beginning Monday, Hollander's Kitchen Store will begin a 25 percent-off sale of all its products and on May 1, will continue to mark-down all products by 40 percent or more until their final day in business on May 31.
Comments
brian
Tue, Apr 2, 2013 : 1:53 a.m.
Considering how they treat their staff, teachers, and the rest of the store owners in Kerrytown I can't say I'm surprised by this news. And it's not just the upstairs prices that are marked up to insane levels. Just check out Rock Paper Scissors, or The Paper Source and you'll see how bad the downstairs store is as well. The reality here is that they made a poor decision and opened a Kitchen store when they knew nothing about that market. And watching a respected store like Kitchen Port leave Kerrytown and then go out of business across town should have been a clear sign that this was a bad idea. But there is a lot more behind the story of them not being able to find a manager for the upstairs store, and why 90% of their staff left at the same time a year or two ago.
Bertha Venation
Mon, Apr 1, 2013 : 5:24 p.m.
Sorry to see Hollender's go. I've loved going into that store.
Lizzy Alfs
Sun, Mar 31, 2013 : 2:43 p.m.
Sorry to hear this, Tom! Saturday is my "Kerrytown" day where I go to the Farmers Market and shop around the Kerrytown market. I always love coming into Hollander's and the staff is always so friendly.
seldon
Sun, Mar 31, 2013 : 1:58 p.m.
I... didn't even realize it was there. And I go to Kerrytown occasionally. That's a bad location.
Hugh Giariola
Sun, Mar 31, 2013 : 1:16 p.m.
Sorry to see them go. @JRW, consider the high rent they likely pay while you blast a small business person for trying to stay in the black.
Terry Star21
Sun, Mar 31, 2013 : 3:37 a.m.
Most of downtown Ann Arbor, in particular Kerrytown is expensive because of the rent, property taxes, costs of doing business, etc., etc. - ask any business owner. How about a $12.00 chocolate kiss from Zingerman's......yum, yum !
JRW
Sat, Mar 30, 2013 : 10:41 p.m.
Given how overpriced this store is, even with discounts, the prices are still too high. Not surprised he is giving it up. I doubt there has been enough customers willing to pay the high prices and the hassle with finding parking in Kerrytown doesn't help.
Billy
Sun, Mar 31, 2013 : 2:12 a.m.
I've never had trouble finding parking for kerrytown...even on market days. That said...you are 100% right about overpriced....BUT...that's the clientele. The people who shop in kerrytown are not doing so for good deals (EXCEPT stuff from Mike and Bob...their prices beat ALL the supermarkets for meat and fish...and they still have better quality) they're doing so because "expensive things look better" and "expensive things taste better." If you want a deal...you don't go to kerrytown and NEVER EVER an upstairs store. They really are overpriced however compared to MSRP for a lot of items....I know this for a fact because I price compare EVERYTHING. They charge more than they should for the brick and mortar convenience...but they charge just the right markup for being in kerrytown....which never seemed like a problem to me.
thann
Sun, Mar 31, 2013 : 1:30 a.m.
I have never had problems finding a parking space nearby -- sure, it is paid but it is plentiful (true of nearly all Ann Arbor parking). I am a longtime customer/student of Hollander's, and when they ventured into kitchen items, I was happy because I am also an adventerous cook. Their kitchen store carries unusual and quality items that are displayed attractively. As far as price, quality cookware is not inexpensive. Sad to see the kitchen store go, but happily their paper store and Hollander's School of Book & Paper Arts will go on, and I will continue to shop there.