Meeting the Cheese Family Part 2: Fromage

Whaaaaa?!

The day I returned from visiting Saxelby's in New York, I drove down to visit Fromage, a cheese store in the pleasant coastal town of Old Saybrook, Connecticut. Somehow I scheduled consecutive visits to cheese stores that are polar opposites of each other. When I walked into Fromage, I stood in the doorway with my mouth gaping, mumbling to myself in hallucinatory disbelief for a few seconds because they had EVERYTHING. If someone asked me, "hey, where can I find the most baller specialty food store ever," I would send them to Fromage. From dishes and soaps to olive oils and chocolates, they are stocked. There were some things that made me question the desires of people with excess amounts of money. Gourmet baking sprinkles! I've never once in my life thought, hey you know what I want to spend ten bucks on? Sprinkles.

The most impressive thing was the giant chalkboard behind the counter with the epic list of cheeses available in the store. Instead of just focusing on one region or one country like Saxelby's, Fromage makes sure all bases are covered. They had fresh cheeses, American farmstead cheeses, imported cheeses, meats and an olive bar. She deals directly with many of the regional cheesemakers, but the rest, and particularly the imported cheeses, come from a distributor. Christine was yet another great person to meet and was very helpful in answering my questions despite being in the middle of a busy day of putting together party platters.

Whereas some might take such a vast variety of products and fashion a store that looks like an episode of Hoarders, Christine has designed a store that really looks like an art installation. It's truly fun to walk around in the store, browsing and staring at the giant chalkboard o' cheese. Her business has been open for 18 years and expanded to the larger location a few years ago. From a business perspective, she's been doing everything right and selling gobs of quality products. I've heard that the store can get ridiculously busy with fancy food flying off the shelves at peak times. She also benefits from being the only specialty food and cheese shop in that area of the state, which just happens to be fairly wealthy. Hey, I guess, one man's extravagance is another man's cake sprinkles. 

Like a loser, after each cheese shop meeting, I immediately went to a coffee shop or a bench on the subway where I could jot down every helpful piece of information I could remember. Three lessons I took away from my cheese shop visits: First, cheese people are great! It's like one big happy family of foodies, who are totally willing to help others find their dream. The more people I meet, the more confident I am that I made the right move in my life. Second, I have a lot to get my hands on. I knew my questions would be very basic and perhaps downright stupid. I had no concept of the work or money it took to start such cheese shop shenanigans. I still don't know much, but my questions and understanding are getting more sophisticated with experience. Third, I can totally do this. I was almost scared to ask about what went into the business plans and the financials, mostly for fear that it would be some astronomical feat that would end me. Turns out, it's within my reach with some confidence, conviction, and creativity. I'm sure alliteration helps as well.