It’s contained in the lazy 30-mile loop that connects the region’s four picturesque coastal villages -- Tiverton, Little Compton, Westport and Padanaram -- and includes their 40 or so unique shops, which have nothing in common with retailing as we know it today.

Rather, it epitomizes selling the way it used to be, when selection and service were the keys to customer satisfaction and retention. And never mind that many of the shopkeepers, delightful characters whose personalities are reflected in their inventories, stand behind the counter.

So Ann Squire at Country Woolens in Westport will recall which Icelandic sweater you bought your mom last Christmas; Jan Hall, up the road at Partner’s Village Store will phone to say the books you ordered a couple of days ago are already in; and Gina Dennis at Abigail and Magnolia’s in Tiverton will greet you with a big hug because you watched her grow up.

Yes, that all comes from personal experience, but it’s a personal experience anyone can begin developing this Saturday. That’s when the Coastal Villages Cooperative sponsors a "holiday ramble," an event bound to bolster the notion that time spent is the country is just the ticket for what ails.

In addition to shopping -- as well as visiting galleries and working studios, sampling the grape at a pair of wineries and dining at well regarded restaurants -- visitors to the area can also take in the Holiday Open House and Craft Fair at Amicable Congregational Church, Tiverton Four Corners, or take the Tiverton Garden Club’s tour of eight private homes, decorated for the season.

Sure that’s a lot to do in one weekend, but as Lisa Palmer would point out, we’re lucky enough to live in the area and can spread part of this out over a couple of the weekends leading up to Christmas.

She is spokeswoman for the Coastal Villages Cooperative, a group of independently owned businesses that have begun promoting themselves jointly. While they see their fair share of summer traffic, they are less crowded at this time of the year. And that makes for leisurely browsing, never mind chatting as purchases are nicely packed up.

Palmer’s job description is to die for -- in the name of work, she’s visited just about every spot on the free Coastal Villages map -- but there is a drawback. "Resisting everything," she sighs. "It’s the hardest part of the job."

Still she’s gotten to mingle with lots of nice folks, among whom are Jim and Rosalind Weir. For 20 years, they’ve been developing the Tiverton Four Corners area, purchasing and refurbishing historically significant properties that became available. And, in keeping with their desire to preserve the character of the area, everything they’ve built looks as though it’s been around forever.

Palmer says Weir, a Boston architect, recognized that the future of the once neglected Four Corners area rested in the hands of upscale retailers and galleries.

From the start, Weir convinced people to open boutiques that complimented one another. "He’s kept an eye on the retail mix," says Palmer, noting there is no competition so shopkeepers are free to follow their hearts when it comes to stocking their stores.

Palmer points to Nancy Hemenway, owner of The Cottage at Four Corners, as an example of someone who was drawn to the area after great success in the big city.

She now sells hard-to-find French furnishings and cottage-style home accessories. But years ago Hemenway founded Marrimekko, a textile design company that eventually became Crate & Barrel.

Hemenway learned about the area from Weir and, according to Palmer, decided it would be a nice place to open her retirement business.

Some businesses in this Coastal Village loop -- like Peckham’s Greenhouse in Little Compton and Lees Market in Westport -- have been in families for generations and so selection and service are second nature to those who now make the business decisions.

Other shopkeepers, like Anne Frechette and Sally at A.S. Deams in Westport struck out on their own when the store up the road where they worked closed.

A jaunt over Hix Bridge Road -- to Macombers Corner and Fisher Road -- lands the shopper at Russells Mills, an early 17th century settlement, the layout of which remains much as it was during Colonial times. The spot is home to the famous Davolls General Store, where the word eclectic barely begins to define the stock. There’s everything from books to antiques to clothing and lots in between.

But the determined shopper won’t let it end there. There’s still Padanaram, the harbor village with the beautiful view, to investigate. Shipbuilding industries dating back to the mid-18th century were developed there and, on a smaller scale, remain a center of business in the village.

Among the delightful shops are The Packet, a long-established emporium where, along with The Navigator, traditional New England gifts and nautical items can be found.

There are many more places to shop, eat, view art and, yes, even get a night’s sleep. But shoppers will have to do some of the leg work on their own, which is fairly easy considering there’s a free Coastal Villages Cooperative map, available from member businesses and a Web site, www.coastalvillages.com.

©The Herald News 2002
 

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