MILLERTON — On Thursday, July 4, The Dutchess Trading Co. hosted a soft opening in the former Terni’s General Store.
“We had the full range of reactions, people saying ‘Oh, I love the store,’ not knowing the story, and people who were almost emotional and crying,” said Jason Jobson, one of The Dutchess Trading Co. partners.
The new business has three partners: Jason Jobson, Christophe Pourny, and Richard Lambertson, all residents of Sharon. They have been working together for two years to prepare the building for the community.
“There was a lot to do,” Jobson said. “We had to rebuild the foundation and do a lot of structural stuff. We bought the building two years ago and it’s been a labor of love.”
Terni’s General Store was founded in 1919 by Leopoldo “Paul” Terni. Paul suddenly passed away in 1927, and his wife, Assunta, took over the store with their two sons, Arthur and Stephen. The business remained in the family with Arthur’s son, Phil, taking over in 1971 and worked until he retired in 2020, later passing away in March.
“We love the building,” Jobson said. “Christophe and I are antique restorers in New York City. That is really why we fell in love with the building.”
The three partners have been considering the building’s history when renovating and restoring what was found inside. Jobson said that some people were worried that they may “gut the place” and modernize it.
“We tried to keep as much as we could,” Jobson said. “We took many layers of paint off one of the rooms but kept the floorboards and really tried to keep the spirit of what it felt like in there and honor the legacy of what it was.”
Above the store is a seven-bedroom home that has not been renovated yet, where the Terni family lived. Jobson said that the space has a lot of potential and is looking into options to support the community.
“We’d love to eventually see it as a part of the community, maybe like a doctor’s office or something that the town would need, and we could provide that for them,” Jobson said.
The Dutchess Trading Co. sells homemade tonics and waxes alongside a selection of household goods. The store is open Friday through Monday, but the partners hope to expand its hours to be involved with the community every day of the week.
“Hopefully we will become a staple here,” Jobson said. “Hopefully people will talk about us like they did for Terni’s.”
Attendees gather at the Sharon Playhouse Sunday, Oct. 11, for the annual Jubilee gala, celebrating five years of nonprofit ownership of The Lakeville Journal and The Millerton News.Photo by Patrick Stachniak
