Sent 7/13/07

Greetings all: Standard greeting from The Grand Onion, but what follows is not the standard weekly news. Here goes: After great deliberation, Trevor and I have decided to close the store. Why? Well, let's think about this... Why do most stores close? Yup, you got it, because they aren't making a go of it; we just don't get the return on our efforts to have it make sense for T, me and the 3 scallions.

In early 2006, it was clear to us that we had maxed out the physical and financial potential of the space at 21 Bridge and needed to give the business a try in a larger, more high traffic location. The move up here to Route 3 was a real help in terms of expanding the catering business, which, frankly has supported the operation in the last year. However, we haven't seen the accompanying growth on the retail side that we anticipated. Having been at our new location for a year, and factoring in both the numbers and our work/family schedules, we have concluded that it is time to close this chapter of our life.

So, as we have been doing, take a breath, and then read on.

We're not sure what our actual closing schedule will be. We have a number of catering jobs booked through the end of August. How far through that period we keep the retail side open is something we are haven't nailed down yet. Needless to say, we will keep you posted as our plans develop. As to what the next chapter will be for Trevor and me, well, we don't know. And the good news is, we don't have to know yet. My maternal grandmother always said - "Sufficient until the day ..."

There is absolutely no way to fully describe all we have learned and all the enjoyment we have gotten from the business over the past 6 years. I say the business - a huge part of the business is all of you, our customers and friends. As things wind down next month, maybe I'll find words that can give you at least a glimpse of what you all have given us. However, today, I'm not going to even try to tackle that.

That's the big news for this week. We have had arrivals - Rustichella D'Abruzzo pasta from Italy, lots of Hudson Valley Foie Gras Fresh and Smoked Duck Breast, a whole raft of shelf stable items that I'll tell you about next week. We are anticipating doing lots of special orders for you over the next weeks as you stock up on things that you depend on us for. (We actually have already started, bringing in more Saba, for example.) We won't be able to get everything, but don't hesitate to ask us for things you want to buy multiples of.

So that's it for this week. You know we will keep you posted on arrivals, sales, etc. Take care and be safe. Over and out - ZPL