Dear Editor:
I am a Hoboken resident, preschool teacher and women’s lit novelist. I enjoyed the article about Carlo’s Bakery very much. I’ve been watching the lines grow, and grow, and grow. I live right around the corner, so I pass by often. I know a lot of residents roll their eyes or think it’s annoying that there are long lines, but I just wanted to express how important it is that one family-owned, small business in America has become so successful. I don’t see anyone getting upset that Target or Walmart gets so much business. Big chain stores rob citizens of a downtown; small, family-owned stores like Carlo’s Bakery build a downtown for everyone to enjoy.
I couldn’t be happier for Buddy and his family, and I think his story is very important. I think our lovely town of Hoboken is showing the rest of America that personalities matter, that individualized, small family-owned businesses matter.
Just the other day I was shopping in Sobsey’s grocery store. I am pregnant and was feeling very dizzy from the heat. Owner Mac didn’t hesitate to spray me with water, just like they spray the vegetables that line the boxes outside. Boy, did I feel instantly better! It’s personal service like this that you just don’t get at major chains. It saddens me to visit formerly-bustling downtowns I knew as a child that have become vacant, ghost towns due to Walmarts or other big chains opening up directly on the town’s outskirts. I say, three cheers for Buddy, three cheers for Hoboken!
Thank you,
Kate Rockland-Gillan