GREENFIELD — Locals expressed sadness but little surprise to Monday’s news that Wilson’s Department Store at 258 Main St. will close its doors for good.
People strolling downtown said it is difficult to imagine Greenfield without the 137-year-old institution but acknowledged the widespread changes in local business landscapes as a result of what some experts are calling “retail apocalypse.”
“I’m bummed,” Greenfield resident Rachel Mason said. “Although, I have to admit that for years my partner and I have been saying, ‘I wonder how they’re staying in business,’ just because it seems like there’s hardly ever anybody in there when I go in. But it’s a loss for the community.
“It’s nice to be able to just ride my bike downtown and get what I need, and not have to drive to Northampton or to Keene (N.H.) or some other place, or to Hadley,” she added. “It’s nice to be able to find what we need here.”
Mason said she shops at Wilson’s about once every other month.
Wilson’s Department Store President Kevin J. O’Neil said the store is closing because he is retiring to spend more time with his four children and eight grandchildren. Area residents describe Wilson’s as a brick-and-mortar blast from the past, with a style and ambiance that harkens back to a simpler time. Wilson’s has 20 departments on three floors.
Vincent Tripi, who has lived in Greenfield for nearly 20 years, was not expecting to hear of the impending closure.
“Holy cow,” he said when told of the news before composing his thoughts. “It’s a feeling of loss, but I’m not quite sure what we’ve lost yet. That’s the paradox.
“It’s not a flourishing place, but it’s a place where you go for comfort,” he added. “(Wilson’s) is a step back (in time). Things slow down, they assume their natural pace, which I like. Everywhere else is not natural pace. It’s hurried. (Wilson’s) is a leisurely, casual place and it needs to continue, but the world has passed it by.”
Longtime resident Mollie Smith said Wilson’s is a part of her childhood, as she would visit the store to see the Easter Bunny and Santa.
“It’s been here forever,” she said, looking up at the three-story building with the blue-lettered sign out front. “I buy a lot of stuff here. I used to come here and buy all my shoes, before they stopped selling shoes. It’s a good place to get Christmas presents and stuff.”
The most recent post on Wilson’s Girl, a blog dedicated exclusively to the retail staple, was made June 7, 2018, and called “Wilson’s Girl Gets Real.” In it, the author details a visit in which she noticed that one particular room looked emptier than normal, as did the second floor.
“If I’m being totally honest, that place is very much at odds with the consumeristic lifestyle that dominates our society,” she wrote. “There is just too much goddamn stuff in the world. And too much waste. But I’m not here to get on my soapbox about that.
“What I am here to say is: be present in this moment and savor the things that are precious to you,” she added. “I genuinely hope that Wilson’s is open for many, many years to come. Even though I shy away from consumerism, when I need something, I will always look to Wilson’s for as long as it is there.”
Angela Melnik Jackson, who grew up in Deerfield, emailed the Greenfield Recorder to say her mother, Nancy Melnik, worked at Wilson’s in the 1970s and never closed, even during hurricanes and blizzards, because ownership knew people would need the store open.
Reach Domenic Poli at: dpoli@recorder.com or
413-772-0261, ext. 262.