By Maureen Cary
Journal & Press
Whistles, Bells & Bottoms, generated a lot of excitement locally when it opened at 116 Main Street in Greenwich on Saturday, June 1. Since then, owner Gina Grillo said the community has shown “overwhelming support and positivity” for the new boutique for men and women. She hopes it will be successful, and along with other businesses in the village, will help make Greenwich a regional destination – a place to visit, shop, dine and enjoy.
If that sounds like a tall order for a small village, Grillo has shown she’s not one to shy away from a challenge.
QVC
She developed her first product, a bed pillow, in 1999 and later that year was chosen to appear in a special television event for the shopping channel QVC, where vendors from all 50 states were spotlighted. She sold 5,000 pillows in just six minutes and launched Grillos Pillows, which would later morph into her current business, Grillo Essentials.
Grillo Essentials
When she moved to Greenwich more than two decades ago with her two daughters, she was looking for a way to expand the business to support her family as a single parent. “I wanted something where I could be available for them,” she said. Her interest in simple natural ingredients and materials lead to Grillo Essentials. It expanded her earlier business to include a line of “simple luxury products” including natural oils, scents, and outdoor scents, scented pillows, satin pillowcases, and the pain tamer heat pack.
Early on, Grillo made her products from a workshop in Victory Mills and traveled on weekends to sell them at upscale arts and crafts shows throughout the northeast. But when one of her daughters got very sick, she moved her workshop back home to be with her. She said the Greenwich community rallied around her family in those difficult times and she credits it with helping her daughter regain her health. The experience deepened her commitment to Greenwich.
Business Recognition
In 2017, Grillo Essentials earned a Grand Champion honor from the American Small Business Championship “for her unique and extraordinary entrepreneurial efforts.” The contest celebrates small business owners and helps them access resources for continued growth.
She was chosen as one of three small businesses out of 102 finalists around the country to be honored as Grand Champions, each winning $25,000 to help grow their businesses. She said she still relies on the business and marketing skills learned from that experience.
In 2022 she was recognized for her business success with the NYS Woman of Distinction Award for Business – Saratoga and Washington County, by New York State Assemblywomen Carrie Woerner.
Whistles, Bells & Bottoms
When COVID hit she began to think it might be time for her to open her own store, the kind of place that could help “elevate the village more.” A store would also give her the opportunity to showcase products from other local and regional vendors she’d met over the years. Her daughter Laura jumped at the chance to join her mom in business after recently completing her studies in acupuncture in Tucson, Arizona. The pair have a history of working together when Laura, using the stage name Laura Lucy, sang for the band The Spirit of Johnny Cash while her mom managed it and booked the gigs.
Whistles, Bells & Bottoms is a spacious, bright boutique overlooking picturesque Washington Square in the center of Greenwich. The space had been empty for months when Grillo decided to lease it. Floor-to-ceiling windows and gleaming hardwood floors give the space a warm, welcoming appeal while the interior paint, neat displays, and modern lighting make it feel fresh and trendy. Tucked out of sight behind a wall which divides the retail space in two is the new workshop for Grillo Essentials. Scents of French lavender and her line of outdoor fragrances linger over tables covered with fabric, pillow fibers, lace and the essential oils that make up her business.
Grillo’s favorite vendors’ products are grouped in several sections around the store. A men’s clothing section featuring graphic t-shirts, Baker Boys Caps (made popular from the BBC TV show Peaky Blinders), colognes and shaving lotions is positioned near the front door just in time for Father’s Day. There are t-shirts from Burlington, Vt., handmade wraps, headbands, and scarves from Ballston Lake, soaps and hand lotions from Dorset Daughters in Vt., fragrances from Goshen, NY, as well as jewelry, and jeans. Grillo said some styles are geared for a small town with t-shirts featuring “Support your local farmers” graphics. But there are also dressier clothes and accessories. Laura Grillo said keeping prices reasonable “is one way we can be as supportive to our community as it is to us.”
For more information visit:
• facebook.com/whistlesbells&bottoms
Photos:
