Things Are Heating Up at Vermont Kitchen Supply

By Raea Benjamin, media intern

 

Kerry Comollo, the owner of Manchester’s Vermont Kitchen Supply, is no stranger to cooking, kitchens, or the food business. Kerry’s parents owned restaurants during her entire childhood, and she realized she had a passion for cooking at a very young age. It is no wonder that Kerry, later in life, found herself working in a local kitchen shop and falling in love with the store and all of its merchandise. Moving her way up and continuously pursuing her passion for food, Kerry now has her own kitchen shop and has finally found a space in which she can house and display her passion to the fullest. Vermont Kitchen Supply, now located at 4788 Main Street, Manchester Center, next door to Vermont Butcher Shop and across from Vermont Bread & Cheese Company, enjoys an expansive space and offers a great selection of kitchen items of all types.

Originally located in what is currently Zippy Chicks, the basement of Harrington’s on Main Street, Vermont Kitchen Supply was first opened by Kerry in 2001 and started out very small. The space, however, was very affordable for a new business owner like Kerry and so, for four years, she and her staff made do, working tirelessly towing merchandise from their storage locations all over town to the shop.

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In 2005, four years after opening and in desperate need of more space, Kerry jumped at the chance to move her store to a new location. With more than 100 friends, family members, and kind community members helping Kerry and the rest of her team with the big move, Vermont Kitchen Supply was closed for just two days before reopening at a more fitting location.

Now, in 2016 and in their 16th year of business, Kerry and Vermont Kitchen Supply have changed locations once again, this move predicted to be the last. The move has given Kerry and her business much more opportunity. The new location provides the store with twice the amount of retail space and a number of large windows perfect for displaying all that Vermont Kitchen Supply has to offer. The increase in store space has led to countless opportunities for Kerry and her team. In fact, the larger store has allowed Kerry to expand her staff.

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Rather than renting the new space, Kerry has purchased the building. She also now owns the neighboring building and is renting it out to another local business passionate about food: New Morning Natural Foods. Together, Vermont Kitchen Supply and New Morning Natural Foods will provide their valued customers with healthy food as well as all of the kitchen gadgets necessary to prepare it.

Although Kerry and her team are still organizing and adding to the new space, they have big ideas in the works. In just a couple of months, they plan to work with P&F Appliance, another local business, to incorporate a demo kitchen in the store. Kerry and the rest of her team are also planning to work with local nonprofit organizations in order to benefit the community with activities such as cooking demonstrations and cooking-based classes for children.vtks1

The exciting change in location has been very well received by her Vermont Kitchen Supply team and the community, whose members can’t wait to see all that this new chapter holds for the business they already love. Kerry’s dedication to her store, her customers, and her community is reflected in the local excitement and encouragement in response to Vermont Kitchen Supply’s success.