A Century-Old Store Closed. These Sisters are Bringing it Back.

Two sisters are reassembling a community fixture in Gilsum — literally. 

Ladders, tools, sawdust and planks of wood now occupy the space at 18 Main St., where Damaris Graham and Mariana Gibaldi are reviving the Gilsum Village Store. A linchpin of the town before shuttering almost seven years ago, the store had been in operation since at least 1881.

Graham and Gibaldi — who live in Gilsum and Swanzey, respectively — are first-time business owners who say they want the store to be a communal space where locals will have easy access to essentials. 

"It's a nice neutral space in such a chaotic climate right now," Graham said. "It's just gonna be nice to have a space the community can come to and talk to people in a casual atmosphere."

The store is slated to open in May or June, before crowds descend on the town of roughly 800 people for the Gilsum Rock Swap, they said. 

Sisters and co-owners Damaris Graham and Mariana Gibaldi stand outside the Gilsum Village Store on Thursday along Main Street. “It’s going to be brought back to its heyday as a village store,” Graham said. (Bailey Stover/Sentinel Staff)

Even though it's yet to open, the store has become something of a hot spot already, as the ongoing construction hasn't stopped Gilsumites from dropping by, according to Graham. She said roughly five people every day stop in to say hello and ask about the store's progress.

"We're not even open yet, and we've already got a lot of visitors," Gibaldi said. "The interest is definitely there."

Sisters and co-owners Damaris Graham, left, and Mariana Gibaldi, right, discuss lighting on Thursday at the Gilsum Village Store. “Now that the paint is going on the walls, it’s feeling like go time. It’s happening,” Graham said. “We’re only weeks away, so it’s really coming together now.” (Bailey Stover/Sentinel Staff)

'The perfect business partner'

The general store tradition runs deep for Graham and Gibaldi. Growing up among New York's Adirondack Mountains, their family frequented The Crossroads, a country store that offered food and hiking supplies, among other items, Graham said. 

"It was kind of a central place where people could grab groceries, everyday essentials," Gibaldi said. "That was part of the inspiration for this place [in Gilsum], I'd say."

Graham moved to New Hampshire in 2016, and has worked in a slew of different fields. Currently, she's doubling as co-owner of the soon-to-open general store and business manager at Graham Construction, which her husband and father-in-law run.

Mariana Gibaldi paints an interior door frame on Thursday at the Gilsum Village Store. “It’s finally getting to be a little bit more real,” Gibaldi said. “We’re heavily in the renovation stage, so it’s tangible. We can see things happening.” (Bailey Stover/Sentinel Staff)

So far, she said, her experience with bookkeeping and organization is coming in handy at the store. 

Gibaldi came to the Granite State later, moving to Swanzey in late 2022 after living in Boston. A former software engineer, she previously lived in both Switzerland and Italy.

The venture in Gilsum wasn't on either of their radars until Graham saw a "For Rent" sign go up in the window last year, she said.

"We've been talking about going into business together for years, more as a joke," she said. "We've both been totally burned out from our jobs in the past, so we wanted to do something that we had control over."

Sisters and co-owners Damaris Graham, left, and Mariana Gibaldi look at handmade miniature replicas of the store from Barbara Davis with Old Settlers Pottery in Alstead on Thursday at the Gilsum Village Store. “We’ve been talking about going into business with each other for a long time, years actually,” Gibaldi said. “And we both have kind of different strengths that really mesh together, and the same vision. It works.” (Bailey Stover/Sentinel Staff)

The sisters began seriously considering the project in mid-December and spent over a month creating a business plan, Graham said. They were able to secure start-up funding from the Monadnock Economic Development Corp. and an equipment grant from the Hannah Grimes Center for Entrepreneurship. 

The duo has been working in the space since January, according to Graham. 

"The timing just kind of aligned for both of us," Gibaldi said. 

Just a year-and-a-half apart, Gibaldi said she and her sister are best friends "following the same north star."

"My sister is definitely my best friend," Graham agreed. "She is the perfect business partner."

Damaris Graham holds up a piece of faux copper backsplash on Thursday at the Gilsum Village Store. “We’re trying to celebrate the original character of this building because it was built in the 1800s,” Graham said. “So, we’re trying to keep it as nostalgic and original as possible.” (Bailey Stover/Sentinel Staff)

Gearing up to open

As spring nears, Graham estimates she and Gibaldi are just past the halfway mark as far as renovations are concerned. She said they've had their hands full painting walls, setting up vendor accounts and getting their plumbing and electrical work sorted out.

"Opening a general store is a lot of work, but everything so far is going to plan," she said. 

The building at 18 Main St. has hosted a few different businesses in recent years. After the most recent iteration of the Gilsum Village Store closed, the building also housed a cidery and a coffee shop, The Sentinel previously reported. 

A sample mug from Old Settlers Pottery in Alstead and the store’s original bell sit on a counter on Thursday at the Gilsum Village Store. “We didn’t plan on this, but a lot of our local artisans and growers and vendors are women-owned companies, and it’s just attracting that vibe,” Graham said. “And we love that. We’re going with it.” (Bailey Stover/Sentinel Staff)

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The duo plans to offer products that run the gamut from shelf staples like milk, bread and eggs to ready-to-eat options like sandwiches and coffee.

Beyond other products like Tylenol, beer and wine, the store will have an ATM and feature products from a slew of local companies — including Orchard Hill Breadworks, East Alstead Coffee Roasters and Old Settlers Pottery — a number of which are women-owned, Graham said. 

"Just a lot of great women-empowerment energy, which we love," she said.

Graham and Gibaldi are also planning to be a registration station for Fish and Game where hunters can present the deer, turkey or bear that they harvest. 

Cody Morrison, executive director of Monadnock Economic Development Corp., said general stores provide access to everyday essential items for a small town. For example, if a Gilsum resident needed a carton or milk, they might have to drive to Alstead, Sullivan or Keene. 

As a check station for hunting, the Gilsum Village Store will bring a diverse group of people through Gilsum, Morrison said. 

"It's a great story and a great example of when community members get together to try and bring vibrancy to their downtowns," he said of the sisters' venture.

When it comes to the store's decor, Graham and Gibaldi plan to lean in to the building's long history, repurposing antiques to add a bit of whimsy, the former said. 

While they wrap up preparations, Graham said she and her sister are raring to go.

"To actually see the stuff come into the space is really exciting," she said. "As soon as we're able to open, we're going to open."

Sisters and co-owners Damaris Graham, left, and Mariana Gibaldi, right, talk about display shelves on Thursday at the Gilsum Village Store. “The whole town is just so excited to have a place to just come get coffee, come see people because, aside from the library, there’s really no place in town to get together,” Graham said. “I mean, you can see people at the post office across the street, but there’s no place to come and hang out.” (Bailey Stover/Sentinel Staff)

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Noah Diedrich can be reached at 603-355-8569, or ndiedrich@keenesentinel.com.