Midcoast Entrepreneurs: Bright Ideas, Creativity and Enterprise

ROCKLAND—Trees talk; scientists have been telling us that for years. But what you didn’t know is that they are particularly good at speaking to artists.

Roger Barry, a woodworker and artist, whose work is currently showing at Art Space Gallery in Rockland, has a connection to trees that goes back to his great-grandfather, the publisher of The Lumberman’s Actuary…

CAMDEN—Health seems to be on the minds of many businesses moving into downtown Camden this spring. The Mill Nutrition, at 25 Mechanic Street, is an herbal tea /shake shop that offers sugar-free Herbalife products with vitamins, protein boosters, and other nutritional add-on enhancements in custom drinks.

Owned by Marlene and Zac Cohn, the take-out shop opened in early April.

While the menu might be a lot to digest at first, especially for people not familiar with all of the…

Elizabeth Stanley is the last person who wants to be in front of the camera, which has noticeably given her insight when it comes to being a portrait photographer.

“I’m kind of an introvert, so I completely understand why people are hesitant to have their picture taken,” she said.

The Rockland-based artist-photographer got her start early on. Remember in the early 1990s when Kodak sponsored a group of 7th-grade CRMS students, giving them all a camera and instructing them to go…

ROCKLAND — A spate of new businesses are opening up all around the Midcoast this spring, following a tumultuous year for shops and stores struggling during the pandemic. One of the newest is a curated vintage shop owned by David Robichaud called Ollie and David’s—with Ollie as a tribute to his dog, an English Springer Spaniel.

It is located on the first floor of the Thorndike building at 385 Main Street, once the great Thorndike Hotel. This overlooked building is often thought to host…

TENANTS HARBOR—Logan and Hannah Rackliff, co-owners of The Rope Co., have fostered a unique home decor business around an unlikely source—float rope, used by lobstermen to attach to lobster traps to the buoy and from trap to trap.

Logan, a fifth generation lobsterman, comes by the profession naturally, both as a working lobsterman and as the descendant of entrepreneurs who started rope companies in Maine.

His grandfather started Crowe Rope which…

ROCKLAND—As mud season is full underway, little pops of color in nature are turning up on roadsides and gardens. As part of Artists & Makers Week hosted by the Island Institute’s retail store Archipelago, little pops of color also appeared in artist Kim Bernard’s email inbox—the result of daily art prompts she put out to Maine’s communities and beyond last week.

Each day had a different directive and she encouraged each participant to spend no more than 15 minutes on each prompt…

BELFAST—Think you’re being a good consumer by dropping your plastic recycling off at a Transfer Station each week? Well, don’t wipe your hands and be on your merry way, yet.

ROCKLAND—Take a walk through the cavernous welding/fabrication shop at the newly built Midcoast School of Technology and you’ll be surrounded by industrial machines, tools, workbenches, and vices. For some students, it might be intimidating. But 17-year-old Mikayla Tolman feels right at home.

The senior at Zenith Alternative School takes a welding class at Midcoast School of Technology every other day and is one of two female students in the welding/fabrication program.

“When I…

CAMDEN—Restaurants operating in a pandemic have had to make enormous changes in order to stay afloat. Gabriela Acero and Derek Richard, a couple featured in our recent story “wolfpeach, a new chophouse with a Maine twist, to open in Camden,” have reviewed their original restaurant plans under these circumstances. Their…

Winona Elmore just opened her dream shop in Rockport, a farmhouse decor boutique called Gathering Thyme, opposite of Midcoast Recreation Center on Route 90. Her grand opening was Saturday, February 6.

“I had a vision of a place where people could come to find beautiful things for their home,” said Elmore, whose business is a family venture with help renovating the shop from her husband, her daughter, and her son-in-law.

Elmore’s shop is filled with dried flowers, wreaths, and…

WARREN—With the deepest part of winter upon us and a heightened societal need to stay healthy during a pandemic, a new energy drink bar is set to open in Warren.

Elev8 Energy and Nutrition, owned and operated by Hunter Grindle with assistance from his operations manager, Richard Eaton, plans on opening the first week of February.

Grindle, who also owns Hybrid Fitness, a fitness center in the same building, came up with the idea of a new energy drink bar, after brainstorming…

ROCKLAND—When creative improvisational master Ryan Jackson gets down to serious business, there are going to be a lot of laughs.

The Rockland native is hosting a series of virtual improv workshops for adults through the Farnsworth Art Museum through April. The class, titled “Improv Reprise! Making it up as you go with Ryan Jackson”, is meant to loosen people up and get them to experience new sides of themselves.

A graduate of the University of Maine with a bachelor’s degree in…

The typical mainstream Valentine’s Day cards you find in supermarkets and stores and on TV commercials generally present a heterosexual angle to the holiday, which doesn’t represent other populations in love. One Greene, Maine couple, Lewis Alessio, and his husband, Jim Shaffer, have been producing creative variations of vintage photograph stationery that tell another visual story.

The couple created In Your Own Words LLC in 2013 to creatively augment vintage photographs into cards…

CAMDEN—Many wondered what would become of the classic Scottish pub Drouthy Bear after owners Andrew and Shannon Stewart announced last May that the COVID-19 virus restrictions on their beloved pub had forced them to permanently close.

The Midcoast community will be happy to know that the building has been purchased and is currently being renovated by Camden newcomers Gabriela Acero and Derek Richard to become a new restaurant. With a new aesthetic and flair, the restaurant will be…

MONTVILLE — Leslie Woods, a Montville artist, has a unique approach to why she paints sport figures that encourages viewers of her work to place themselves within the portrait. 

“Sport is where people can be totally absorbed physically, mentally and emotionally, where people function at the essence of being human,” Woods states on her website. “I paint figures in sport…

ROCKLAND — Affinity Nutrition, a new nutritional business, opened Friday, Jan. 22 in the Rockland Plaza, edged between Hannaford and Planet Fitness in the space formerly occupied by Green with Envy Hair Salon. The owners aim to provide nourishment to Rockland and the greater Midcoast community. 

The business is owned by Jessica Ripley, of Washington, and Lisa Ladd, of…

WARREN—It’s been just over a year that Corinna Whitehill started her personal cab company called Corie’s Rides. It’s a service that has been fundamental to the Midcoast community in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic when people are at risk of losing their homes and their cars.

Whitehill got her start in the driving business as the owner and a driver for Mid-Coast Connector, a MaineCare non-emergency transportation broker. It’s a service she still operates, along with eight cars and…

DAMARISCOTTA—Faced with the food limitations necessary for their own family, a baker and her husband have decided to open a completely gluten-free bakery and cafe at 77 Main Street in downtown in mid-January named Butter Up Cakes.

Candice and Patrick Brady have three children.

“Two of our children have celiac disease, are lactose intolerant and can’t have high fructose corn syrup, and my husband is the same way,” said Candice. “So, I make all of their food from scratch, anyway…

NORTHPORT — Jason Thurston is a Northport artist, using his drawing skills to draw Midcoast scenery on shells. 

The idea to create art on shells came a few years ago when Thurston’s wife, Hana, was in the process of making Christmas wreathes to generate some additional holiday income. 

“We had some clam shells sitting around, and she said, ‘Hey, draw something on those shells. They'd make nice ornaments.’ I think I drew a random lighthouse, the Mount Battie…

NORTHPORT—Back in April, The Atlantic magazine wrote a story about how making old-fashioned crafts during the pandemic could ease anxiety. Millions of crafters took that to heart, and with the COVID-19 virus still raging on nine months later, many burgeoning creators have taken to Instagram, YouTube, and other online resources to make…

NORTHPORT — The next time your child or grandchild asks you for sports apparel, it might not be of their favorite sports team. Rather, the apparel might be coming from the online clothing store, TheGolfBoy.com, launched by 11-year-old Jason Thurston, Jr., of Northport. 

Thurston put his newfound entrepreneurial skills to work when browsing options for golf clothing and realized the options…

NORTHPORT — Hana Thurston has been baking cakes for the last eight years, and formally launched her Hana Cakes business two or three years ago after always wanting to launch a cake business. 

The Northport resident, at long last, discovered a way to launch her business when a memorable creation of hers, a two-tiered realistic diaper cake with an edible fondant diaper that was “soiled” with melted chocolate acting as poop running down the side of the cake for her…

ROCKLAND—A fast-casual lunch and dinner spot opened this week called Maine Kebab, and owner Shane McGarvey and his executive chef, Ken Hynes, are already ahead of the curve in terms of issues that have plagued restaurants since the COVID-19 virus hit back in March.

The menu is very simple: Mediterranean and Turkish flavors. Main dishes include Tumeric rice bowls, flatbread sandwiches, falafel and hummus box, and a salad box all serve as the main ingredient dishes, to which a diner has…

THOMASTON—Like so many enterprising crafter/artists before her, Jo Ann Hoppe, an artist and entrepreneur from South Thomaston, has made a career from her hobbies. Refusing to let a pandemic dictate her direction, she’s lifting up a dozen or so local crafters, who are selling their consigned items in her newly opened shop, Blueberry Moose at 166 Main Street in Thomaston.

 “I’ve always been artistic, but in 2007, an artist told me I should be showing my stuff at craft fairs,” she…

SEARSPORT — Louise Seekins possesses enthusiasm for sewing — expected when one has been sewing for more than five decades — and uses her affinity for the craft to spread cheer and love to her customers, and through donations of profits towards organizations supporting those with Alzheimer’s. 

She has sewn an array of items such as quilts and memory T-shirt quilts, items for her children and costumes for the 15 children’s community theater plays she has directed, and has…

SOUTH BRISTOL—Many Maine artists use the concept of lobster in their art, but Tenley Seiders, an artist from South Bristol, actually uses lobster claws, tails, and other parts of the shell in her elegant jewelry and ornaments.

Born in California, she was first inspired to create jewelry from the abalone shells found on Pacific beaches.  From there, she delved into working with pearls and semi-precious gemstones. After spending countless summers in Maine, an “a-ha” moment…

VINALHAVEN — When Vinalhaven’s An Hanna was searching for collars for the sight hounds she raises, she looked for the best, highest quality collar possible that looked good and would keep the dogs safe. Unable to find collars that dazzled her, she opted to create her own collars now sold through her online Etsy store, The Royal Hound, which boasts handmade martingale collars.

“I'…

OWLS HEAD—Bill Clifford, a chef who once ran Bill’s Original Kitchen in Kittery, has revived his one-man operation and recently opened his new kitchen at Knox County Regional Airport.

Originally from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Clifford has worked as a chef at multiple venues in Maine, including his last stint at Point Lookout in Lincolnville before it abruptly closed.

The plan was in place since mid-October to take over the space, once occupied by the Salty Owl Cafe. He decided…

FRIENDSHIP — Duff Powell, a resident of Friendship, has been an artist and craftsman his entire life, and is sharing his creations made from driftwood found on Maine’s islands and coastlines through an online Etsy store, Driftwood Treasures. 

“Everything that I have done in my life has led me to this passion of making beautiful handcrafted tables and furniture from…

ROCKLAND — During fishing season, Rockland’s John Coppola can be found on waters from Casco Bay to Penobscot Bay chartering fishing trips for striped bass, bluefish and bluefin tunas. 

When he is not at the helm of a boat, wood turner Coppola is in his workshop crafting wooden handmade segmented bowls, bottle stoppers and ice cream scoopers. 

Coppola opted to begin selling his Northeast Woodworks products…

For the holidays, we’re continuing our series to shine the spotlight on Maine craftspeople. It’s important to shop locally and support innovators and entrepreneurs who keep the creative economy alive in this state. So each week, until Dec. 25, we will bring you this series until you can’t take it anymore. Ready. Set. Go.

“Jellyfish’ Airplant Holders Made From Urchin Shells

…

APPLETON—Maine Cater, a recruitment company dedicated to serving New England’s food and beverage industry, has come up with an idea to provide local “restaurateurs, employers, job seekers, and FOH/BOH” with an economic lifeline during a pandemic that shows no signs of stopping.

Husband-and-wife team, Daryle and Orianna Degen launched  Maine Cater in Camden in 2017 as a way to supply temporary employees to restaurants suffering from immediate gaps in employment.

“We’ve…

Given that so many artists were hard hit economically over the COVID-19 virus, Penobscot Bay Pilot puts a spotlight on the hard-working artists and entrepreneurs in Maine. So each week, until Dec. 25, we will bring you this series until you can’t take it anymore. Ready. Set. Go.

The Original Lobstah Trap Beer Caddy

Cumberland, Maine

The back story: The Lobstah Trap Caddy is…

THOMASTON—Back in March, 29-year-old Carly Laughery, of Thomaston, had her hands full with three kids and a job at Staples. With so many people around her losing jobs, childcare, and their financial security due to the COVID-19 virus, Laughery looked at ways she could possibly help.

She heard about a mysterious nationwide group called “…

ROCKPORT—On a cold, wintry day in 2018, Isaac Remsen was driving to work when glancing across the Rockport Harbor, he was compelled to slow down.

“I noticed the inner part of the harbor was completely frozen and there were about five lobster boats stuck in the ice,” he said. “I literally called my boss right then and there and said, ‘I’m going to be a little late; I need to take a shot of this.”

He took his DJI Phantom 4 drone out of the back of his car and sent it flying. The…

OWLS HEAD — Michele LeGris, an Owls Head resident residing in an old cottage by the water, is an enthusiast of old books, which propelled her to an appreciation of paper marbling. 

Since 2009, LeGris has been the proud owner of an Etsy store named Red Cottage. 

LeGris’ inspiration to open an Etsy store to start sharing her passions with customers around the world…

NORTH HAVEN—Whoever said punk is dead hasn’t been to North Haven in awhile. Not exactly considered the gritty underground mecca for the post-punk scene, this lobstering community with only 400 year-round residents, holds its own when it comes to three riot grrrls who live and play music there.

Fiona Robins is the owner of Island Apothecary and her job entails gardening and making organic skincare products on North Haven, which have…

STOCKTON SPRINGS — Stockton Springs artist and entrepreneur Chelsea Porter has found a quirky way to breathe new life into old books poised to be thrown away, turning the books into distinctive pieces of art. 

Four years ago, Porter learned how to fold words and designs into the pages of books from her mother and aunt, who were the first in the family to learn the skill.

Porter is able to create nearly any design imaginable — much of the inspiration for her designs…

ROCKLAND — The soon to be launched Dark Harbor Barber Company bears a name designed to intrigue the Midcoast community, according to its owner Sam Weldon. 

The name behind the new barbershop, slated to open Nov. 16 on Union Street in Rockland, also holds sentimental value to Weldon (one of his favorite novels is Stuart Woods’ Dark Harbor) and is a nod to beautiful Islesboro village bearing the name. 

Weldon is returning to the Midcoast with…

THOMASTON — With an affinity for using planners to boost her towards achieving her goals, and a fervor for fueling personal growth and productivity, Thomaston resident Dominique Woodward decided two years ago to create a YouTube channel as a way to share her passions. 

Her channel, The Pixie Planner, boasts more than 6,300 subscribers and has accumulated more…

ROCKLAND — Lexi Zable, owner of Port Clyde’s The Dip Net and The Barn in Port Clyde, has secured a new Rockland location for a third establishment, taking over The Eclipse and The Speakeasy on the corner of Park Street.

The Grey Owl Bar & Brill comprises both spaces and is currently in the midst of renovations, not only to improve the eatery’s aesthetic, but also to provide more partitioned space between diners per the COVID-19 mandates.

With The Dip Net and The Barn closed…

ROCKPORT — Carving wooden life size sculptures of sports figures has been a passion for Rockport artist Jon Moro, who recently departed from sports figures to crafting a life size sculpture of two Biblical figures. They were unveiled Oct. 17 at Barnswallow Books, in Rockport Village.

“I’m fascinated by the challenge of creating a sense of movement, and emotion from a still, inanimate object,” Moro said, on…

ROCKPORT—Italian born-and-raised restaurateur Sante Calandri was not about to let a pandemic stop him from opening his new restaurant, Ports of Italy, in Rockport last week.

With a sister property in Boothbay Harbor, he’d always had his eye on the Midcoast and when the Helm restaurant came up for sale, he jumped on the opportunity. For the last year, he set to work on redesigning the place, adding two decks that overlook the forest-covered river in back. Set originally to open this…

CAMDEN—Patrons looking for your garden variety dogs and burgers will be pleasantly surprised to see what’s on the menu at the newly opened roadside takeout shack just outside Camden Hills State Park. Deirdre’s Roadside, co-owned by Chef Ean Flanagan, former owner of Ebantide and Kenny Corson formerly of the catering/banquet department of Point Lookout, are putting out an elevated comfort food menu with the emphasis on high quality, eclectic tastes.

After only being open two weeks, the…

ROCKLAND—Something sweet has come out of the Summer of 2020 and it has rolled out in a pink-and-white food truck with a logo of the Eiffel Tower.

Eric Boyce has always had the dream of opening a breakfast spot; it just has taken awhile. 

“I’ve been in aviation for 58 years, both as a helicopter and airplane pilot and as an aircraft maintenance engineer, and lived in Alaska for 21 years, but with COVID-19 happening, and losing my job in April, this seemed like the right…

MIDCOAST—A barbeque restaurant and a food truck serving Middle Eastern street food have opened on the coast in recent weeks. Here’s the skinny on both.

RasDal Falafel — Belfast

Canaan Jordan recently opened his new food truck, RasDal Falafel on Front Street by the footbridge earlier this month. Specializing in Middle Eastern street food, which is mostly vegetarian and vegan, Jordan said, “I’ve been cooking for almost…

Like most restaurateurs, Jordan Benissan expected he’d be running his popular restaurant Mé Lon Togo in Waterville this spring, but the pandemic had other plans for him. Not able to keep the restaurant open, and falling behind in rent, his landlord evicted him. These setbacks led to his announcement to close his restaurant in March.

An acquaintance, a food blogger, who followed…

ROCKPORT—With restaurants continuing to navigate seating challenges during COVID-19, one brick and mortar eatery has the perfect solution to stay operating—and the perfect location.

The Big T Snack Shack food trailer, co-owned by husband-and-wife Mark Senders and Rebecca Neves, was approved by the Rockport Select Board to set up full-time operations in Rockport Harbor this summer and fall.

The couple, who also own the Bagel Cafe in Camden, have operated The Big T Snack Shack at…

SOUTH THOMASTON—A new food truck opened May 8 to complement Waterman’s Beach Brewery, and fans of the old Waterman’s Beach Lobster,  will be thrilled to know that the new venue has some unique ties to the old. 

Joshua and Charmen Spearing are heading up “On A Roll,” a traditional lobster shack on wheels in the same spot where Waterman’s Beach Lobster shack originally operated for the last 30 years,

Joshua, a lobsterman who fishes out of Spruce Head, and Charmen,…

BELFAST — While people might be familiar with Alicia Gaiero’s remarkable athletic abilities, she is remarkably creating her own path in the business world, beginning with her ski accessories business, Gnarly Neckies. 

Gaiero, a 2016 Belfast Area High School graduate, is majoring in environmental policy and planning at the University of Maine at Farmington and recently obtained a certificate from the University of Southern Maine in geographic information systems. 

SEARSPORT – Splendiferous is a word. It means stupendously beautiful, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, at any rate. It’s a newer word. It’s only been around since the mid-19th Century, but its usage has dramatically increased since the 1950s. This brings us to the Splendiferous Sweet Shoppe, an “Alice in Wonderland” themed chocolate shop at 21 Main Street in Searsport…

ROCKLAND—We first encountered Rachel Jones at a beer-drinking knitting group called “Unraveled” several years ago in a story, “Women who like to knit with a brewski.”

Since then, the fiber artist from Owls Head has taken over an annex studio at Lincoln Street Center in Rockland with her successful shop making and selling unique hand-dyed yarns called…

WARREN—University of New England college student William Cox, 19, has found a novel way to offset the cost of his college books and materials. He’s offering custom hand-drawn portraits to the Midcoast community.

Without a website or professional presence, he recently posted on Midcoast Message Board, a FB group with almost 26,000 members, that he was looking for commissions in order to pay for his college supplies.

He posted some of his recent portraits and the response from…

MONTVILLE—Artist Felicia Cinquegrana lives in the deep woods of Montville, but she doesn’t even need to venture outside for inspiration. Trees are all around—her house, her studio, and in her art.

Her hand-engraved jewelry and paintings are only part of her collection, but they all share the same quality: A bare etching of a tree, its branches in stark movement, giving the impression of reaching out.

“My husband and I moved to Montville, Maine, from Rhode Island five years ago…

Giving someone the gift of services or an experience this season is one way to free the world of extra stuff and clutter, but it also supports many of the hard-working businesses in our community at the same time. It’s a win-win! So each week, until Dec. 25, we will bring you this series until you can’t take it anymore. Ready. Set. Go.

Traveling Escape Games

Edgecomb, Maine…