Seacoast Online 4/5/2011-Cornucopia owner honored by Exeter Chamber
By Marisa Novello
newsletter@seacoastonline.com
April 05, 2011 2:00 AM
Editor’s note: This story is the first in a series highlighting the 2011 Exeter Area Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year award winners.
EXETER — Kathleen Campbell had a vision 30 years ago to open a cheese shop. Now Campbell is not only the owner of Cornucopia Wine & Cheese Market, but she is also the proud recipient of an Exeter Area Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year award in the retail and wholesale category.
The 4 Front St. shop’s owner said she is “so honored to have been chosen” for the award and title she shares with Cookies By Design owner Lee Hames in wholesale/retail.
“I’m walking on air,” said Campbell of her award she received March 24.
Campbell was just 16 years old when she walked into a cheese shop in her home town on Long Island looking for a job.
It was at the cheese shop that “I developed a passion for the product,” Campbell said.
Campbell began her shop three years ago at her first location at the Stratham Plaza. She began by sharing store space with a florist, and was popular enough that she eventually took over the whole space.
She said it was “fortuitous” that her new downtown Exeter location became available, since she was looking to move to a more central location. Campbell said the response to her new location has been “overwhelming.”
“Being in the center of town, I try to offer an array of quality products that are not expensive and therefore keep business local,” said Campbell.
Campbell’s focus is on stocking her shelves with unique and special products that can’t be found in the local grocery stores.
Cornucopia offers a wide selection of cheeses that are of local, national and international origin.
There is the cheese from Hickory Nut Farm out of Lee, or the Brie from France, and cheddar from Vermont.
Campbell also carries Beehive Cheese Co. cheeses that make unique cheeses out of Salt Lake City, Utah, such as coffee lavender-rubbed cheese, or a Cajun spice cheese with their own special spice recipe.
Campbell said people tend to pick cheeses depending on their “moods and the season.”
The cold winter months bring people in search of a hearty cheese that melts well, such as a good cheddar or raclette, but with the weather warming up, Campbell expects the light goat cheeses to go quickly.
But it’s the Brie that’s always “the backbone of the cheese selection,” because it is a good, soft cheese choice and a favorite of many.
Campbell said pairings are a strength of hers, “and what better to go along with cheese than wine? It’s a natural pairing.”
And Campbell has all manner of wines.
Campbell said she researches the markets around her to be able to present different products that aren’t on other stores’ shelves, while focusing on the value of her products. She said she has many great wines that are under $20 and holds a wine tasting every Friday from 4 to 7 p.m. as well as private events.
Campbell said unique crackers and jams and even meats also pair nicely with wines and cheeses. She offers many samples of the cheeses, wines and even special beers she carries.
“It’s all about sampling,” she said.
As well as sampling, Campbell has gift baskets, from a Riesling with crackers and jams to a beer basket stocked with a few beer bottles, and crackers that go well with the salami and mustard that is featured in the gift basket. Campbell said this is a great gift if you want to bring something to a friend’s house, and you know they like beer.
Campbell has been a part of the Exeter Area Chamber of Commerce since she first opened.
“I am totally pro-chamber” she said. “They have been nothing but advocates for my business and supportive of me.”
Campbell said she has found many partners through the chamber and many are neighbors of her downtown location.
“But in order for the chamber to work for you, you have to work for the chamber,” said Campbell, who advises future members to go to the many events the Chamber holds, including the business-after-hours social gatherings.
Campbell enjoys her interactions with her customers because it is “the fun part of the business.”
“I really like to think we’re a happy shop,” she said, and she and her staff strive to “make customers feel comfortable.”
At a Glance
Cornucopia Wine & Cheese Market
Owner: Kathleen Campbell
Where: 4 Front St., Exeter
Hours: Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Thursday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The shop is closed Sundays.
Information: Call 772-4447 or visit http://cwinecheese.com/