Aubrey Blanchette, founder and Most High but not-at-all arrogant Mucky-Muck of AUBREY'S COFFEE HOUSE & BAKERY in South Berwick -- off 236 South, directly across from the electronic "Marshwood High School, Home of the Hawks" sign, has done a TERRIFIC job of conceiving, designing, and bringing to life a VERY PLEASANT coffee house!
It's a beautiful facility! I enjoyed my visit today so much that I KNOW I'll be stopping by REGULARLY. The place has ALL SORTS of beautifully designed pastries; a wide array of hot and cold beverages including, of course, COFFEE. And everywhere I turned while there this morning, I saw signs of clever design savvy, smart business judgment, and a feeling of WELCOME and CARING for the customers!
A few snapshots of the interior will tell the story better than I can, so have a look around at the ones I've included in this Post.
Aubrey's has been in existence for three years now, and yet I discovered it only TODAY -- October 4, 2023. That's most peculiar, because I've been going out for coffee and relaxation for DECADES, wherever I happen to live -- which for the past 49 years has been Berwick Proper -- South Berwick's nearby namesake. And I drive right by the ENTRANCE to Aubrey's SEVERAL TIMES A WEEK while on the way to I-95 & Portsmouth.
By now you must be wondering: Why has it taken so long for me to discover AUBREY'S?
For me, the answer is simple -- REALLY simple. Aubrey's is way up on top of the long ridge flanking Route 236 South. And while commuters and out-of-towners can see the long, light-gray, pleasant looking complex AUBREY'S is IN, the coffee house & bakery ITSELF is not at all visible from the road. Why? Because its ENTRANCE is at the BACK of the complex.
The sign down below, at the Punkin Town Rd entrance, is a perfectly good sign -- attractively designed and easy enough to read from a distance -- but there are NO SIGNS ANYWHERE naming the BUSINESSES! Along with that unfortunate situation is the reality of the proud history
of that immediate area, known by the locals as the place where you can find BRIXHAM DANCEWORKS -- which is up near the top of that ridge, right on the way to AUBREY'S.
So in the minds of the average local, what's up there on that ridge is first & foremost a DANCE STUDIO -- not a thriving Childcare Center, AUBREY'S COFFEE HOUSE, and other important enterprises. The lack of appropriate signage along 236 South means that AUBREY'S cannot easily pick up commuter traffic. And THAT means both AUBREY'S -- and customers who still don't KNOW about AUBREY'S -- are really, truly missing out on an excellent, invaluable, full-blown business/customer relationship. And it goes without saying that such a relationship can only be GOOD FOR THE TOWN of SOUTH BERWICK.
So WHERE, I'm urgently asking, is the area's CHAMBER OF COMMERCE in this matter? Do you want all of the small-and-large businesses in South Berwick to THRIVE, bringing their tax dollars and cultural riches to the area? Or are you OK with leaving them struggling up there at the top of the ridge, eager for customers but HARD TO FIND thanks to poor signage and suffering from BUSINESS NEGLECT? That sounds like complacency to me, and the last thing businesses -- especially the younger, smaller, mom-and-pop businesses -- can afford to be is complacent.
The best thing we as Locals & Commuters, Tourists & Passers By, and Outdoor Laborers can do to keep AUBREY'S COFFEE HOUSE & BAKERY up and running-- and indeed, THRIVING -- is to FREQUENT THEM. And one of the finest ways to generate business is WORD-OF-MOUTH.
So please LIKE this post and share it with your friends, neighbors, and business associates. It's the RIGHT THING TO DO, and once you as a newcomer visit AUBREY'S, you'll be HOOKED on the place.
BRAVO to Aubrey Blanchette, her employees, and her fellow business associates for creating this place. It's a wonderful addition to the Greater South Berwick community, and if you haven't been there yet, you're gonna LOVE it!
And for the record, AUBREY'S COFFEE HOUSE & BAKERY didn't ask me to do this. I'm not being PAID to do this. All I'm doing is PRAISING a well-run business and taking the initiative, as a local resident, to tell you how impressed I am with the place. Why am I going to all this "trouble?" Because the more people hear about Aubrey's, and the more people EXPERIENCE Aubrey's, the more successful they and Greater South Berwick will be.
And of course sharing my convictions with you wasn't any trouble at all. Indeed, it was a PLEASURE. That's because acknowledging excellence in any form can result in nothing BUT pleasure for all involved!
-- Ross Alan Bachelder -- www.artsaplenty.me, October 4, 2023