This downtown Holland housewares and decor shop is looking for a buyer by August

Cassandra Lybrink, The Holland Sentinel
·2 min read
The Blackbird has been listed for sale in downtown Holland for $60,000, including inventory.
The Blackbird has been listed for sale in downtown Holland for $60,000, including inventory.

HOLLAND — The clock is ticking at The Blackbird in downtown Holland.

Longtime owners of the housewares and decor store, Paul and Becky Faulkner, are ready to retire. The business and inventory have been listed by Nate Broekhuizen at Cornerstone Real Estate Group for $60,000.

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So far, there haven't been any takers. If the business doesn't sell by August, Paul told The Sentinel, it might be time to pack up.

"At that point, we'll probably start a going-out-of-business, retirement sale," he said. "It's all in flux, how long that'll take. Sometime in early fall."

The Blackbird has been a downtown staple since 2008, when the business' original owners moved the store to Holland from Suttons Bay. Paul and Becky purchased the business in 2013.

The Blackbird has been open on River Avenue since 2008 and carries housewares, gifts and decor.
The Blackbird has been open on River Avenue since 2008 and carries housewares, gifts and decor.

"They retired and sold to us," Paul said. "We've been here for nine years now. The company I worked for went out of business in 2012, so I was looking for something. Growing up, my parents had a Christian bookstore and Hallmark shop, and my dad had a music business, so I knew retail.

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"I'm from Port Huron and I'd been looking for months and months and I happened to see this online and started negotiations and we ended up buying it."

Paul said they've seen ups and downs, like any retail business.

"But overall, we've done OK," he said. "It's a vibrant downtown, so there's always somebody looking for an empty space, as opposed to places like the downtown where I came from, with a lot of empty stores. You have traffic down here. People make Holland a destination place, even in the winter."

The Blackbird — located at 186 S. River Ave. — carries gifts and home furnishings, including candles, rugs and decor. In retirement, Paul and Becky are looking forward to traveling.

"And getting out of the winters," Paul said.

If ownership can't sell The Blackbird by August, they plan to hold a going-out-of-business/retirement sale.
If ownership can't sell The Blackbird by August, they plan to hold a going-out-of-business/retirement sale.

If a buyer doesn't come forward, The Blackbird will be the latest in a string of closings along River Avenue, including Making Waves, Superior Sport Store and Mayberry and Co.

While the former Making Waves and Superior Sport locations remain vacant, Mayberry and Co.'s space will soon be filled by Garsnett Beacon Candle Co.

Parties interested in The Blackbird should contact Broekhuizen at 616-405-5973.

— Contact reporter Cassandra Lybrink at cassandra.lybrink@hollandsentinel.com. Follow her on Instagram @BizHolland.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: The Blackbird in downtown Holland has been listed for sale