NORTH ADAMS – For Got Goodies? owner Janice Esoldi, preparing for the holiday season is a family affair.
"Growing up, I was always made homemade crafts and chocolates, gift baskets and stuff, for my sisters. It was just my thing," Esoldi said at her new candy counter inside Moulton's General Store on Main Street.
Esoldi decided to open her own small business when she moved to the city earlier this year from Cheshire. A former office staffer at K-M Motors, Esoldi had been selling her delectable treats wholesale to local businesses – including Where'd You Get That? in Williamstown and Sarah's Cheesecake and Cafe in Pittsfield - for more than a year.
"I'd been hemming and hawing for awhile that I wanted to go into business for myself so, a week before the Fall Foliage parade, a jumped in," she said.
Co-owned by her sister, Catherine Moulton, the landmark Main Street store made the perfect home for Esoldi's line of homemade chocolates.
"It's a really good setup for both of us. She gets a spot to be in the public eye and from my end, it's a nice addition for the general store," said Moulton.
"And I get to work with my family," Esoldi added.
With everything from peanut butter cups and bonbons to chocolate-covered pretzels and gourmet apples, Got Goodies? can satisfy a sweet tooth but the shop is more than just a candy counter.
"I keep a wide variety out and a wide variety goes," said Esoldi, who has already baked more than 50 pounds of milk chocolate since she opened. "I like being creative and trying new things."
For the holidays, Esoldi is creating one-of-a-kind chocolate platters and gift baskets. By pushing her unique sales pitch, Esoldi hopes she can start a new trend.
"Instead of bringing wine to this year's Christmas party, why not bring a chocolate platter instead?" she asked. "Not everyone likes wine."
Though she's still making a name for herself, Esoldi said she's not worried about the success of Got Goodies?
"I'm more nervous that it's going to get too busy and I won't be able to keep up," she said.
Though operating the candy shop is a full-time job, Esoldi said she's excited about the possibility of eventual expansion.
"I hope the store will grown and expand. Maybe I'll have my own store," she said. "Right now, though, I'm content right where I am."
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ADOPTED! Companion Corner: Cali and Kyzer at Berkshire Humane Society
By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
Great news, Kyzer and Cali found a home for Christmas already! Still looking for a new friend for the holidays? There are plenty of dogs and cats and small animals at Berkshire Humane who would love to go home with you.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — There's a bonded dog pair awaiting a new family at the Berkshire Humane Society.
Kyzer and Cali are both poodles. Kyzer is the male and is 7 years old, a quite a bit bigger than his sister Cali, who is a miniature of Kyzer and 8 years old.
Canine adoption counselor Rhonda Cyr introduced us to the two.
"They came from a household that couldn't hold on to them, and it sounds like they may have been abandoned by their previous owner with somebody else, and so they came to us looking for a new home," she said.
The two love to be around you and snuggle. But both are very happy dogs.
"Kyzer is 7 years old, and his personality is that he kind of wants to be in everything. He's very loving, very snuggly, as you can tell. And Callie here, she's 8 years old, and she is kind of like the life of the party," said Cyr. "She wants to tell you everything about her day, and she's a little bit of a little ham."
The two are considered seniors and really like soft treats as Cali just had a few teeth removed and Kyzer has a tooth procedure coming up.
"Currently, they really like soft treats, because they are both on the senior side of things. So they have had some dental work, so they are really in need of something softer. They are not big chewers at this age, really, their main focus right now is just really socializing and cuddling," Cyr said.
The two would love a quiet home with someone who wants to snuggle. They shouldn't go to a home with bigger dogs but if you have a dog, you can bring them in for a visitation with the poodles to see if they will get along. Cats will be fine and the preference is for older and more responsible children so that the pups don't get hurt, as they are senior citizens.
"The perfect home for them would be a quiet home that's not too active. Like I said, they're very social, so they could handle some visitors," she said. "They're very friendly, but I don't think that they would really enjoy any other dogs in the home."
Poodles need to be regularly groomed, and the prospective adopter will have to keep an eye on their health. Kyzer has a heart murmur that needs to be monitored. This doesn't mean he is in bad health, as he could live a perfectly normal life, but he will need to be checked by a veterinary specialist routinely.
"Ideally, he would go to a home that could provide further health care with a specialist in cardiac care. And you know, he could very well live out the rest of his life comfortably and happy," Cyr said. "We just don't have all that information at the moment, but I think that you know the way he's going right now. He's got a good spirit, and he seems to be pretty happy."
The shelter is hoping the to get them a home for the holidays.
"We would love to get them a home in time for the holidays. They've been here since the eighth of November, and they're really, really looking as much as the staff loves them here, we're really looking to get them into a home and somewhere nice and cozy so they can spend the rest of their life together," she said.
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