Maine Cloth Diaper Co., a downtown Bangor baby and toddler goods store, announced Thursday it would close after more than seven years in business.
The news came as a surprise to patrons who have shopped there and attended breastfeeding support groups, as well as toddler music and crafting sessions, since it opened in Nov. 2010.
Despite pivoting away from cloth diapers and gear and toward more toys and giftables, owner Betsy Lundy found profits slipping as the retail market — especially for baby products — grew tighter and tighter. This month, it became clear to her it was no longer sustainable.
“Small businesses like ours exist on a wing and a prayer, and it does not take much to take us down,” Lundy said in a long letter sent to patrons and posted on social media.
The extreme cold weather and heavy snow Maine experienced in December and early January was the final straw, cutting dramatically into the holiday and post-holiday shopping business, Lundy said.
Lundy did not have a solid closing date set. She plans to be open Saturday and close Sunday to reorganize the store, then stay open for the following week to sell remaining inventory. There will be a music time class on Jan. 23, a breastfeeding support group on Jan. 24, and a handprint craft class on Jan. 26 before the store closes for good.
Lundy’s business opened in 2010 as a sister store to Central Street Farmhouse and was located for five years on the second floor of 30 Central St. In 2013, Lundy purchased the former Damariscotta-based online company Maine Cloth Diaper Company and assumed its name, moving its operations to her brick-and-mortar shop in Bangor. In summer 2015, it relocated to 30 Main St., tripling its retail space and room for classes and groups.
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