354 Main Street, Otego:
‘More Than Just a Store’

By TERESA WINCHESTER
OTEGO

Almost every person I’ve met has a story about this building,” said Bill Hovard, who, with his partner, Chris Kraig, is the most recent owner of one of the oldest surviving structures in the village of Otego—a commercial space at 354 Main Street.

Otego residents who formerly attended the school opposite the store have told Hovard about going there when the building housed a candy store. Others have reminisced about living in apartments there. Still others spent time at the location when it variously operated as a TV repair shop, a second-hand clothing store, or a café.

Hovard has a photo of the store when it functioned as Broadfoot Bros., a general store purchased by Berosus Broadfoot with his brother, Charles, in 1899.

Hovard, who relocated from Andes, New York to the southern Otsego County village in 2016, acquired the wood-frame building in 2020 and opened for business in October, 2022.

“The building had been neglected for decades when we bought it. It required extensive renovation,” Hovard said.

Hovard’s partner Kraig, a designer, helped him with configuration of the interior. The beams across the ceiling, as well as the floor are original—“probably old-growth, first-cut timber,” Hovard speculated. The new owners sourced all lumber for the renovation from a local Amish sawmill.

“354 Main is more than just a store. It’s part store, part gallery, and part small event space,” Hovard explained.

The expansive panel of oversized windows on the ground floor makes for a welcoming exterior and allows abundant sunlight to brighten the interior, which is quite open, and thus conducive to multiple purposes. On shelves and in showcases at the back of the store, many items bear the trademark “Hudson Made,” indicating an array of soaps and other body care products developed by Hovard himself. One such product, “Workers,” is a heavy-duty exfoliative bar made with pumice.

“It’s for gardeners or anyone working with their hands. It appeals to both men and women,” Hovard said.

Another Hudson Made unisex product is the sulfate-free “Morning Shift,” a soap made from from shea butter and jojoba oil, designed to invigorate the user by delivering antioxidants to the skin.

“For ‘Morning Shift,’ I use 100 percent essential oil fragrances—rosemary, eucalyptus and peppermint oils. It’s the best product we can make,” Hovard said.

Other Hudson Made products available at 354 Main include Turkish towels, natural brushes, sea sponges and “pretty much anything for the bath,” Hovard said. More information on Hovard’s line of products is available at www.hudsonmadeny.com.

A wide range of antique and vintage objects, including pottery, glassware and an old-style manual typewriter, can also be found at 354 Main.

Hovard appreciates that 354 Main has been connected to Otego and its residents for decades, and he wants to continue that connection by working closely with the community. Two long-time residents in particular, Carolee Byrnes and Buzz Hesse, have given him valuable insight into local history. Byrnes, a member of the Otego Historical Association, compiled a binder of information on the history of 354 Main. Hesse, an archeologist by profession, founded the Roland B. Hill Memorial Museum of Indian Archeology, also on Main Street, and, with his wife Jackie, operated Otego’s Hesse Galleries for 30 years.

Hovard is making a special effort to work with local growers. From Star Root Farm in the Charlotte Valley, Hovard avails himself to calendula, chamomile, hyssop, lavender and cornflower, which he then infuses to make various kinds of body oils. He has also begun to grow botanicals with Colleen O’Hara, who owns and operates Otsdawa Berry on County Highway 8 in Otego.

“We use these locally grown botanicals in our ‘Grange Collection.’ The term ‘grange’ refers to the agricultural associations that used to be so prominent in rural communities,” Hovard said, adding that he can only turn over as much product from these crops as the growing season, with all of its contingencies, allows.

Hovard’s approach to his agricultural endeavors is holistic.

“Botanical crops support other agricultural crops by attracting pollinators, such as bees and butterflies,” he said.

In line with 354 Main’s art gallery function, Hovard held an opening in March for two artists from the Butternut Valley—ceramic artist Elizabeth Nields and abstract expressionist artist Timothy Atticus. Although the schedule is not pinned down as yet, Hovard plans to host five or six art openings per year, as well as a holiday “pop-up”—an event allowing vendors to connect with shoppers in person for a limited time.

Hovard is also planning a fundraiser for the Sweet Life Animal Ranch and Rescue in Morris, which will feature the photography of Vicki Whicker. Details on the event will soon be available on 354 Main’s Facebook page, 354Otego.com.

On July 2, in conjunction with the Annual Stagecoach Run Art Festival—a regional, self-guided open gallery tour—354 Main will host an open house spotlighting works by Stamford artist Jan Green.

A relative newcomer to Otego, Hovard nonetheless appreciates the talent and potential in his new home.

“Otego has an incredibly vibrant artistic community, and I want people to have a place to show their work. 354 Main is evolving, and we’re going to see what comes next,” Hovard said.