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Date: 11/1/2022
HOLYOKE – City officials and Paper City Clothing Company joined together at the Unicorn Inn on Oct. 20 to announce the official purchase of a previously abandoned building from the city to be the new home for the local business.
The plans were announced following a competitive bid process where the city selected Paper City Clothing Company as buyers for the 144 High St. building. The space is a 5,000-square-foot, mixed-use building located on the north end of High Street.
The building had been abandoned for years, it has no working utilities and sustained severe damage due to a collapsed roof. Paper City Clothing Company opened in 2016 in downtown Holyoke just a few blocks away from their new location.
Owner Carlos Peña and business partner Katy Moonan describe the company as a social enterprise that offers custom apparel services, printed in-house, as a vehicle to expand opportunities for youth in Holyoke.
Prior to abandonment and subsequent acquisition by the city, the property was previously owned by local artists Bernard and Joan Hamel, who operated a fine art gallery and frame shop there for decades.
“We’re honored to bring this historic building with artistic history back to life for the benefit of today’s Holyoke community,” said Peña. “There’s no doubt that renovating this building is the greatest challenge we’ve faced yet, but it’s nothing we can’t handle as long as we work the way we always have: building with our community.”
Renovation started this summer, and to support the continued revitalization process there is a Patronicity crowdfunding campaign from Oct. 20 to Nov. 17. If interested in donating, people can go to www.patronicity.com/buildwithpapercity. To learn more about the project and move, readers can go to https://www.papercityclothingcompany.com/post/build-with-us-support-our-crowdfunding-campaign-today.
Paper City Clothing Company was awarded a matching grant from the Massachusetts Growth Capital Corporation, BizMPower, meaning every dollar raised in this campaign will be doubled to help with renovations.
Joining Peña and Moonan at the launch event was Holyoke Mayor Joshua Garcia, state Rep. Patricia Duffy, Director of Planning and Economic Development Aaron Vega and Executive Director of the Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce Jordan Hart.
“People say the clothing company is more than just a small business, it’s an engagement activity, it’s a place where people come to build community, its an art gallery, it’s a place where young people come to learn skills. Having this on High Street ties into brining more people downtown to investigate those hidden gems – our great restaurants, the art galleries,” Vega said. “Having the art studio that engages the community, that works with the youth, is a huge asset for us in the city of Holyoke to have.”
According to Peña and Moonan the vision for the new 144 High St. location is to restore the building while preserving its historic charm, then outfit it as the home of Paper City Clothing Company and an expanded ArteSana Youth Studio and Gallery.
ArteSana Inc is a nonprofit that Moonan ran from 2014 to 2020 before fusing with Paper City Clothing Company to create economic opportunities for Holyoke youth. The company has been able to create 24 part-time jobs for Holyoke youth as well as free design, screen printing and entrepreneurship education workshops to over 100 youth.
The new location after renovation will include a screen printing production shop, a retail shop for the company selling original hyperlocal products that celebrate the city’s culture, an ArteSana Studio flexible for community space for creative workshops and events, and an ArteSana Gallery that will specialize in ushering in a new diverse generation of art creators and collectors through community-led programs and shining spotlights on the most exciting artists in the area, prioritizing those from underrepresented communities.
“As a social enterprise, Paper City Clothing Company has a unique business model where besides offering the service of custom apparel, there is a retail shop with original wares designed and printed in-house and, an art gallery and event space, staffed by youth in Holyoke who also have the opportunity to take part in the entrepreneurship program where they make and sell their own products,” said Moonan.
Moonan added this was the second time the clothing business tried to purchase a property from the city as they were rejected the first time. She credited Chris Elliot and Christy Phinney of Elliot Fire Sprinkler Systems who were selected for a different City property but were happy to give advice on the process of securing a property when asked.
“We will always be grateful and seek ways to pay this forward by sharing what we learned about the process with any local business that’s interested in future opportunities like this,” Moonan said. “It’s not the right fit for everyone because the city owned properties will tend to need an enormous amount of work, but if it does work out it’s a win-win for the City and for the business. That was the case for us, and we couldn’t be more grateful to put down deeper roots here in our adopted hometown.”
Transforming the building into their vision for an active space will need support from the community in their goal of raising $20,000, Moonan noted. At press time, $5,231 had been raised and donations will continue to be accepted until Nov. 17.
The entire building will be brought up to code, optimized for energy efficiency and the exterior façade will be restored to twin storefronts that help beautify the streetscape and complement the momentum created by new local restaurants, public art and businesses that have been part of the growth on High Street. Funding will also go towrd a new HVAC system.
“First and foremost, we are a business, but the way we do business is by incorporating our community. At Paper City Clothing Company, we offer the best quality, customer service, as well as our original clothing designs that are made in house,” Peña said.
In a video presentation for their crowdfunding efforts, Paper City Clothing staff member Alexis Diaz said seeing the galleries put on in the past by the company opened his eyes to see the potential people have regardless of situation.
“You can really make it out of nowhere and there is a community of people here that want to support you and show your art or your talent, and I always thought that was so important and inspiring,” Diaz said.
Jayden Moquin, a member of the company’s 2022 Youth Team, found himself discovering his own potential and was able to learn about the business of retail as well.
“When I started selling shirts and I saw a lot of people actually wanted it, I felt proud, really, because I’ve never really done something with my own work that other people wanted to buy it, so I was actually pretty proud of myself,” Moquin said in the video presentation. “I feel as though the youth in Holyoke would have a very good opportunity because you make money and you’re also learning things that you probably wouldn’t learn anywhere else, about business and just about being a good person.”
Peña said Paper City Clothing Company connects to the community through art and culture and this remains an important part of the company.
“As a gateway city we need extra investment and extra love. We need ways for our own community to lead in building a future with opportunities that work for everyone, especially our youth,” Peña said. “Renovating this building is part of that, so build with us.”