Schmidt's Market, Longtime Staple In Hamptons, Set To Close Saturday

SOUTHAMPTON, NY — Hearts were heavy at Schmidt's Market in Southampton Friday as longtime customers filed in, tears in their eyes, to bid a sad farewell to a business that's been a longtime fixture on the local canvas for decades.

According to Dennis Schmidt, owner of the market on North Sea Road, his lease expired in September and then, owners of the building decided to sell at a price that was "out of reach."

Schmidt said that although he paid $5,500 out of his own pocket for a 58-page appraisal that had the property priced at $4.5 million, the site is on the market for closer to $9 million. Owners have told him that they must vacate by December 1, he said.

And, like so many residents and businesses who've long comprised the local community, escalating real estate prices has forced Schmidt to close his doors — the last day will be Saturday, he told Patch, to leave time to remove all the equipment from the building.

"It's heartbreaking," Schmidt said. "We feel bad for the community. We love serving the community."

Schmidt's, he said, has been in business for 43 years, with 33 of those years at the current location in Southampton Village.

So passionate was the outcry to save the business that even Southampton Village Mayor Jesse Warren wrote a letter to the property owner, asking for a year-long lease extension.

"I am writing on behalf of the residents of Southampton Village, who have such great love for your tenant," Warren wrote. "We were all deeply saddened to learn that they would be closing. Schmidt's is a staple of our community, where we can go to get reasonably priced groceries, order a sausage, egg, and cheese, and know you are being served by a family-run business. Their absence from Southampton would leave so many profoundly missing their personal touch."

He added: "The public outcry to their announced closing is hard to miss, and I hope you will take that as a reason to keep their business serving our village."

This week, Schmidt posted on Facebook about the closure, stating that everything must go and there would be a 40 percent discount on all produce, grocery, dairy and drinks. "Please come on down. Thank you for 42 years of support," the post said.

Schmidt told Patch that saying farewell is painful. "It's tough, because everyone is coming in, giving us a hug. I just had three ladies in a row with tears in their eyes," he said. "But I feel we have to be here — to say good-bye."

All hope is not lost, however: Schmidt said he's looking for a new spot. "We prefer to stay in this area," he said.

Owners of the property could not immediately be reached for comment.