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Open for less than a month in downtown Watertown, Doxtaters Bakery, 4 Paddock Arcade, closed last week Monday.
The bakery, which has another location off Route 37 in Evans Mills, leased the shop from Watertown RX LLC in April. Owner Brian M. Doxtater, who hired three employees to launch the shop, said that drawing new customers to the area was challenging.
I dont think its a bad location, but things didnt work out, he said. There was some equipment said to be working that wasnt, and finding places to park there was hard.
Donald G.M. Coon III, managing partner for Watertown RX LLC, said the stores lease expires at the end of May.
Mr. Coon said the location, formerly the Paddock Coffee House, still has plenty of potential. Hell be actively shopping for another tenant as soon as the bakery has officially moved out.
A lot of businesses that move downtown are startups, and some of them make it, some of them dont, Mr. Coon said. I think you have to have the right combination of innovation and product to draw people in.
While Mr. Coon still thinks there is potential for a coffee shop to make a profit, hes open to many different uses for the site. But because of the startup costs and risk involved, he doesnt expect it to be a restaurant. Sandys Luncheonette and Johnny Ds Restaurant are already drawing downtown customers there.
If its a coffee shop, I think you have to add more to it than just that, he said. Quick, in-and-out businesses are more negatively affected by the perceived lack of parking downtown. But the people who work downtown are the primary customers, regulars and retired people.