Allan Appel Photo
Despite the recession Alfredo Cervantes recently got a job building and finishing counter tops for bars and restaurants at a small factory in Fair Haven. As a result of a business expansion in an historic building on Haven Street near Market, more jobs are likely on the way.
One recent afternoon local and state economic development officials gathered at BoldWood Interiors to celebrate with owner Rob Bolduc the purchase of the 110-year-old factory building at 138 Haven, which he had rented for six years.
The additional 30,000 square feet are going to enable Bolduc to take on more business, and more employees like Cervantes. Bolduc’s operation manufactures table and counter tops for restaurants; a complementary business, New England Seating, that fabricates restaurant booths.
Both are family businesses with a total of about 32 employees. Bolduc, like many of his employees, lives in Fair Haven. He’s pictured here in his showroom featuring exclusive zinc bar tops that he imports from Paris.
He pronounced the building purchase “a dream come true.”
“When you lease, you never know,” he said. “Now we have a foothold in New Haven. Now we have security, and we can give security to our employees.”
Approximately half the employees live nearby. Juan Aguayo can even walk home for lunch. He’s been with Bolduc for four years and recently became pastor of his Fair Haven church.
Behind Aguayo are dozens of table tops for Bertuccis, a national chain of pizza restaurants.
Bolduc has built tables, tops, and booths for Central Steak House, Zinc, and Geronimo ( in which he is a part owner), among many others in New Haven.
Cervantes Thursday was working on a counter top for Mondo Pizza in Middletown.
The crew currently working on 60 or 70 restaurants for the Au Bon Pain franchises. Most of the company’s range from Maine to D.C.
“With our expansion, we can take on more chains,” said Bolduc.
The purchase of the former manufacturing site of Gant Shirts and Nutmeg Chemical was made possible by a $700,000 loan provided by the Connecticut Development Authority, along with smaller loans and much facilitation by the city’s economic development team.
Bolduc cited Economic Development Officer Helen Rosenberg (at left in photo) as the key player on the city’s team.
She and Anne Gatling Haynes of the city’s Economic Development Corporation were leaning on a mahogany table in fabrication for the future Bar Bouchon, a new restaurant being launched in Madison by the owners of Union League.
Before the company moved in as renters in 2004, the sprawling building had been without a tenant for 12 years.
The deal that turned Bolduc from renter to owner took four years to evolve.Marie O’Brien, president of the Connecticut Development Authority (CDA) (pictured at the zinc bar top), said it should not be minimized.
She called the times tough and said such deals don’t come together “unless we pull together all our public financing programs.”
“The guts of our job growth in Connecticut are going to be little projects like this,“ concurred Mayor John DeStefano
The CDA functions as a kind of bank for local economic development corporations and municipal development departments. O’Brien said that since 2009, the CDA has loaned $50 million to 81 companies, most of modest size like BoldWood and New England Seating.
The focus is not on start-ups but on firms like Boldwood that are established and getting ready to mature or take the next step.
Bolduc said his factory currently shipped out tables or booths to six separate restaurants per week.
“We could double our production with the new space,” he said
With the prospect of expansion, Bolduc has not only begun to hire more people. He’s already determined to increase the size and look of his showroom, and he’s bought a new table saw and other machinery.
A student of the city’s factory history, Bolduc said he particularly likes the second floor of the new space, with its panoramic views of East Rock, wood ceiling and floors, and multi-colored poles.
The space previously hummed with the sewing machines of the Gant Shirt Company.
Bolduc said he’d like to move his upholstery and other operations to this floor, freeing space below. First he needs to find someone to fix the 100-year old freight elevator.
He’s had no luck so far, he told city Economic Development Administrator Kelly Murphy (pictured) and Helen Rosenberg. They said they’d look into for him.
Rob - Congratulations on the purchase and your continued success. Always great to see a neighbor doing well, especially a small-business owner who is actively involved in the community as well. The fact that the process to secure a loan took four years highlights the challenges - and opportunities - that face small business in Connecticut and it's a credit to all involved that they stuck with it.