SOUTH PARIS — Forty-six years ago this month, Susan Morin’s parents bought the former N Dayton Bolster mercantile store on Market Square when she was 10 years old. Bolster’s Decorating has had a good run, but will close its doors for good on Wednesday at 5 p.m.

Bolsters Decorating on Market Square in South Paris will close Wednesday after 46 years. Christopher Wheelock/Sun Journal

The mercantile sold wallpaper, window shades and the like in addition to general merchandise but her father decided to make it a decorating business.

Morin, who has worked at the store since she was 20, said business has been phenomenal the past few years — with all the home renovating that’s been taking place since the COVID-19 pandemic hit. She wants to slow down, spend more time with family and take the first significant vacation she’s had in years.

Finding a buyer for the business proved fruitless after six months on the market — an unfortunate but common problem for small businesses in rural areas. Morin said they were looking for someone who knows the products and demands of a custom decorating store and could service the existing clientele, which proved very difficult.

The building, owned jointly by Morin, her mother Nancy Rideout and partner Daryl Whitney, is up for sale, with all the history that comes along with it.


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