The Shoppes at East Wind: Meet the shopping destination's female entrepreneurs

Chanel Maye has always loved to craft.

“It allows me to just be creative and just be me,” says Maye, who runs Beyond Crafting at The Shoppes at East Wind in Wading River. “I’m able to just get lost in that and get creative.”

Maye is one of the business owners — nearly half of whom are women — at the 28-store shopping village, which opened in 2016. Of the 13 women-owned businesses, five opened within the past 12 months and a 14th shop, Little Nook Bookstore, owned by Stephanie DiSanto, is slated to open this year. 

“Everybody is so kind and we all help each other,” says Maye. The shops work together as somewhat of a package deal. The property's bakery, A Pinch of Sprinkles, gives 10% off cakes Maye's crafting parties. Maye will run sip and craft workshops in conjunction with Wines By Nature, East Wind's wine shop. “We all work together like a loving family.”

Jenna Aiello, co-owner of children's party place Bella Anima, echoes Maye's sentiment. “We promote each other’s businesses constantly, because if they’re busy, then we’re busy. There’s more foot traffic. There’s more awareness of who we are, what we stand for," she says. “It’s kind of motivating to see how many women are in there and we all want to see everyone do well.”

In honor of Women’s History Month, here’s a look at some of East Wind’s shops run by women, many of which are bolstered by supportive family members who regularly lend a hand.

Beyond Crafting

If customers want to take a break from shopping at East Wind, Beyond Crafting offers a variety of woodcrafts, including toolboxes, butterfly and birdhouses and jewelry boxes, in a setting where they can make a craft, chill and can stay as long as they like.

“It was very important for my shop to be very comfortable and inviting,” says Maye, who offers workshops and parties and creates and sells “head wreaths,” silhouettes of faces encircled by ornaments, flowers and ribbons, and other crafts.

Opened last summer, Beyond Crafting also features a Health is Wealth shop within the store, run by Maye’s daughter Samya Reid, 22, which sells body scrubs, bath balms and holistic teas. Maye’s younger daughter, Shiloh White, 11, helps out with parties.

Cheese & Spice Market

Another original East Wind shop, Cheese & Spice Market, is a purveyor of cheese and charcuteries, loose teas and spices, jam, honey, coffee and more.

Capitalizing on her years working in the restaurant business, owner Patty Kaczmarczyk says, “My experience in the food business helped me to know how to order properly.”

People can save money buying small amounts of loose spices and teas, Kaczmarczyk says. “And the more you buy it, the cheaper it gets.”

Among the market’s local products are cheeses from Goodale Farms in Riverhead, honey from Sag Harbor Honey, Pecks of Maine’s jam from Calverton, Tend Coffee from Shirley, pickled vegetables from Farmers Kitchen in Jamesport and sauces from Montauk Kitchen.

“I probably deal with over 100 companies, because I buy a lot of stuff from small producers,” she says.

A Pinch of Sprinkles

The village’s newest shop, A Pinch of Sprinkles bakery, is owner Melinna Guthrie’s “dream come true.” Guthrie had owned the business as an online bakery for 13 years, while also working at Stony Brook Hospital’s WIC program for low income families.

When working two jobs became untenable and the space opened at East Wind, Guthrie decided to commit to baking full time.

A Pinch of Sprinkles, which opened last December, is known for its croissants.

“I do small batches every day,” says Guthrie, of her selection of brownies, cupcakes, cheesecakes, pastries, cake by the slice and custom cakes. “I’m known for my artistic drawing on cake with edible art.”

Though Guthrie is the sole baker, family helps her out at kids parties and when she is teaching workshops on cookie and cake decoration.

“Just seeing people happy, seeing their face light up as soon as they open that door, that’s what’s so heartwarming to me,” Guthrie says.

With All My Heart Floral Design and Purple Peacock Paperie

Named after the linnea flower, Lenea Green seemed destined to go into the floral business, which is exactly what she’s been doing for 27 years.

With All My Heart Floral Design, which moved into East Wind when the shops first opened, provides flowers strictly for weddings and other events throughout Long Island, but mostly on the North Fork.

“We do all of the floral design work, as well as linen rentals, sign rentals — pretty much anything decor-wise that would have to do with weddings and events,” says Green.

The Purple Peacock Paperie side of the business handles paper products: invitations and any other printed items, “like menus, place cards, seating charts and all of that kind of stuff for weddings and events,” Green says.

As a local North Fork resident, Green says it made sense to be at East Wind.

“As East Wind grew, it was helpful to me, because they could do multiple events all at one time so I could, from across the parking lot, do five events all at once. It just makes it every convenient.”

Bella Anima

A collaboration between co-owners Jenna Aiello and Sommer Spagnolo, Bella Anima opened in December 2022 as a party place where parents can actually sit back and enjoy the festivities.

“When parents book a party, they don’t have to lift a finger,” says Aiello.

People pick the theme: Swifties, Barbie, Princess, Tea, Spa, etc., and Bella Anima does the rest. They can also opt for add-ons like cheeseboards, balloon artists, custom cookies, macaroons and doughnut walls.

“We can go as big or as little as they want, but we can do any theme that they can dream of,” Aiello says.

Between the two of them, Spagnolo and Aiello have six kids.

“I’ve thrown every birthday party for my kids at home like this and I know how much time and effort it takes to put into a party for a mom,” says Aiello, mom to children age 16, 13, 7 and 6.

North Fork Craft Gallery and 631 Apparel

At The Shoppes at East Wind's inception, Lyn Cooperman opened North Fork Craft Gallery. Two years later, when the apparel store next door closed, Cooperman says, “I punched a hole in the wall and took over that business.”

The gallery specializes in Long Island craft artists working in a variety of media, including jewelry, metal, wood, glass, ceramics, mixed media, crochet, quilting, stained glass and Cooperman’s own beaded earrings.

In addition to local artists, Cooperman carries fair trade crafts from Peru, Ecuador, Thailand and Vietnam.

“The crafts are just beautiful and really have a good social meaning for me,” says Cooperman, adding that the owner of an Ecuadorian company told her that her recent order for knit stuffed animals helped three women feed their families.

There’s Long Island, North Fork and East End-emblazoned apparel at 631 Apparel: T-shirts, sweatshirts, caps, tote bags, pouches and children’s clothing.

The Jewelry Box and Gift Shoppe

Also getting an assist from her daughter, Judith Memola works side by side with Dawn DiPierdomenico at The Jewely Box and Gift Shoppe where they carry brand name jewelry such as Brighton, LaFonn, Crislu, Wind & Fire, Ronaldo and Boccadamo.

Among the wide array of merchandise is clothing, handbags, communion dresses, religious ornaments and Bunnies by the Bay kid’s clothing and Gund stuffed animals. Local products include Southold-made woven bracelets from Handmade by Lori and Katie Rose girls’ clothing from Queens.

Before the Shoppes at East Wind opened, Memola ran a gift shop at the Inn at East Wind for a decade, later moving across to the shopping village.

When she opened in Wading River 18 years ago, Memola had no idea that East Wind would blossom into a burgeoning mecca for shopping.

“I was actually the gift shop for the hotel,” says Memola, noting that she carried items like ties for people attending weddings there and welcome baskets for overnight guests.

The Shoppes at East Wind; 5768 Rte. 25A, Wading River; eastwindlongisland.com/shoppes