Mel and Paul Pfister announced on Facebook October 14 that their 30-year-old Louisville business, Nuts N Stuff Bulk Food Store, will be closing at the end of October.
Nuts N Stuff has been in Louisville since 1984. The Pfisters were the third in a line of owners, and they moved the store to Barret in 2011, at a time when Lynn's Paradise Cafe was booming in popularity. When Lynn's closed in early 2013, business flagged. Paul Pfister told me the decline was "due to the lack of foot traffic in the neighborhood. Our sales are down. Rather than go into Christmas and take on more less we'll just get out now." Business started to taper off in 2013. "It wasn't immediate, but once word filtered out that Lynn's had closed. People still came looking for the place for maybe six to eight months."
Nuts N Stuff was (and is, until the end of October) a wonderful place to get bulk nuts, candy, coffee, tea, and difficult-to-find spices and ingredients. "I think it's a valuable asset to the community. I'm sorry that evidently other people didn't feel the same way! It's just, with the closure of the restaurant, there's just been less and less interest in this neighborhood, so we just don't have the foot traffic and the shoppers that we used to." Paul explained.
When I asked him what's next, he was jovial. "Whatever comes next!" he laughed."Everything is for sale, including the business!"
Nut N Stuff will be open until the end of October at 1000 Barret Avenue.
