By Ashley M. Casey

Associate Editor

Few businesses can say they’ve been around for 100 years, and even fewer of those century-old firms can say they have survived the pandemic. B’ville Supply is one of those proud few.

B’ville Supply began as the Baldwinsville Farmers Co-operative in March 1921. In 2013, the Gawarecki family — longtime store manager Dennis, his wife Marla and his son Jason — purchased the store from the co-op.

While today B’ville Supply is largely known as a garden center and Baldwinsville’s source for pet supplies and birdseed, the co-op began as a joint effort of 100 farmers who “signed notes as collateral to get the business under way” in 1921, according to the “Merchant of the Week” feature in the July 27, 1961, issue of the Messenger.

“Dealing at the retail level, the Farmers Co-op offers feed, seed, fertilizer and a complete stock of general farm supplies. They also  grind home grains for farmers feed stock. As a special service, the co-op has a bulk unloader and blower on its truck which enables the driver to unload feed at the farm in bulk instead of bagging it,” reads the 1961 article.

“Eventually they grew a little bit at a time,” Marla Gawarecki told the Messenger in a January 2021 interview.

For years, the building on East Genesee Street near the railroad tracks bore a sign that read “GLF,” which stood for the Cooperative Grange League Federation Exchange. The GLF merged with the Eastern States Farmers Exchange in 1964 and became Agway, Inc. One year later, the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau Cooperative Association joined the merger.

The Sept. 19, 1973, issue of the Messenger reported that the co-op was expanding its building.

“Coupled with the addition on the east side of the building, existing spaces will be reworked to give the association more new showroom, office and storage space. The 52-year-old co-op hopes to enclose the addition before snow flies, and have it totally in use by spring,” read a short blurb accompanying a photo of the structure.

Unfortunately, on March 12, 1979, a fire all but destroyed the co-op building. The fire “raged for several hours during a blinding storm that dumped about eight inches of new snow overnight,” according to a Messenger article from the time.

“Upwards of 100 men were involved, according to Village Fire Chief Robert VanderBerg. The first man on the scene at about 3:35 a.m., VanderBerg reported the fire was ‘in the sky’ — a grain tower at the rear of the structure was ‘fully enveloped’ in flames,” continued the article, which was written by then-editor Al Baker.

Baker quoted Robert Vaughn, then manager of the co-op, as saying, “We plan to rebuild on site — we’re not going to fold.”

The co-op made good on that promise, and the rebuilt store opened in December 1979.

In 1992, Dennis Gawarecki became the manager of the store. According to his wife, Marla, Dennis began his career with Agway in Rome, New York, and managed the Auburn Agway. He went on to become a territory manager for the company.

The Gawareckis purchased the store in 2013. Community Bank and the Greater Syracuse Business Development Corporation helped finance the acquisition.

“Since the Co-op no longer served its original function and its stockholders were scattered across the country, they decided to dissolve and sell the store. However, they wanted to ensure that the store continued to support the Baldwinsville community and felt the best way to achieve that goal was to accept the Gawareckis’ proposal to purchase the business,” reads a 2015 article on the Greater Syracuse Business Development Corporation’s website.

“The employees have been here a long time,” Marla said. “We had one gentleman who had been here 40-plus years. We figured it was a good thing to keep everybody hired.”

During their time at B’ville Supply, the Gawareckis have seen the store’s customer base transform from career farmers to gardeners, birdwatchers and homeowners. The store sells lawn and garden supplies; fuel such as propane, coal and wood pellets; birdseed and pet food; and seasonal items such as flowers, pumpkins, Christmas trees and wreaths.

“Back in the ‘90s we noticed a big pickup in more of the bird food and birdwatchers and a decline in the farmers,” Marla said.

Marla said the B’ville Supply team prides themselves on the customer service they provide. As a result, they have many longstanding customers.

“For the most part, they’ve been pretty gosh-darn good to us,” Marla said.

B’ville Supply has remained busy throughout the pandemic. It qualifies as an essential business, and B’ville residents stuck at home have been eager to tend to their gardens or take on home improvement projects.

“It’s been unbelievable,” Marla said. “We have not closed at all.”

While Dennis and Marla enjoy catering to Baldwinsville’s gardeners and homeowners, they are looking to Jason Gawarecki to take over the business someday.

“This is our retirement,” Marla said, adding, “Hopefully we’ll be around a lot longer than that.”

B’ville Supply, Inc., is located at 82 E. Genesee St. in the village of Baldwinsville. For more information, visit facebook.com/bvillesupply or contact 315-635-5221 or [email protected].

Local historians Sue McManus and Bonnie Kisselstein and the website fultonhistory.com provided valuable background information, newspaper clippings and photographs for this story. The Messenger is grateful for their knowledge and expertise.