Regulars at the recently-closed Julie’s Coffee House in Greenville will continue to get their caffeine on there. The coffee house (now called simply “The Coffee House”) reopened Tuesday with former assistant manager Jessica Riste at the helm.

Heavier than average rainfall probably won’t have too great an influence on most crops grown in the area, according to Montcalm County Extension Field Crops Educator Fred Springborn, though it is likely to be responsible for some crops getting in the ground later than they would during a warmer, drier spring.

Is there anything that tastes so good as home-baked bread, fresh from the oven? That’s a rhetorical question; there is not. Once a staple of the American household, home-baked bread has for the most part gone the way of pipe-smoking dads and stay-at-home moms. Most folks simply no longer have time for the luxury of creating their own baked goods. Fortunately, there’s a nearby alternative to making your own: Home Baked Just for You, a new cottage business at 116 N. Webster St. in Greenville.

The secret to making a small business successful, according to Meat Shack owners Suzy and Jeff Raven, is to provide great service along with a great product. A pretty simple formula, but one many businesses in this “big box” era seem to have forgotten. The meat market and specialty grocery, which just celebrated its second year of business, is a bit of a throwback to an earlier, better time, when quality was king and providing the customer with exactly the right product still mattered.

Area sportsmen will have another choice for equipment, ammo and more come April 1. That’s if Kelly Skarl, owner of the soon-to-open Pro Outfitters, on Lafayette Street, manages to get his recently purchased building ready in time.

A handful of lucky sponsors are going to have the chance to cross a top-tier item off their bucket lists during this summer’s Danish Festival, when the Hot Air Balloon Rally comes to town.

On Jan. 16, Quad/Graphics Inc. officially purchased Vertis Holdings after Vertis filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in October. It was Vertis Holding’s third time filing for bankruptcy since 2008.

Rockford Mayor Brien Dews and several local businesses helped celebrate the grand opening of the new auto repair business West Michigan Collision this week.

Reasonable prices and a variety of colorful fashions await shoppers in the newest clothing store in town. Rainbow, located at 300 S. Greenville West Drive, fills the vacancy left by Fashion Bug in the shopping complex.

It’s clear why Builder’s Glass has for the past 50 years remained one of the area’s most recognized businesses — clear as glass, one might say.
Established in 1963 by Bill Longest, the glass installation, repair and service business is now in its third generation. According to Guy Longest — son of Bill and current owner of the business — his own son, Matt, will likely take over the business somewhere down the road.