Ipswich Frame Shop: A Vital Local Downtown Business
Kevin Power jokes that two decades ago he was looking for a retirement opportunity. Twenty-one years later, he is still very busy running a thriving business, as Fine Finishes Art & Frame Shop in downtown Ipswich has grown and grown.
“It is about helping customers find what they want. Art is very personal,” said Power. “Every home is different and we understand the framing needs of fine art to posters.”
Fine Finishes Art & Frame, 24 Central Street, is a Greenbelt business partner and offers a discount on full framing services to our members.
“We modeled our shop after some of the coastal town frame shops we visited over the years while touring the coast of New England,” said Power.
The business started with a specialty of antique maps and prints, and repairs. Over time, the Ipswich shop expanded to also offer more contemporary framing, as well as a gallery for original art.
“You follow the direction the customers need,” Power said, priding himself on what he says is a personalized, service-oriented business. “I enjoy the people, I enjoy being downtown.”
With competition first from shopping malls and then online shopping, running a local, downtown business has admittedly had its challenges.
“I am part of the retail makeup of downtown Ipswich,” Power said. “Downtowns are important to any community and I like having a viable place in that downtown. I think that local is very important. The community wants to support these things.”
Power supports more than a half-dozen community-based organizations in addition to Greenbelt.