We recently connected with Jessica Galen and have shared our conversation below.

Jessica, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?

Coming out of the pandemic, I felt a pull to bring people together, and the best way I knew to do that was through cheese. I had run a cheese shop in New York City and kept hoping that someone would open one in the little town I had moved to, Dobbs Ferry, but it turned out that person would have to be me.

I started out with a tiny order from an American artisan cheese distributor, Saxelby Cheesemongers, as a pop up at my CSA pick up spot. I asked a coworking space in town, HudCo, if they would be open to having me pop up on occasion. After trying it for a few days, we realized we had something exciting on our hands, and they agreed to host me as a pop up in residence, and Bloomy Cheese & Provisions was born.

The biggest catch was that, since it was a coworking and event space, the little cheese shop would have to be able to disappear when there were other events. My motto became “everything on wheels,” keeping things flexible and mobile so it would be straightforward to take the store down when I needed to. Little did I know how essential of a concept that would become as I moved toward a brick and mortar, not only in terms of the physical space but in terms of what it meant to have a business in a post-pandemic world.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Bloomy is an independent woman-owned cheese shop in Dobbs Ferry, in New York’s beautiful lower Hudson Valley. Following a year as a Pop-Up in Residence at HudCo, we opened our permanent location in November 2022. The shop features dozens of American and imported cut-to-order artisan cheeses, fine charcuterie and pantry items, handmade gifts from local artists, classes and workshops for cheese lovers, wine and beer service, catering, and a relentless commitment to the mission of Lactose & Tolerance.

Bloomy owner Jessica Galen loved cheese from a young age, and assisted in cheese caves at the legendary Murray’s Cheese and for Cato Corner Farm, a raw milk farmstead cheesemaker, while in graduate school for Food Studies at NYU (ask her about her thesis on cheese consumption during pregnancy). She also served as general manager at Lucy’s Whey, then the Upper East Side’s largest artisan cheese shop. Through these roles she developed a deep appreciation for the tireless work of farmers, cheesemakers and affineurs (cheese agers) that continues to inspire her every day. She has dedicated her career to supporting independent farming, most recently as Director of Communications at Stone Barns Center.

Can you share one of your favorite marketing or sales stories?

As a longtime communications professional, I was used to fine-tuning messaging to meet organizational goals. When I opened my own business, I realized that my business was an expression of myself, and that I didn’t have to curtail speaking out about things that mattered to me to “protect the brand”–the brand is whatever I want it to be, and I have learned that my community appreciates authenticity. I have taken what might be seen as risks to speak out on issues like abortion access, and it has only built the community around the shop more.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I had to unlearn the idea that you have to make all the right decisions about a business from day one, particularly in a retail context. I had originally designed the store to take the form of a typical cheese shop, with a large deli counter in the middle of the store separating cheesemongers from customers. But a fellow cheese professional who has spent more time in Europe saw plans for my small space, and said “why don’t you put the cheese case on the wall, so you don’t have to take up the entire room with a deli counter?”. It was a huge unlock for the business, and it has meant everything in terms of creating a flexible space that can serve whatever purposes the community needs. As a result of the flexibility we created with this new design, drawing on the “everything on wheels” lesson I learned at HudCo, my tiny retail space can be everything I need it to be: cheese shop, homewares store, classroom, commercial kitchen, event space and more.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.bloomydobbs.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bloomydobbs/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100085462329687
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-galen/

Image Credits
Kate S. Jordan Gus Stratigeas