SidSpotlight

SID Spotlight The Gilded Lillie and Rahway Auction 1433 Main Street 732-669-7528 During the forty-seven years that Jack Barry and Emma Monaco have been business partners operating The Gilded Lillie and Rahway Auction, they have weathered economic downturns, building challenges, and the COVID-19 pandemic—all while preserving a business built on trust, resilience, and long-standing relationships. […]

SID Spotlight Dairy Queen 735 E Hazelwood Ave DairyQueen.com | 732-388-4329 The familiar building sitting on the corner of E. Hazelwood and Lawrence Street has been owned  by a member of Ellie Dellaportas’s extended family since it was built in 1952. The Dairy Queen franchise was purchased during the prosperous period of growth after WWII,

SID Spotlight Legends Supermarket 1593 Main St LegendsSupermarket.shop | 908-463-7646 Downtown Rahway is a pedestrian friendly city with a strong residential presence. Owner of Legends Supermarket, Esperanza Maldonado, stocks essential goods and dry food products to provide a convenient and accessible shop within walking distance for downtown residents. A natural entrepreneur, she started selling things

SID Spotlight Wet Ticket Brewing 1435 Main St For years friends had encouraged Tim Pewitt, a home brewer, to make his beer available to others. So, in 2014 he and his brother John started to research what would be involved to actually open a brewery in New Jersey. It took about two years to pull

SID Spotlight PJ’s Screen Printing & Embroidery 689 Jaques Ave www.PJScreenPrinting.com After working in the medical field as a human resource manager for most of her career, Jen Woodward wanted a change. One day a family friend told her that the owner of PJ’s Screen Printing was thinking about selling so they could retire. A

SID Spotlight Dreams Hair Studio 1516 Irving Street 732-943-2370 Grace Ramirez is an entrepreneur, an independent small business operator who maximizes opportunity to build stability for those around her. She is also ambitious. Trained as an accountant, she went back to school to study law intending to become a lawyer, but circumstance changed her focus.

SID Spotlight Arista Yoga and Holistic Wellness Group 75 E. Cherry Street AristaYoga.com | 908-264-5070 Neemi Taylor was at a conference when she saw a flyer for reflexology and decided to go for a foot massage. The therapist eased tensions beyond her feet to relieve stresses throughout her body that she wasn’t even aware of,

SID Spotlight Diamond Studio Lashes and Brows 1653 Irving Street DiamondStudious.com/ Operating a small business takes clear vision and personal determination. Jackeline (Jacki) Quezada embodies both of these qualities. Attracted to the beauty business from a young age, she began training as a teenager in her sister’s beauty salon in Ecuador. After coming to the

SID Spotlight Firehouse Eatery & Pub 455 St. Georges Avenue FirehouseEatery.com | 732-382-9500 It’s hard to miss the mural on the side of the Firehouse Pub as you travel north on St. Georges Avenue. Asked if there is a story behind the mural, owner’s Lyn and Brendan Keogh said that they want their pub to

SID Spotlight WhitPR 1420 Irving Street WhitPR.com A common narrative is unfolding about why entrepreneurs choose to invest their talent, energy and money to locate their business in Rahway. They’ve recognized positive changes downtown and want to be a vital contributor to that change. That’s what attracted Dreena Whitfield-Brown to re-locate her public relations agency

SID Spotlight Travel Skate Shop 43 E. Cherry St TravelSkateShop.com | 908-787-2835 One of the best ways to ensure the success of a small business is to serve a niche market, providing a specialized service or product, to a focused clientele. Josh Ettinger, owner of The Travel Skate Shop located at 43 E. Cherry St.

SID Spotlight Millie & Joy Boutique 1361 Franklin St MillieAndJoy.com | 917-538-1990 The Chinese philosopher Confusius once said, “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life”. One local resident has the good fortune to be doing just that. Laura Lopez, owner of Millie and Joy Boutique,

SID Spotlight Skaff’s Corner Pharmacy 1112 St. George’s Ave Shaped by the Community They Serve 732-381-4144 Anchoring downtown since the 1950’s, Skaff’s Pharmacy had served local residents for over 70 years. When Neha Patel heard that the owner was planning to retire and sell the business in 2012, she and a partner jumped at the

SID Spotlight Pampered Paws 1470 Main Street Grooming Furred Friends with Love 732-943-2123 Creating a profitable owner operated business takes clear vision and dedication, often driven by a personal passion. This is the story of how one local woman took a circuitous route to building a successful downtown Rahway staple. Pampered Paws owner, Karim Policastro,

SID Spotlight Beauty and the Chic 84 East Cherry Street @beauty_and_thechic | 908-925-2444 Though known as part of the New York City metro region, Rahway projects a creative small town vibe. That attractive quality motivated salon owner, Chyreise Lambert to re-locate her growing business back to her hometown. Providence opened a door, in 2019, when

SID Spotlight Times of Grace 156 East Milton Avenue Creating a Business Out of Art; One of Rahway’s Hidden Gems. Times-Of-Grace.com | 732-396-1372 Tucked away in plain sight, Times Of Grace has maintained its quiet presence at 156 East Madison Avenue, for the past twelve years. Inside is a beautifully appointed, Zen like private gallery

SID Spotlight Herbs For Life 723 West Grand Avenue Sometimes Life’s Challenges Lead to Opportunity Herbs4Life.org | 732-382-7076 Overcoming obstacles is part of everyone’s life experience. These cousins turned a personal health scare into positive lifelong learning. With the good fortune of a healthy recovery, coupled with the desire to learn how to use the