Powell’s Sweet Shoppe already a hit in Town Green Village

Believe it or not, penny candy is still available, and it’s
still a penny.
Michael Powell, proprietor of Powell’s Sweet Shoppe in downtown
Windsor, pointed to a jar of colorful jawbreakers that can be had
for a penny apiece, and then turned to gesture at the rest of his
new store. “The idea is a fun and old-fashioned candy store,” said
Powell, as he led visitors on a tour of his establishment.
Powell’s was the scene of an official ribbon-cutting Saturday,
as friends, well-wishers, business boosters, and chocoholics
gathered to celebrate the latest shop to open in Orrin Theissen’s
ambitious Town Green Village, which is rapidly transforming the
west side of old Windsor into a trendy and lively neighborhood.
Powell has been on the wholesale side of the gift business for
years, as a partner in Santa Rosa-based Fridge Fun, a company that
makes and distributes refrigerator magnets and other gift items.
Powell decided it was time to try something new, and to have more
contact with the public, and he thought of a candy store. Why
candy? “Candy is fun,” he said.
Powell is so convinced that he has the right idea that he bought
the storefront instead of leasing it, and also bought a condominium
upstairs.
The store indeed seems to have something for everyone, from a
“Strip Chocolate” game on a high shelf to kid-sized bins of bubble
gum, to specially-made candy for dogs and cats.
Powell’s is organized as a series of vignettes. The “bathroom”
has a clawfoot tub filled with salt water taffy, the “kitchen”
features cookies, pasta, and baking chocolate, and the “casino” has
gaming themed candies. There is a two-seat “theater” with real
movie house seats, a popcorn machine, movie-sized boxes of candy,
and a video screen showing “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate
Factory.”
The walls have displays filled with Jelly Bellys, M&Ms in 24
colors – think silver and black M&Ms for a Raiders party – huge
suckers, jawbreakers, gum, and gifts.
The store features a large multi-flavor dispenser of “Pucker
Powder,” a new version of the old Pixy Stix candy. “It’s the number
one product in the store,” said Powell, as children circled the
machine, filling their plastic straws with powdered candy.
The center island in the store has a gelato bar, a case filled
with gourmet chocolates, and a “chocolate bar” where customers can
sit and try 40-cent mini-bars of dozens of varieties of chocolate
from around the world, while a chocolate steward explains each
flavor and style.
Powell’s is open seven days a week, and plans to stay open late
for the after-dinner crowd, as more Town Green Village restaurants
open up.