When Perry Makarios opened his first business in Norwood, it was significantly smaller than the space that he now occupies. SPoT!’s current location on cottage street, is 12,000 square feet, and still the lines spill out the door and down the front steps.
Despite how it may look, Perry is no overnight success.
“This has been 30 years in the making” he says. “16 years ago, we opened the first location, and then we moved to the larger space just before the pandemic. My father had restaurants growing up, so I basically grew up in a kitchen.”
SPoT!- A family-owned café and store- gained serious attention after being voted the ‘best bagel in Boston’ by Boston.com last year. They received the same title from the Boston Herald in 2021. Now, they have become somewhat of a phenomenon on social media, where people from all over take photos and videos, reviewing products like hot sauce, candy, soda and of course, bagels from the store.
Aside from the glowing reviews, a major selling point of the shop is the interior, which mimics a retro soda shop from time gone by, reminiscent of a set from one of your favorite 50s’ movies. The walls are lined with colorful, graphic posters from Perry’s own personal collection. The “collage” as he describes it, is made up of both originals and reproductions, one-of-a-kind pieces that were once discarded and now highly sought after by vintage fiends.
“A lot of places (that display artwork) have that museum feeling. We wanted it to feel like it’s been here for a while. It’s got character.”
And it certainly does. The posters line the walls beside shelves that house bottles of colorful sodas, hundreds of flavors and brands that would put any gas station selection to shame. The stock of many of these sodas, Perry explains, is dwindling. He notes that their sales over the holiday season were unpredictably high, and they are awaiting shipment to refill their shelves soon.
The crossover between being a highly ranked bagel shop and a hub for retro food items is confusing for some people, according to Perry. Though there may not be a direct link between the two, it just works.
“I’ve never looked at someone else’s business and said, okay let me do that. I do my own thing.”
As shipping costs and supply demands are at an all-time high, many businesses have increased their prices to keep up. Perry is insistent that the prices at SPoT! Will remain the same, even if he personally takes the hit.
“There are some bagel shops in the city that are charging close to $30 for a dozen,” he says. “I just wouldn’t have the heart to do it.”
In fact, his heart is in an entirely different place. He even went as far as to introduce, ‘happy hour,’ which offers three bagels for a dollar and 25 cents after 3pm. This works to reduce waste and offer discounted items to those who need them. Quality takes precedence over profit.
“My biggest competitor is not other bagel shops” he says. “It’s people’s kitchens. If I can give them something that they feel is worth it, then it has to be cheaper than if you bought the ingredients to make it at home.”
And the quality speaks for itself, with customers travelling from far and wide to enjoy the artisanal products and bagels made fresh daily.
“We are not interested in opening another location, because right now it’s a destination point for a lot of our customers. Probably only half of our customers are actually from Norwood.”
He explains that expanding would dilute the feeling of intentionality, integrity and the personal touch that can only be maintained by having a family management team. Perry’s wife, Ana, works alongside him, and he jokes that he told her long ago if she wanted to spend more time with him, then working at SPoT! Was her best option. She took him up on the offer.
Though he might not have any plans for physical expansion, SPoT! Is nowhere near its peak, and Perry has ideas that will continue to attract crowds, from far beyond the Norwood zip code.
“Our hope is to create a subscription-based bagel delivery service. That way, you can go online and be able to receive a shipment either weekly, biweekly or monthly.”
A large mural of his face is printed on the wall outside the shop, “Bagels by Perry” written underneath. It is a reminder that every one of the 5,000 bagels they make daily, is crafted by him.
“Sometimes I say to myself, I wish I knew how to do something else,” he jokes. “Because it really becomes your life. I don’t have the heart to walk away and let go. I’m protecting my investment- the monetary and the emotional.”
Aside from the alluring interior and the competitive prices, their consistency and reliability keep customers coming back every week. SPoT! will continue to bring a taste of the past to the community, well into the future.
