One Year of Dugazon: A Dream Come True

One year ago, we opened the doors to DUGAZON for the very first time.

Even writing that sentence feels emotional.

DUGAZON was an idea we carried with us for more than two decades - first imagined on our very first date, then shaped through years of conversations, travels, apartments, flea markets, shared meals, and countless late-night discussions about what it might someday become.

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On August 27, 2025, someday finally arrived.

We opened the doors of our little clapboard house on West Main Street in Sharon and welcomed people into a space that had, until then, existed mostly in our imaginations.  From the beginning, we hoped DUGAZON would feel less like a traditional shop and more like stepping into a well-loved home - layered, personal, comfortable, and filled with objects that had stories to tell.

What we couldn't have imagined was how quickly all of you would make it feel like home.

Over the past year, we've welcomed old friends, new neighbors, longtime collectors, curious travelers, enthusiastic cooks, generous hosts, and people who simply wandered in to see what was inside. Some came looking for a gift or pantry staple.  Others discovered something they didn't know they needed - a vintage serving spoon, a beautifully worn cookbook, the perfect taper candle, or a piece of art that seemed destined to go home with them.

Many have told us that DUGAZON feels as though it has always been part of Sharon.  We can't imagine a greater compliment.

From the beginning, our vision extended beyond the objects on the shelves.  We wanted to create a place for conversation, discovery, hospitality, and community.  A place where someone might arrive looking for linen napkins and leave with a dinner idea.  Where a cookbook sparks a memory of a grandmother's kitchen.  Where a simple question—"What are you cooking lately?" - turns into a twenty-minute conversation.

This first year has been filled with moments like these.  

We've hosted gatherings that brought people together around food, welcomed artists and makers we deeply admire, and watched friendships form naturally between people who may never have crossed paths otherwise.  Trade Secrets Weekend brought an unforgettable Open House featuring seasonal bites by Lidey Heuck while supporting Project SAGE.  We welcomed Gretchen M. New York and Gretchen Mol for a special preview celebrating timeless style, craftsmanship, and friendship.  More recently, The Snug has become a place for conversations with authors, artists, and guests who continue to enrich our community in ways we never imagined.

Our kitchen has become part of the story as well. Through Bobby's recipes - many inspired by Louisiana family traditions - we've shared dishes like chicken and sausage gumbo, crawfish étouffée, onion pie, chicken enchiladas, and seafood gumbo.  They're more than recipes.  They're stories about grandparents, family tables, open doors, extra chairs, and the belief that food is one of the most meaningful ways we care for one another.

We've also been humbled by the writers and publications who have shared our story.  From features in The Lakeville Journal, Litchfield Magazine, and Main Street Magazine to mentions in Modern Luxury Interiors, New England Home, Condé Nast Traveler, The Telegraph, and beyond, each has introduced DUGAZON to new friends while recognizing the heart behind what we've created.

Yet the moments that matter most will never appear in a headline.

They're found in the customer who returns to tell us how much they love the bowl they purchased months ago.  The family who cooked one of Bobby's recipes. The neighbor who stops in simply to say hello. The visitor who makes one more lap around the shop because they know they'll discover something new. The conversations that continue long after a purchase has been wrapped.

Those are the moments that have defined our first year.

DUGAZON takes its name from Bobby's mother's family, whose traditions of Louisiana cooking, entertaining, and open-door hospitality continue to inspire everything we do. It also embraces the spirit of lagniappe - that little something extra offered not because it's expected, but because generosity makes life richer.

Over the past year, you've given that spirit right back to us.

Thank you for walking through our doors. Thank you for sharing your stories, bringing your friends, cooking our recipes, attending our gatherings, supporting the artists and makers we love, and allowing the pieces we carefully choose to become part of your homes and your lives.

Our first year has reminded us that both a home and a shop become meaningful through use - through conversations, shared meals, discoveries, laughter, and the people who gather inside.

And we're just getting started.

There are more recipes to cook, more tables to set, more artists and makers to discover, more stories to tell, and many more reasons to gather.

Here's to Year Two - and, as always, a little more lagniappe along the way.

With heartfelt gratitude,

The Dugazon Boys - Bobby & Matt