For a couple of years, Kristen Setter packed her inventory into her car and drove it to pop-up sales at Sacred Heart, UConn and Quinnipiac. "I did that for a while, and then I wanted to try the brick-and-mortar," she told NewCanaanite. Her boutique, Kset, opened on Elm Street earlier this year and has since moved to 6 South Ave., at the corner of Morse Court. She said that doing the sales in person showed her she liked it.
Setter's move fits the larger pattern in downtown New Canaan this year. The businesses that opened in 2026 are shops, and they are built around people coming through the door. Several of the businesses that closed were places where people sat down: a café inside a gift shop, a plant-based counter on Main Street, a Peruvian bistro. When the Chamber's Holiday Stroll fills Elm and Main on Friday, December 4, it will cover a downtown with more racks and fewer counters than it had a year ago.
Six Addresses, One Year
| Address | Before | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 78 Elm St. | Lilly Pulitzer Splash of Pink, seven years | Closed the week of July 20; now home to Dry Martini Clothing |
| 6 South Ave. | Former office space at Morse Court | Kset, relocated from its Elm Street start |
| 70 Main St. | Gallery space, vacant for several years | The Amateur, opened by early August |
| 99 Main St. | — | Resource360, open by early January |
| 39 Elm St. | The Adirondack Store, retail and café | Closed in early June after seven years |
| 96 Main St. | Greenology, plant-based eatery | Closed April 26 |
Every row in the right-hand column that gained a tenant gained a retailer. 78 Elm stayed in women's apparel when Dry Martini replaced Splash of Pink. The other new tenants filled spaces that had been an office, an empty gallery, or nothing in particular.
What Left Were the Places to Sit Down
The Adirondack Store was the closing with the biggest holiday connection. Co-owner Stephen Shin told NewCanaanite that New Canaan shoppers come into town and buy, "especially in the holidays, from Labor Day to Christmas Day." His partner, Christopher English, said the two "never really imagined that it would turn into a social hub for the community." The shop and café at 39 Elm closed in June, so this is the first Stroll in seven years without it.
Greenology closed two months before that. It had opened at 96 Main St. in 2021, at the corner of Main Street and East Avenue, in what NewCanaanite called the space locals remember as the former Wire Whisk. It closed on Sunday, April 26, and NewCanaanite wrote that it had filled a niche with its wide range of vegan options.
In July, two more food businesses changed. Pesca Peruvian Bistro, on Main Street for nearly eight years, closed that week, and its co-owner said he was retiring. On August 2, NewCanaanite reported that Green & Tonic's Forest Street café faced extensive repairs after the July 21 storm.
Food did gain one anchor. Doppio, the Italian restaurant at 62 Main St., marked its first year in August. Owner Joseph Barresi told NewCanaanite, "We're really happy with the way the town received us." It is a dinner restaurant, though. The quick stops along the Stroll route, the counters where people picked up a coffee or a smoothie, are the category that got smaller.
What Arrived Is Built for Walking In
The new shops have more in common than apparel. Each owner chose a physical storefront on purpose and talks about the space as part of the product.
Kset carries dresses, including formal dresses, plus sweaters, tops and casual wear for women from high school and college through their 20s. Setter picks every item at trade shows in New York and Las Vegas. She calls South Avenue "a stepping stone" and says she hopes to be "permanently in New Canaan, too."
The Amateur, at 70 Main St., sells running, cycling and ski apparel and accessories and no hard goods. Its running brands include Bandit, Satisfy, On Running, District Vision, New Balance, Hoka, Norda and Nike, and its cycling side carries MAAP and Universal Colors. Alpine skiing gets added as winter approaches. Founder Alex Holmes described the former gallery to NewCanaanite:
"It used to be an art gallery, so it was essentially like a concrete white box that we could design into. I didn't want this to feel like a traditional retail concept in terms of the fixturing and the design aesthetics."
The Amateur is open Wednesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. On a Friday, those posted hours end at 6 p.m., half an hour after the Stroll begins.
Dry Martini Clothing is a Manhattan women's fashion brand known for luxury fabrics, and New Canaan is its second physical location, according to an August NewCanaanite report. The brand's website lists its New Canaan store at 78 Elm St., where it hosts events like color-analysis readings with styling.
Resource360 at 99 Main St. is a different kind of shop that follows the same idea. According to NewCanaanite, founder Todd Sell, a town resident and veteran property renovator, built a front retail area with concrete countertops and custom cabinetry so homeowners can browse kitchen and bath products in person. The business also offers property management, interior design and referrals to trades.
How That Changes December 4
The Chamber's save-the-date sets the Stroll for Friday, December 4, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. The plan includes walking under the lights, browsing the stores, a show by young local performers, food, and selfies with Santa and Mrs. Claus. A group of local merchants started the Stroll 22 years ago, and the Chamber calls it New Canaan's answer to Small Business Saturday.
Many of this year's stores are new to the event, so a route that covers them runs in a loop. Start at Kset on South Avenue at Morse Court, walk up to Dry Martini at 78 Elm, then turn onto Main Street for The Amateur at 70 Main and Resource360 at 99 Main. Doppio is a few doors from The Amateur at 62 Main.
The next morning, Saturday, December 5, Santa returns from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 161 Elm St., with a magician making balloon animals for children waiting in line. That afternoon, from 3:30 to 4:30, New Canaan Library holds public voting for its Winter Cookie Decoration Contest.
The Weeks on Either Side
Downtown's shift toward shops makes the markets around the Stroll more useful for a gift list.
- Saturday, November 21. The New Canaan Nature Center Holiday Market runs 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 144 Oenoke Ridge Road. Admission is free, vendors sell jewelry, clothing and candles, and School of Rock plays holiday music.
- November 26 to 28. The Glass House closes for Thanksgiving. Its 2026 tour season runs through December 14, and the last November and December tours leave at 2:30 p.m.
- Friday, November 27. Grace Farms' Holiday Market runs 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 365 Lukes Wood Road and includes pieces by Nasreen Sheikh and the Empowerment Collective.
- Friday, December 4. The Holiday Stroll, downtown, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
- Saturday, December 5. Santa at 161 Elm St. in the morning, then cookie voting at the library.
- Thursday, December 10. New Canaan Library screens The Muppet Christmas Carol from 6 to 7:30 p.m.
- Monday, December 14. The Glass House's last day of the season.
- Tuesday, December 22. Grace Farms holds a second Holiday Market, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., three days before Christmas.
From the Nature Center market on November 21 to the Grace Farms market on December 22, the season runs a little more than four weeks. The Stroll falls near the middle.
If the changes on Elm and Main have you wondering how downtown's direction shows up in your own home's value, the Marion Filley Team tracks New Canaan address by address, the same way we watched these storefronts change this year. Ask us for a home valuation, and we can talk it over before the lights go up on December 4.
