Party Favors’ storefront
Husband and wife team, Mary Lynn and John Pergantis bought Party Favors as an existing business in April of 1992. The store holds absolutely everything to get your party started from over a thousand decorations to personalized hand-made cake designs for every occasion you can imagine. Party Favors even designs exquisite wedding cakes and invitations.
Mary Lynn comments, “My favorite is when I work Saturdays in Coolidge Corner and I get to see all the fabulous custom-ordered cakes being picked up. The level of creativity of our decorators is just amazing, and even after all these years, they still come up with new ideas and designs!”
These days, very rarely does a high school job lead to an inspiring career, yet this is what separates Party Favors. When asked how Party Favors came into their hands, Mary Lynn explained, “I moved here from Texas in 1987; John grew up here. He went to the Driscoll School in Brookline and to Brookline High. Party Favors had been in Brookline for about 30 years when we bought it. My husband worked for the previous owners when he went to Brookline High School, then returned to work for them when he graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in New York. We bought the store when they relocated to the North Shore. “
Mary Lynn explained that few people realize the store now has two locations. The Coolidge Corner store has 3,500 square feet of retail space with a downstairs kitchen where bakery products are created. When they expanded the Coolidge Corner store to include a space for food products, the walk-in traffic and sales increased significantly. The Commonwealth Ave store boasts over 13,000 square feet, and will host a Haunted House this month.
John’s early connection with the previous owners and their undying commitment to continuously improve the store’s experience resulted in the expansion it enjoys today. According to Mary Lynn “ On Comm Ave, it’s fun getting to know another part of the city that is so close by and yet so different in many ways from Coolidge Corner. Most of the college students have no idea we have another store, but it’s great to let them know that if they want to get a good cupcake, our Party Favors bakery is only 3 minutes away!”
Party Favors is providing a fun opportunity to celebrate Halloween throughout October in the form of a Theme Night. Celebrations happen each Friday at the Comm Ave starting at 5pm. Each party offers the chance to don costumes and make-up to enjoy some sweet fun. “We are introducing Theme Nights in our Comm Ave store as an effort to make it more than just a venue for shopping. We want it to be a fun experience, which is why we will also have a Haunted House and a “Creepy Cupcake Bar” on Thursday nights, where people can decorate their own Halloween cupcakes. Our upcoming event is a “Grand Opening,” which will take place this Thursday night, October 7th. It will be a “Hollywood Theme,” complete with a red carpet at the front door.”
When asked about her biggest inspiration, Mary Lynn replied “Seeing our regular customers go through the many different phases of life. We meet many of them for the first time when they come in for a wedding cake, and then we end up creating their kids’ birthday cakes, graduation cakes, etc. “
– Emily Bravman, writer for the HUB