So what does an ambitious retailer do when the big boys come in and take over your store? Take what you can and start your own store, and that is just what Beverly Dillon did. Beverly ran the Chesapeake Pharmacy in Chesapeake Beach, Maryland for 28 years. When the owners had a conflict with their landlord over a new lease, CVS moved in and took over. The new owners also eliminated some merchandise that “didn’t fit into their model”, so Beverly moved the popular items to her new store this past June and Beverly’s Gifts and Flowers was born.

Via the Chesapeake Beach Railway, Chesapeake Beach was once the beach get-a-way for Washingtonians in the early 1900’s. In the 1950’s the Bay Bridge was built and Washingtonians could then travel to the Atlantic beaches. Even though a lot of business was lost, Chesapeake Beach and neighboring North Beach has never lost their appeal… which rings us back to Beverly’s Gifts.

With the elimination of the products she had worked so hard to make available to her customers at the original location, Beverly decided to open her new store about three blocks from the pharmacy in the former Nationwide Insurance office. “In the four months we have been open, our business has been good,” Beverly tells me. “However”, she continues, “some of my former customers don’t even know that we are here.”

The store, which was once a single story house, carries gifts for all occasions and specializes in seasonal gifts and selections. Beverly’s has a great display of Halloween gifts and spooky accessories as well as everything else, well…Halloween. Not to be overshadowed by the lure of the Halloween, October is Breast Cancer awareness month and Beverly will have a selection of gifts available for you and your loved ones.

You can find just about anything you might need in this jam packed store. From fresh cut flowers and helium balloons to jewelry, home décor items, Crabtree and Evelyn products, Peppers line of crab salsas, hot sauces and Chesapeake Chocolates featuring chocolate crabs and bushel baskets of crabs in milk, dark and white chocolate. The store offers an extensive selection of Maryland and Chesapeake Bay souvenirs.

There is also a selection of Chesapeake Bay books including the popular Taste of the Beaches Cookbook. In the near future Beverly hopes to pick up the popular Alex & Ani line of jewelry. So where does she go from here? “My mission is to provide tourists as well as the community with a wide spectrum of value priced gift selections for all occasions. I would like to be known as the “go to place” when in search of a gift for someone or to treat yourself to something special while providing exceptional customer service.”

If you live in the area, stop by this unique store. If you visit our friends at North Beach make sure that you swing over to Chesapeake Beach and say hi to Beverly Dillon…you will be glad you did. Beverly’s Gifts and Flowers is open 7 days a week, Monday – Friday 9 am – 6 pm; Saturday and Sunday 9 am – 3 pm. Or check out http://www.beverlysgiftsandflowers.com.

Written by: Bob Tagert