LUDLOW, MA (WGGB/WSHM) – Last week, Smithland Pet and Garden announced the closure of all 13 of their locations in both Massachusetts and Connecticut and now, the man who built that business before it was bought by Smithland, is reacting to the news.
Dave Ratner got the call early Monday morning and he’s still trying to grapple with the fact that the business that he built from the ground up is closing its doors forever. “This is the first time I’ve actually talked about it,” Ratner added. “Now that I’m talking about it and thinking about it, it’s emotional.”
Forty years in business, but Ratner would do anything for just one more day on the job at Smithland Pet and Garden, formerly Dave’s Soda and Pet City while under his ownership. “If I was ten years younger, maybe I would go in and start all over again, but I’m done,” he explained…