Business

Business Profile: Chick’s Southold Agway

KATHARINE SCHROEDER PHOTO | Agway staff members (from left) Vic Rutkowski, Fred Oliver, Robert MacDonald and Brian Carty with owner Valerie Cichanowicz.

Owner(s): Val Cichanowicz

Year established: 1964

Location: 1705 Youngs Avenue, Southold

Phone: 631-765-3432

Number of employees: 14

email: [email protected]

www.agway.com

For many devoted home gardeners on the North Fork, shopping at Chick’s Southold Agway is an experience reminiscent of being a kid let loose in a toy store. So many compelling items! It is one-stop shopping for the green-thumbed individual — “your yard, garden and pet place,” according to the store’s owner, Val Cichanowicz, who took over the business in 2000. She has since turned it into a complete lawn and garden center, with a full line of fertilizers, soil conditioners, chemicals, yard tools and watering supplies including hoses, sprinklers and some irrigation replacement parts. It is nirvana for the area’s many professional landscape contractors as well, who require bulk quantities of mulch, topsoil and other supplies.

The family-owned business is the North Fork’s largest supplier of Scotts/Ortho products, including its Super Turf Builder, and always keeps abreast of new products. According to Val, “we put a lot of time and energy into organic solutions. If there is an organic way to control a pest or green up your lawn, we’ve got it.”

Chick’s Agway also stocks beautiful pottery and containers from around the world, ceramic ware, original terra cotta pots, saucers and decorative glazed pieces, including fountains and birdbaths. Their home accessories include decorative plant stands and doormats.

Chick’s is paradise for pet lovers, too. Val and her family are concerned about animal health and well-being, and stock only the best lines of premium pet food, treats, grooming products, collars, outerwear and other pet supplies, including cushy pillows for the ultimate in feline and canine lounging. In addition to a complete line of small animal feed and supplies, including poultry feeders, Chick’s carries “barnyard” animal feed and farm supplies,

The North Fork’s many bird-lovers and birders will find a large selection of seed, suet and bird food at Chick’s, and a wide variety of feeders for different species of birds.

“We take great pride in providing our customers a fun and informative shopping experience,” said Val. “We love to learn about new, innovative ways to care for the lawn and garden, and for pets, and we enjoy sharing our knowledge with our customers.”

Val has been a licensed NYS DEC pesticide applicator for almost 20 years, and is an expert on pesticide selection and application, although she is always researching non-chemical alternatives, and can usually find an organic approach to any issue.  
The nursery explodes with color in season, beginning in early spring with flowering bulbs, through autumn with pots of mums and striking foliage plants and into winter with wreaths and other holiday items. They carry a complete and extensive line of common and uncommon annuals, perennials, trees and shrubs, with special concentration on deer-resistant varieties. There are seeds of all kinds, from vegetables and fruits to flowers, and a large selection of tomato plants and herbs.

To top it off, the well-dressed gardener can always count on Chick’s for a large selection of garden gloves, hats, clogs and boots.
Store hours are Monday to Saturday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., with extended hours in season. Visit www.agway.com.