Soft as a Grape opens Wareham store

Soft as a Grape, the screen-printed apparel company that has operated a factory in Wareham for years, now has a retail location in town, too.

The store is located next to Bath and Bodyworks in the Wareham Crossing Plaza, and Sarah Turrell, the company’s head of retail, said some Wareham residents told her they felt the store was well overdue. 

The company has long held tent sales on holiday weekends, which have expanded to an everyday occurrence this summer. But the new store will allow the company to have a retail presence year-round.

The store features Soft as a Grape’s traditional Cape Cod gear, along with sweatshirts and other apparel that read Wareham or Marion, Mattapoisett, or Rochester.

“It’s got a home-town feeling,” Turrell said on Saturday, the second day the store was open. She said that the store had experienced a steady flow of customers, especially in the afternoon.

The store also includes a warehouse sale section, composed of slightly imperfect clothing with irregular dye, a small hole, or other irregularities.

The front of the store is dominated by a large display of face masks. Soft as a Grape has rolled out a variety of Halloween and back-to-school mask designs, and is even getting ahead of the game with a number of Christmas masks. Hanukkah masks are in the works.

Soft as a Grape has also started pairing some masks with a card, as many people have said they were purchasing masks as gifts.

“Unfortunately, we have to wear a mask, but you might as well have fun with it,” Turrell said. “It’s an accessory!”

The store is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. seven days a week.