Sky Market & Butcher Shop's owner Elyton Souza, center, happily greets customers at his downtown Nashua location, housed in the former Collins Flowers building. Telegraph photo by GEORGE PELLETIER

NASHUA – Housed in the former Collins Flowers location downtown at the top of Library Hill, Sky Market & Butcher shop, 9 Main St., is bright, clean and pristine.

Customers shop for fine meats and the essential groceries, but owner Elyton Souza said with the opening of the market, the timing could have been a little better.

“Three months we’ve been open,” he said. “We opened in December. And we’re caught up with everything going on with COVID-19. We’re pretty stocked, but with suppliers, we’re still trying to get certain merchandise.”

Sky Market isn’t the only game in town dealing with shipment issues. But fortunately, the market, which sits near the corner of Main, and Amherst Streets, has attracted a devote following of customers in the short time it’s been open.

Souza seems like an optimist, right down to the construction going on in front of his store.

“It’s okay,” he said, looking out the window. “They have to make repairs. It’ll be for the best.”

For the most part, Souza said things have been relatively normal. Souza is friendly and clearly sees the glass more than half full, as he happily greets customers or offers them a hand – virtually, of course.

“We have some paper towels and bathroom tissue, for example,” he continued. “But a lot of these shipment houses, the factories, they’ve close down right now. Their people aren’t working.”

Souza said peanut butter is one of the things that the small factories that he deals with simply aren’t manufacturing right now or at least they can’t get it to him. Luckily, the selection of cuts in his butcher shop more than makes up for it.

“There in our butcher shop, we’re pretty well,” he said. “We have three different suppliers so everything in that department is arriving as scheduled.”

Sky Market, partly because they’re new and have a well-stocked market, haven’t suffered as some of the other smaller markets have.

“At first, people came in and bought everything they could,” he said. “Now, business has been a little more normal. But I think people are being cautious – they might be worried about a recession so they’re not spending like crazy. A lot of people in the community are coming in and buying just what they need, day to day.”

Souza said one of the perks of being in their location is that there is ample parking in the rear of the store. He did say he’s being conservative himself, with a plan to proceed moderately since there are no fast answers with the pandemic.

“We don’t know how the economy is going to be,” he said, “Let’s go slow, I say. Put one foot solidly in front of the other. That’s what I tell my people.”

Pricewise, Souza said some companies have increased their pricing, which effects his bottom line, but he’s keeping his prices the same. He also recognizes that shopping habits have changed and range from stockpiling to just buying what’s need for dinner that day.

“Today, society is different,” he said. “People don’t the cook the same way they used to cook anymore. But with the coronavirus, obviously, people are staying at home and they’re cooking for their families at home. They’re not going out to eat obviously, with restaurants closed. And we’re happy to see them here.”

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