Community
5 August, 2026
Grand reopening success
THE general store in Princetown has once again opened with renovations after years of closure, with owners stepping up to the plate to take the store in a new direction.
The project was initially put together by Grant and Angie Hutchins, who aimed to bring the general store back to Princetown for the good of the community.
Running the store are Daniel Lasarow and Ingrid Roumi, who were approached by Mr Hutchins and asked if they were willing to take the plunge and start a new business in Princetown.
Mr Lasarow said he believed Mr Hutchins, who had been visiting the Princetown area for a long time, was really inspired to bring the store back to life after seeing it sitting empty for so long.
“He came to us because we’ve got an eatery five minutes up the road and he came to us before development even started and liked what we were doing foodwise – our vision and working with locals and organic everything,” he said.
“Because he didn’t want anything to do with the food and beverage side of things he just saw it as an opportunity to offer us this opportunity.
“We decided to do it and here we are.”
The pair decided two years ago to take on the reopening of the general store, with the results of their efforts finally coming to fruition as last week began their first week of trading.
“It was a lot of work to be done on the building to start with and after that a lot of organisation, discussing our vision, seeing what we wanted to do with it,” Ms Roumi said.
“We talked a lot with the locals, what they are missing in the area, what they wanted to see.
“That’s the first part of the project – we are going to get an extension for a bigger restaurant opening just behind probably mid-next year.
“It’s just about bringing more dynamic to the local economy.”
The general store places an emphasis on local farmers and artisans, stocking products made in the Otways region such as Schulz Organic Dairy, Apostle Whey Cheese, Otways Pasta Company, Saint Aire Farm and more.
The store also doubles as a café and bar, with exclusively local wines, as well as beer from Noodledoof out of Koroit and Sow and Piglets out of Port Campbell.
“It’s exposure for the local artisans because there are a lot of amazing farmers, growers and amazing people doing amazing stuff in the Otways, but they don’t really have any visibility because they’re small businesses who are already putting in so much work to just manage the business and they don’t have enough time to promote themselves,” Ms Roumi said.
“I think what we wanted to do was offer our platform to those people and give a better option when it comes to food as well because I think in the area, no one is really working with the local farmers and artisans, and I think it’s sad.
“I think people want to do the right stuff but they’re not because it’s not convenient.”
Mr Lasarow said one of the main aims of the store was to shed light on the amazing businesses operating in the region and showcasing their products.
“A lot of the local farms and producers, they’re more in the hinterlands, so most tourists don’t actually venture out that way,” he said.
“We’re trying to stock as much as we can so that national and international tourists travelling this road and stopping here can help the local farmers benefit from a bit of promotion and hopefully they sell some of their products.
“We really stand behind the quality of their products – it’s absolutely fantastic, so it’s just a matter of exposure.
“We’re hoping that we can help local farmers and local producers while at the same time offer something for Princetown.”
Mr Lasarow said everyone involved in the building of the new general store were also locals, ranging from Warrnambool to Colac and down the coast.
“It’s been really cool because the whole community feels like they played a part in bringing this place back to life and that’s what we’re trying to capture,” he said.
“Between the produce and all the tradies and everything and everyone involved, it’s really a community push back to some of the bigger projects that are happening around here and we’re trying to cherish that and hold onto it.
“This place is going to be like your local tavern except with a bit our style of what we want.”
Ms Roumi said eventually they would like to host local events at the store, including inviting artists out for concerts.
“We really want to create a community because it already exists but we want to be part of that,” she said.
Read More: Princetown