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Natick Holiday Stroll brings out a festive crowd

December 19, 2022 by Deborah Brown Leave a Comment

The annual Natick Holiday Stroll drew last-minute holiday gift shoppers, kids and their families on a quest to see Santa, and those who took the event at its word and were just in town to walk around and enjoy the lights before popping into a restaurant for Saturday night dinner.

Natick Holiday Stroll

Natick Center merchants took advantage of the mild-enough weather to throw open their doors in a welcome to shoppers. The strains of live music were audible from inside Baylee Bee, and a hustle-and-bustle scene was evident at Calliope Paperie, where author Lindsay Cadigan was signing copies of her book, Betty the Confetti Yeti. Paper Fiesta hosted Jonah’s Twisters, who gave out free balloon animals to excited children, who then could get further wound up by getting their faces painted at Sweetwaters (we saw 1 little kid fall on the sidewalk, and her face was perhaps saved from hitting the cement when her ballon animal—which did not pop—cushioned the fall). We missed out on the free soup at Agostino’s but are sure it was delicious.

Natick Holiday Stroll

In addition to the classic bricks-and-mortar shopping experience, local small business owners and non-profit organizations set up tables on the sidewalk to capture the street traffic.

Natick Holiday Stroll

 

Natick Holiday Stroll

The Natick Center Cultural District put together the event, designed to encourage people to shop and eat in Natick’s downtown district.

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Filed Under: Community, Entertainment, Holidays, Shopping

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Business buzz: Immersive Gamebox could bring Squid Game & Angry Birds to Natick Mall; Good Feet relocates slightly; Thank you MutualOne

December 15, 2022 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

The latest Natick, Mass., business news:

Immersive Gamebox coming to Natick Mall

Not to be confused with Natick Mall’s Level99…or Dave & Buster’s…or Puttshack mini-golf, a new entertainment venue called Immersive Gamebox now plans to bring its group video game venue into the mix, likely in summer of 2023.

Immersive Gamebox is a business branching out across the United States, Europe, and beyond with social video games. Its games include a version of the popular Netflix series Squid Game, the classic Angry Birds, and more.

Immersive Gamebox involves game playing among groups, who cluster in a room geared up with motion tracking, projection mapping, touch screens and surround sound, all while wearing goofy visors (not full-blown virtual reality gear). Physical exertion is minimal, but you do at least move around a bit.

The venue caters both to kids and adults, though some games may be too intense for very young children. School field trips can also be arranged.

An Immersive Gamebox location in Texas charges from $5 for 15 minutes for kids during off-peak hours to $35 for an hour.

Event Recap Landscape (Royalty Free) (1).MOV from Immersive Gamebox on Vimeo.


Also new at the Mall

Showcase, which closely monitors social media and search engine trends to fill its stores with the hottest toys and collectibles, has opened at Natick Mall.

showcase natick mall

More than 100 Showcase stores have popped up across North America, and trending now are advent calendars, plush toys, and Pokémon.

Making its return to the Mall will be jeweler Zales.

Good Feet relocates slightly

The Good Feet Store, which specializes in arches to help with foot pain, recently moved from the main strip of buildings in Sherwood Plaza on Rte. 9 east to the free standing building in the plaza closer to Rte. 9. Big Picture Framing was the previous tenant.

The Natick Planning Board approved signage and roof work during an October meeting (about 2 hours, 35 minutes into Pegasus recording).

the good feet store

Thank you MutualOne!

We’re happy to have MutualOne as a returning sponsor for Natick Report.

MutualOne, Natick

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Filed Under: Business, Entertainment



Here’s a great Natick neighborhood to see holiday lights

December 12, 2022 by Deborah Brown 2 Comments

It may be safe to say that the Ferrelli family of Natick has created a family dynasty of holiday light displays, a magical flow of spirit that shines on from Brooke’s home at 62 Pond St. all the way over to her brother’s place at 34 Pheasant Hollow Road. We profiled Brooke’s set-up last year, an extensive labor of love that includes lights, inflatables, a fire pit, gifts for the kids, and more. This year we stopped by her brother Gregg’s house to see how his family rings in the season.

Natick Christmas display

Two more different displays you couldn’t hope to see, so make sure you make a stop at both places. What the siblings have in common is the desire to spread joy. “It’s just about the holiday season and enjoying it,” Gregg said. “It’s such a short stint and I enjoy it, personally, and the kids (Johnny, 5; and Mackenzie, 3) certainly do, and it brings them a ton of joy with the blowups.”

The front lawn of Gregg and his wife, Shannon, is graced with 18 inflatables—Sponge Bob is their son’s favorite, while their daughter is partial to Peppa Pig. Minnie Mouse, Frosty, and the Grinch get a lot of attention from neighborhood kids, and Tigger’s energy is infectious, as always.

Natick Christmas display

Shrubs on either side of the Ferrelli family’s front door are covered with candy-colored lights, and a large tree, the split-rail fencing, and the back deck have been strung with hundreds of white lights, completing the eye-catching scene that’s clearly put together with the holiday happiness of kids in mind.

“This neighborhood actually is awesome for families to drive through,” Gregg said. There are a ton of Christmas lights up. It’s a festive neighborhood.”

Natick Christmas display

I took a spin through the neighborhood off Speen St. (an easy-to-find starting point is Lands End St.), and Gregg was right. Loads of homes in that family-friendly neighborhood have gone all out with their exterior decorating. One home has the biggest inflatable Santa I’ve ever seen. He’s at least 20-ft. tall, so you can’t miss him as you drive around.

Natick Christmas display

I knew that Brooke and Gregg grew up with three other siblings, so I had to ask—does anyone else in the clan go all out for the holidays? Yup. A brother who lives in Gloucester also puts together a jaw-dropping display. Neither of the brothers are in competition with their sister, Brooke, though.

“No one can compete with her,” Gregg said. “She’s the queen.”


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Filed Under: Entertainment, Holidays

Natick High Theatre presents Little Shop of Horrors’—Dec. 2 & 3

November 30, 2022 by Admin Leave a Comment

Natick High School Theatre Company presents Little Shop of Horrors (Broadway Version) on Friday, Dec. 2, 7:30 pm and Saturday, Dec. 3, 3pm & 7:30pm. Tickets available at the door and online here.

This late 1950s/ early 60s-esque musical follows the trials and triumphs of Seymour Krelborn, a lowly flower shop assistant. Krelborn’s status soars when he is heralded a genius for discovering a new plant species. Krelborn displays the plant at Mushnik’s flower shop and both the shop and Seymour gain great acclaim. The unfortunate catch is that all of the benefits Seymour realizes now come at a costly price. Why might Seymour be willing to take an offer that will cost him dearly? Come to the show to find out.

Natick High School theater

Filed Under: Entertainment, Theater

Puttshack mini-golf bringing its ‘jams’ and ‘vibes’ to Natick Mall

November 29, 2022 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

The fun & games seemingly never stop at Natick Mall these days, which is filling up with entertainment options to supplement more traditional retailers. By the end of 2023 add Puttshack, a newfangled mini-golf spot with glowing colors, cranking tunes, and golf balls that use technology to keep score for you (yeah, you’ll need to part with your data to play).

Puttshack will move into space formerly occupied by the American Girl doll store, with 3 courses spreading across 22,000 square feet and full-service bars on 2 levels.

This isn’t your traditional Golf on the Village Green, like the Natick Rte. 9 favorite. It’s also not Glowgolf, the low-tech but also neon mini-golf venue that once had a spot at Natick Mall.

The Puttshack courses include ramps and other setups for trick shots, fun themes like Beer Pong, and based on the marketing materials, lots of “jams,” “vibes,” and “competitive socializing.” Its scoring system rewards you for good play and penalizes you for mistakes.

The founders have also opened venues for darts, ping pong, bowling, and golf (Topgolf).

puttshack

Puttshack is for ages 7 & up, though much of it appears geared to adults, with food and booze a big part of the mix. The venue will cater to individuals, but also to parties, with a semi-private room available for up to about 70 people.

Puttshack has scored more than $200M in venture funding over the past couple of years, and is expanding into more markets. It already has locations in Atlanta, Chicago, Miami, the UK, and recently opened in Boston’s Seaport.

Puttshack joins Level99, Dave & Buster’s, and soon Rumble Boxing, as action-packed options at Natick Mall.


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Filed Under: Business, Entertainment

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