Long-time San Francisco business Cookin' closing at the end of 2025
After nearly 45 years in business in San Francisco, the owner of a unique shop on Divisadero between Oak and Page says she is calling it quits.
Judith Kaminsky, the owner of Cookin', said her last regular day of business will be Dec. 31.
"Until quite recently, it's been a lot of fun," Kaminsky said. "I am spending too much time on things that do not really involve the business."
Kaminsky sells antique cookware. Over her nearly 45 years in business, her store has been a place where people would frequently go when they were looking for specific items. Kaminsky said much of the change has been a result of changing shopping habits, the changing business landscape, parking problems, and generational differences.
"Amazon, parking, and cleaning up after Gen Z — It's eating up all the time. And that part isn't fun," she said. "They're, I want it, I want it now, I want it delivered, I want to be able to return it, I don't care if it came from China and was made of plastic because I'm going to leave it on the street in three years."
The parking woes, she said, are one of the latest sources of aggravation, largely thanks to road construction on Divisadero.
"I've come out here when there was one, maybe, parking place that a regular customer could get into. Nobody is taking cast iron Dutch ovens down the road on a bicycle," she said.
Running a niche small business will always be a tall task. But Kaminsky argues the city needs to do a better job finding ways to prop up small businesses outside of the downtown area.
"They're not focusing on real small business," she said. "Talk to us about what we need and what they're willing to subsidize and help us do."
As for what's next, aside from sleep as she told one customer.
"I'm going to do something else in this space, if I can sell the inventory. I own the building," she said.