Siesta Market to close after more than three decades on the Key

Siesta Market will close its doors before summer. 

Chris Brown and his business partner, Mike Granthon, purchased the Siesta Market Center property — which includes Siesta Key Hardware and Meaney’s Mini Donuts — in November from Whiting Holdings and Joseph Golomb for $2.8 million.  

Vince Messina and his brother, Peter, own the market. 

Brown said the Messinas approached him in March, saying they wanted to retire after running the store since 2001.

“They understand the commitment that it takes to run the store,” Brown said. “They wanted to retire and do it on their own terms.”

The Messinas are waiting to close until May 31, after season. 

“I’m going to relax,” Vince Messina said. “We’ve been working for a long time, we’ve had a nice time in this business, but it’s time to slow down.”

The Messinas told the market’s 20 employees about the closing in March, and most of them are staying on until the store closes, he said. 

Although he is sad to be leaving the store, he is ready for a new chapter.

“I’m 71 in August … I’ve had some friends who moved to Florida and retired. They seem to be happy,” Messina said. “I’ve always wanted to be active, but I’m overdoing it for our age.”

Messina said Brown will do a good job as the property owner because he is more actively interested in the property than previous owners. 

Brown and Granthon are already talking to potential vendors to fill the high-profile retail location in the Village, but they are still open to suggestions. However, Brown thinks the location’s best use is still as a grocery store of some kind. 

“I think that is a service that’s needed — there’s a huge void if it’s not a grocery store,” he said.  “Customers and tourists depend on it.”

The grocery store is the only market in the Village; Crescent Beach Grocery serves the south end of the Key.

Brown and Granthon have even considered opening their own grocery in the same location, but Brown said they haven’t made a decision yet.

Brown hopes to select a vendor within 30 to 45 days. He also plans to give the store a new coat of paint and maybe give it a new façade. 

But regardless of who operates in the space, Brown is firm that his goal isn’t to commercialize the property with a big box store — despite rumors that Wal-Mart or CVS could be contenders. There’s nothing wrong with these stores but there is a place for everything, he said — and the Village is not it.

“Whatever goes there will maintain the charm of the Village,” Brown said. “There’s no amount of money that would convince me or Mike to put a CVS or a Walmart in there.”