Allison Geyer
The Soap Opera's new owners, Stacey and Sean Scannell, with their son, Sean Jr.
One of State Street’s oldest and most recognizable shops quietly changed hands last month.
Chuck Bauer and Chuck Beckwith, who have owned and operated the Soap Opera since 1972, sold their business to Stacey and Sean Scannell, both graduates of UW-Madison. The new owners took over the store, which sells specialty bath and body products, on Jan. 1.
The Scannells wanted to keep publicity about the sale to a minimum so as not to cause worry among the Soap Opera’s scores of loyal customers — many of whom have been shopping there for decades. But devotees shouldn’t fear the change — the Scannells are keeping all the existing employees on staff, continuing to stock all the same products and offering the same level of customer service.
“We’re excited to keep the store going for another 50 years,” says Stacey Scannell, 29, who has been a Soap Opera customer since moving to Madison in 2005.
Sean Scannell, a business broker, was initially working to help match Bauer and Beckwith with a buyer and collect a commission. But when they struggled to find a successor that was a good fit for the business, the Scannells decided to make an offer.
“I always wanted to own my own business,” says Sean Scannell, 32. “We looked at the finances and made it work.”
Bauer and Beckwith, who are both visual artists, are looking forward to spending their retirement working on art and traveling, Stacey Scannell says. But they have been helping through the transition and plan to stay involved with the store. Neither Bauer nor Beckwith could be reached for comment.
Ald. Mike Verveer, who represents the downtown district, says he was pleased to learn Bauer and Beckwith had found a buyer to carry on the Soap Opera legacy.
“As other retail businesses have come and gone many times over, Soap Opera has always been a mainstay,” Verveer says. “They’re kind of the epitome of a great, local, independent retailer.”
The future of State Street has been a subject of much discussion recently — city officials on Feb. 1 launched a grant program to encourage retail growth in the area, and within the next few weeks will hire a consultant to conduct a retail study that will be used to develop a strategic plan.
“Fostering healthy retail is critical,” Verveer says. “The continuation of the Soap Opera legacy on State Street does bode well.”