SUDBURY, MA — Two long-time Sudbury entities, Duck Soup and The Wayside Inn, join forces in an exciting new collaboration as Duck Soup prepares to manage The Wayside Innu2019s Gift Shop starting in February 2021. Steve Pickford, Innkeeper and General Manager of Longfellowu2019s Wayside Inn, says, u201cI am extremely excited to be partnering with Duck Soup. The staff and I are looking forward to the new shop opening as are many of our customers who seem to share the same enthusiasm.u201d u201cDuck Soup is a Sudbury icon and is generous toward the community with their service,u201d said Sally Hild, Nonprofit Director of The Wayside Inn Foundation. She added, u201cThis is a fabulous opportunity to work together. Their shopu2019s business model is reminiscent of a modern-day general store. Given that The Wayside Innu2019s history includes Henry Fordu2019s country store, having Duck Soup operate our gift shop in the same tradition expands upon that part of our story on site.u201d Merchandise will include products that represent Sudbury, New England, and The Wayside Inn Historic District, along with items that bear The Wayside Innu2019s logo. The shop is set to open on Saturday, February 6th and will be open seven days a week. Mondays through Saturdays the store will operate from 11:00 am to 7:30 pm, and on Sundays from noon to 4:00 pm. When asked what he was most looking forward to through this partnership, Duck Soupu2019s Store Manager Frank Mawhinney said, u201cI am a redcoat reenactor and am passionate about historical places. I am very excited about the opportunity to work with The Wayside Inn in this way. We hope we can add value to this wonderful establishment and are honored to be part of the team.u201d u201cI have fond memories of shopping at The Inn over many years,u201d said Louise Mawhinney, Franku2019s mother and owner of Duck Soup. u201cWe look forward to bringing a touch of Duck Soup to this great Sudbury landmark.u201d Both The Wayside Inn and Duck Soup are looking forward to expanding opportunities beyond merchandising into future programming. As Louise explains, u201cAlthough we are living in strange times and our normal activities are very much restricted, when the time is right we plan to offer synergistic programming that will appeal not only to Sudbury residents and Duck Soup customers, but also more broadly to tourists and visitors to the Sudbury area.u201d The Wayside Inn is a nonprofit charitable Massachusetts corporation created in 1944 to own, operate, and maintain the Wayside Inn Historic Site, a campus of nine historic buildings on more than 100 acres. Its mission promotes early American humanities through hospitality, education, and programming, and continues an innkeeping tradition dating back to 1716. The site provides an opportunity for visitors from near and far to gather, engage, and find meaning, relevance, and inspiration through a place-based exploration of history. For more information about The Wayside Inn, visit www.wayside.org. Duck Soup was established in 1971 in Sudbury, Massachusetts as a contemporary general store. Duck Soup is a beloved neighborhood institution where customers come to buy coffee beans, u201cpennyu201d candy, cheese, and wine, along with that essential kitchen utensil and hard-to-find international food or craft liquor. For more information about Duck Soup, visit www.quackquackquack.com.