This is Part 1 of a series on the businesses who received mentions in the 2025 “Best of Rhode Island” contest from “Rhode Island Monthly”

East Providence businesses earned numerous nods in the annually-awaited awards bestowed by “Rhode Island Monthly” for various “best of’s” in the state.

From makers of dinnerware so fine it wound up in a celebrity chef’s restaurant in Manhattan, to a local gem of a jewelry store, and multiple spots where local art takes the forefront, East Providence made a sizable impact in the shopping, arts & culture, and health & beauty scene this year.

Eight East Providence businesses earned awards in total — either an editor’s pick representing the best of a category among all other businesses in the state, or from readers who voted the business the best in the state for its category, or at least the best in its region.

The first two to respond to inquiries from The Post are discussed in detailed feature stories below.

Breaking the mold on industrial design
For two people who cut their professional teeth in the demanding, often rigid world of high-industry design, Abby and Eric Smallwood have muscled their way into a clever niche that is two parts “Wonka-esque” magic, and one part mechanical prowess.

The couple, who met at Syracuse University, married in Jamestown, and now live in Rumford, are co-owners of Myrth, which specializes in making high-quality porcelain ceramics available in a scientifically-crafted rainbow of colored, durable glazes suitable for even the most particular of tastes.

Myrth was named the winner of the best custom-made dinnerware (a statewide editor’s pick) under the magazine’s “shopping” category.
The company officially started as a side hustle in 2015, but has its true roots back in 2008 when Abby was working as a material designer for New Balance and Eric was working as a consultant for industrial product design.

“He did everything that wasn't fabric,” said Abby, a native of the Philadelphia area. “I did everything that was fabric.”

While living together in Boston, they discovered a natural passion for making pottery. They bounced around a couple of different studio spaces honing the craft before winding up in a space of their own in Allston; located, ironically enough, just two doors down from the New Balance offices.

“It was not deliberate. It just worked out that way,” Abby said. “It was my 5 to 9 after my 9 to 5.”

From this spot, Myrth — a name crafted from the Olde English spelling of “mirth”, meaning something that evokes warmth and happiness — was born. They soon got their first commercial order for around 50 of their ceramic tableware for a restaurateur, which provided the proof of concept needed for them to fully dive in.

In the nearly 10 years since, the growth has been exponential and, luckily enough for Rhode Island, skyrocketing real estate prices drove them away from Massachusetts and led them to the bustling industrial complex at 310 Bourne Ave., on the banks of the Seekonk River.

Visit Myrth today, and you’ll see a sprawling factory bathed in natural light that serves simultaneously as an industrial workshop and a commercial showroom for their large variety of dinnerware. Plates, platters, cups, bowls, and pillar vases are neatly stacked in various stages of completion. A rainforest of glazed ceramic swatches sit organized on a table, showing off the variety of colors each piece can be fired.

Both the ceramic and the glaze have been painstakingly crafted by the Smallwoods, resulting in flawless-finish, durable pieces that have been ordered by the likes of celebrity chef Danny Garcia (a winner of “Top Chef”) for his restaurant in the Flatiron district of Manhattan.

A far cry from their humble beginnings, Myrth recently completed an order for a total of 3,300 pieces to supply the entirety of the dinnerware at PostBoy, a restaurant in Michigan.

Abby said that there are plans to add a hydraulic press to their operation, which would enable them to start mass-producing items that aren’t naturally circular.

“We are hoping to expand into housewares and really take our industrial design background and expand it into other parts of homewares and interior design elements,” she said. “Things like small sinks, big interior tiles. We could actually make a whole fireplace hearth out of our tiles.”

The move to East Providence has been one that Abby said she has never regretted.

“I wouldn't change it for the world. I love it down here,” she said. “Winning the award was pretty rad because we had only been here for like, a year, you know? I feel like we felt so much more support in Rhode Island so quickly when we moved down here…People really respect what we do and I think it's because there's such an art and design community here.”

Business name: Myrth
Location: 310 Bourne Ave. (Suite 14-1), Rumford, RI 02916
Website: www.myrth.us (schedule an appointment for a showing of their merchandise, or inquire more at hello@myrth.us)

Art for everyone
Perhaps nobody in East Providence would agree with Abby Smallwood’s prior statement more than Jennifer Gillooly Cahoon, owner and operator of HeARTspot LLC, which netted a reader’s pick for Best Art Gallery in the East Bay in this year’s awards.

It is the seventh award from Rhode Island Monthly for HeARTspot, which opened in June of 2017. And although she maintains a sense of humility about the accomplishment, Gillooly Cahoon could be (and should be) credited as one of the key architects for the city’s growing and thriving arts scene.

Prior to opening HeARTspot, Gillooly Cahoon had been a special educator and arts teacher for nearly 20 years, eventually becoming the chair of the arts department for East Providence public schools. On the side, she was earning a name for herself as a self-taught painter, getting into galleries and beginning to receive commissions for her work. She also recognized the lack of a central arts hub in East Providence.

When one potential concept for such a space that was initiated by the city fell through unsuccessfully, she got inspiration from her husband, Nate, who told her to take a sabbatical from teaching for a year to work out something she wanted to do, whether that was continue teaching or to strike out on her own.

She wrote a business plan for an arts center, and got financial literacy and business training from the Rhode Island Small Business Development Center in 2016. After a long search, she finally found a suitable piece of commercial real estate, fittingly enough right next to East Providence High School, in what used to be a walk-in medical clinic. It needed some renovating, but the stage was set.

In June of 2017, HeARTspot opened. By that fall, Gillooly Cahoon had already gathered enough interest and work to put on her first showcase; something wholly unique, which would become a theme at the gallery.

“I love Halloween and at the time, back in 2017, no one was doing that,” Gillooly Cahoon said. “I think I only had 35 pieces or 40 pieces that year. But to my surprise, over 200 people came through the doors that night and I sold a ton of work.”

Gilloly Cahoon recognized the natural appeal that came from gravitating away from the “normal” kinds of artwork displayed in galleries. And thanks to her incorporation of her former profession into the business, she is able to be more flexible with the artists she chooses to work with. HeARTspot offers classes to elementary and secondary level students, as well as adults. Gillooly Cahoon will also rent the space out to other art educators who don’t have a space of their own.

“This is my classroom,” she said, gesturing to an area of the gallery set up with tables and chairs and a variety of artwork hanging up around the space. “Once a teacher, always a teacher.”

“The gallery itself runs like a standard gallery, but because I'm not beholden to sales to keep my lights on, I have a lot more leeway, akin to like a university gallery,” she continued. “I can take on social causes. I can take risks on emerging artists. I don't have to the chase down established people and only show landscapes and beach scenes all the time.”

Serendipitously enough, the gallery’s next show will be a feature on “The Art of Fantasy”, incorporating 2D and 3D works that will transition nicely into the Halloween season. It is available to view starting today, Aug. 28, through Sept. 17. The opening will be held 6-8 p.m.

Asked what HeARTspot offers that has enabled it to garner over 10 different award from local publications in its short time since opening, Gillooly Cahoon said it was about opening up the therapeutic and soulful act of creating to a wider audience.

“It’s simple. It’s art for everyone,” she said. “It brings joy. And I tell people when they're in my class…once the light bulb goes off and they're in that zone, that cognitive shift that happens where your hair could be on fire and people are screaming your name and you're like, ‘Not now.’ What's happening in your brain at that moment is akin to what happens when you meditate. It’s good for you. It's good for your head, it's good for your heart. If you believe in a soul, it's good for that too.”

Business name: HeARTspot LLC
Location: 1970 Pawtucket Ave., East Providence, RI 02914
Website: www.heartspotart.com (email heartspotartcenter@gmail.com for more information)