Renard's is one of more than a dozen businesses featured in the holiday film "A Cherry Pie Christmas." The film's popularity is drawing visitors to the Door County businesses. PC: Fox 11 Online
DOOR COUNTY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Door County is known for its picturesque coastal towns, specialty shops, fish boils and, of course, cherry and apple orchards.
And now, you can add “home of holiday rom-com” to this list.
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas in Door County.
“You see the beautiful decorations, you see the small-town charm and really, you get in here and you do feel like you’re in one of these great, made-for-TV movies,” said Pat Nash with Destination Door County.
But it’s not just a feeling anymore, ever since the release of the made-for-TV holiday movie, “A Cherry Pie Christmas.”
According to Tera Romo from Illinois, “It was a cute girly movie. I don’t know that my husband would have liked it, but it was fun to see him notice some things too.”
The romantic comedy follows a pastry chef who returns home to Door County, only to learn her family’s cherry orchards are on the brink of being sold. She reconnects with her high school sweetheart and finds love is the recipe to save her heart and family farm.
According to Nash, “The entire movie was filmed right here in Door County using local family names, using locals as extras. So, the community really came together for the entire film.”
One of those locations is Novel Bay Booksellers.
“She tripped over the little blue chair in the scene. And the little boy was standing at the table that has our Christmas tree on it,” said store employee Emily Baker about the shop’s role in the movie.
The quaint bookshop was featured at the beginning of the film. It’s become one of more than a dozen destinations that fans of the movie are visiting in Door County.
Baker said, “People who come in all the time are also using it as an excuse to come in, and then locals are using it as an excuse to do a little trip down the peninsula. And yeah, definitely new visitors.”
Rob Scaturo, owner of Scaturo’s Baking Company and Cafe, is back to work making bread after appearing as himself in the film. He won second place in the movie’s cherry pie baking contest.
But now, like other businesses featured in the movie, Scaturo’s is coming out on top.
“It’s been busy as hell. I literally thought it was a joke and it’s been the most successful marketing thing we’ve done,” said Scaturo. He added, “Sales are up like 10%, I would say, over last year — and they were not before the movie came out.”
The Door County community and its businesses are riding the wave of success and hoping it’s just the beginning of its time in the movie spotlight.
Destination Door County is helping people visit all the sights from “A Cherry Pie Christmas” by setting up the Door County Christmas Movie Trail — an online contest where people can check-in at the movie’s shoot locations for a chance to win prizes.
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