Trainor called longtime customer Belcinski to tell her that Avery's, her favorite home accents store, in Campbell's Kirkwood Plaza, would be closing its doors in July for good.

"I couldn't sleep the night after that phone call," Belcinski says. "I just kept thinking 'There goes my favorite store in the whole area.'"

And Belcinski isn't the only shopper who was surprised to receive a call from Trainor. Trainor personally contacted dozens of faithful clientele, whom she calls friends, to inform them about the shop's predicament before they read about it in the newspaper. The phone calls have been like a roller-coaster ride for Trainor as she has gently broken the news to her customers.

Some have visited Avery's on a weekly basis for decades to find new treasures to add to their china or silver collections. And while Trainor, 57, has relished her shop's almost-cult-like status among Silicon Valley residents looking for upscale and complete lines of china and crystal, she could not ignore the shop's growing financial instability. She hoped to stay open through the 2004 Christmas season, but decided it would be financially smarter to close the shop in July. A liquidation sale began on May 26 and will continue until midsummer.

"I was very optimistic that it would turn around, but it's just getting worse," Trainor says of the economy. "It breaks my heart that I have to leave this center."

The store has been located in the Kirkwood Plaza since September 2001.

She adds, "We are an institution. We had hundreds of loyal customers. When I called them about the store closing, many asked how they could help during the liquidation sale."

Customers are offering to tag items and prepare them for liquidation, and on-and-off employee Leona Kosten is more than willing to contribute to the process.

Kosten came to know Avery's first as a customer. She later worked as an employee and is now helping Trainor prepare the store for its final sale. As her eyes become watery, she quietly talks about the sadness she feels about the end of the store's long history in the community.

"Avery's has been a very important part of my life," Kosten says. "It is like family here. A lot of the customers could easily go to Macy's, but they come to Avery's for the employees and the personalized service. It never felt like I was selling anything. It just felt like I was sharing my love for the merchandise with others."

Kosten says she feels a sense of trepidation creeping in, knowing the upcoming holiday season will not include Avery's. She says the store was always a magical place for employees and customers alike.

"Christmas just isn't Christmas unless I am working at Avery's," she says. "It's a time when customers are smiling from the moment they walk in the door until they leave the store."

Another employee, manager Michael Sweet, is also coming to terms with the imminent closure. He has been with the store since 1989, when it was located on Stevens Creek Boulevard behind Kiddie World. As store manager, he knew the business wasn't financially solvent but didn't realize Trainor had decided to close the store so soon. Sweet says he's more concerned with customers who will be "devastated" by the closure than about his own transition to a new job. He says that on a weekly basis, clients would come to the store with a printed bridal registry from Macy's to buy the gift at Avery's instead. It always surprised him that loyal patrons would fight mall traffic, print out the registry and then drive to Campbell to purchase the gift.

"Many people would rather support a locally owned business than a major department store," Sweet says. "I just wish there were more of them."

One customer who shunned the department-store climate for Avery's is Cathy DeMaria. DeMaria, a Campbell resident, has shopped at Avery's at least once every two weeks for the past 15 years.

DeMaria was one of the faithful customers who would regularly print out bridal registries at Macy's and then travel to Avery's because "some brides just aren't smart enough to register at Avery's."

She says all the employees "have been like moms" with their guidance and says their salesmanship has always been impeccable.

"I stopped by the store after Nancy called me to stick out my lip and let it quiver," DeMaria says. "It's never just been about the merchandise. I go there for the friendships I've made."

Like many customers, DeMaria has been loyal to Avery's through its transition from San Jose to Campbell. Its first location opened on Stevens Creek Boulevard in 1979. After being evicted from this highly visible, trafficked spot, it moved to Kirkwood Plaza. Then Trainor had to operate her business out of a trailer for nine months while a 12,500-square-foot store was being built.

Even before she opened up her new Campbell store, Trainor was the manager of the store under the original owner, Avery Smith. Smith opened this opulent gift shop, which Trainor has continued, for those seeking out unique, upscale items.

With the shop is closing, Trainor still hopes to keep many of the relationships she formed alive as she moves out of her role as small-business owner. She considered opening a new store near her home in Gilroy, but decided against it. Now, as the days creep slowly toward July, Trainor and her eight staff members are coming to terms with the end of their cherished South Bay hangout.

She says, "It will be hard to say goodbye when the last day arrives, but it's time to go."

For more information about Avery's, 1600 W. Campbell Ave., call 408.871.8222.