Sunday, March 04, 2007
Owner closes Sole Mate shops
Jenny Kincaid Boone
Jenny reports on the latest news on the Roanoke Valley retail industry.
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Nearly six years in Blacksburg and another one in Roanoke wasn't long enough to keep a local boutique on its feet.
Susan Teague has shut down two of her women's apparel and shoe stores, called Sole Mate. The Roanoke store was on Colonial Avenue across from Towers Shopping Center.
Teague said too many people prefer to shop online or out-of-town. Those are some reasons why sales slipped at her Blacksburg location on South Main Street for the past two years.
Shoppers often would browse the racks at Sole Mate, but then turn to the Internet to buy the same items online, Teague said. She said some customers considered her store an emergency stop if they did not have time to shop elsewhere.
The Roanoke Sole Mate, which opened last year, had better success.
"Roanoke was really starting to take off," Teague said. "Once word got out about what we had, I had some really loyal customers."
But Teague said she can't bank her retail career only on the Roanoke store's sales, and she does not want to leave her home in Blacksburg.
"I can't be an emergency store," said Teague, who is taking an accounting job. "I have to be their [customers'] go-to store."
Zak's Cafe
A tight dining space soon will become larger for patrons at Zak's Cafe in downtown Roanoke. The Campbell Avenue restaurant is expanding its dining area into a space next door at 126 W. Campbell Ave. to create a total of 62 seats.
That's a location formerly occupied by Studios on the Square, an art gallery. But the gallery has moved to the second and third floors of the building.
Zak's general manager, John Beard, said the expanded seating area will open by mid-March.
"It's kind of a natural evolution of the restaurant, really, because we need more seats," he said.
Artwork from Studios on the Square will remain on the walls of the new dining room, creating "a nice flavor," Beard said.
The current Zak's at 128 Campbell Ave. will be outfitted with taller, cafe-style tables, he said.
The menu of dressed up sandwiches, soups and other entrees will remain.
Winter Properties
Eastern Roanoke County is landing a new retail and storage center.
Winter Properties Partnership is planning a 20,000 square foot building to house a storage facility and a group of retailers at the 2,200 block of Washington Avenue. The storage area will be on the bottom level of the building, with about 60 climate-controlled units.
The upper level of the building will face Virginia 24 with space for six different retailers and offices, said Scott Winter, who is managing partner with Winter Properties. The company owns Winter Mini Storage facilities.
No tenants have been finalized yet for the building, which should be complete by this summer, Winter said.
Rose Hill B&B
Wendy Blair moved to Roanoke from San Diego in search of a new life as an owner of a bed & breakfast inn. She chose a home built in 1910 in Roanoke's Old Southwest district. After spending most of 2006 remodeling the house, Blair opened Rose Hill Bed & Breakfast at 521 Washington Ave. last month.
It has three guest rooms, and rates start at $95 a night. A stay there includes a full breakfast and a tea at 4 p.m.
For more information about Rose Hill, visit www.bandbrosehill.com.
The Soccer Stop
Cleats, shoes and other soccer gear are available at a new location. The Soccer Stop recently moved to a new and larger space at 536 McClanahan St. Its former location at 2219 Franklin Road measured 3,200 square feet. The new shop is about 4,000 square feet, said owner Danny Beamer.
De Espresso
De Espresso, a former coffee shop at 402 & 406 Jefferson St. in downtown Roanoke, has closed. Its owner, Praveen Reddy, could not be reached for comment.
