Jenny Kincaid Boone covers retail and real estate.

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@roanoke.com
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Jenny Kincaid Boone

Retail Roundup columns

• Readers, thanks for your support
• Bastians Bar-B-Q to reopen
• Woolworth's space is being renovated in downtown Roanoke

The Storefront blog

• More from Jenny's blog

A cool-treat business has its eyes on the Roanoke Valley.

Jim Hagan, a franchisee for Rita's Water Ice, is making plans to bring his Italian ice, frozen custard and ice cream business to the Roanoke area.

The Maryland resident is the franchise owner for the New River and Roanoke valleys territory. He's already selected a location in downtown Blacksburg for a Rita's Water Ice, which is supposed to open this summer. Hagan has owned the franchise for the past three years, and he already has moved into an apartment in Blacksburg to make his commute easier.

In Roanoke, Hagan is on the hunt for a standalone Rita's location, measuring approximately 2,400 square feet. He's considering a site on Brambleton Avenue in Roanoke County, though his plans aren't yet final.

But Hagan won't stop at one local Rita's. He wants to open three in the Roanoke Valley.

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This summer, a trendy women's clothing shop will debut at Valley View Mall.

It's called Body Central and soon will take over the space that houses the Gallery, near the center of the Roanoke mall's lower level. Look for the Gallery to relocate elsewhere in the mall, said Louise Dudley, Valley View's manager.

Body Central, owned by Florida-based Body Shop America, sells a wide assortment of apparel from casual to dressy wear, shoes and accessories.

You can find Body Central stores in five other Virginia shopping centers in Richmond, Northern Virginia and the Hampton Roads area. The shop is slated to open in early August at Valley View.

In other mall news, LensCrafters will relocate to the District at Valley View this month, making way for the coming of Shoe Dept. Encore. This mega shoe store will move into four mall spaces, which are the current Shoe Dept. space, LensCrafters' store, and the former Henebry's Jewelers and One-Stop Cellular locations on Valley View's upper level.

Construction will begin in June at the future Encore space, Dudley said.

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Exhausted from a sweaty gym workout? The Botetourt Athletic Club houses a new business for relieving tired muscles.

Head to Toe Massage opened last month at the Botetourt County health club. Sean Geoghegan, a certified massage therapist since 2002 and owner of the business, specializes in Swedish, prenatal, deep tissue and stone massage.

He also offers in-home massage parties and chair massages for local businesses.

News from the Storefront blog at blogs.roanoke.com/rtblogs/storefront/:

• Nancy's Candy Co. is open in Salem.

• Pulaski is getting a Goodwill clearance center.

• Wireless Zone is open in Daleville.