Three years ago, Willow Wright, with some support from her mother, opened a home décor store in the Woodlawn area — and Urban Redeux was born. The store sells vintage, unique and funky housewares and is currently located at 8742 Cooper Rd.
Soon, Wright will be moving the business further north to 7916 Fort Hunt Rd. in the Hollin Hall Shopping Center.
A variety of factors went into Wright’s decision to move. On top of the fact that rent was going up at the Cooper Road store if she chose to renew her lease, Wright wanted to relocate closer to her customer base, who tend to live further north in Fort Hunt, Old Town and Del Ray.
Wright is excited to be moving into an established shopping center with such strong community support and customer loyalty. Moving into the family run shopping center involves a sit-down with the owner before a business is allowed to lease space.
Photo by Susannah Moore
The soon-to-be location for Urban Redeux
“I was a little bit nervous that he [property owner] wouldn’t even like me or want us to be there in the first place, but after a great conversation, he extended the lease opportunity to us. I feel like our business is going to bring just a little bit of freshness to the shopping center, but I also really appreciate the businesses that have been there so long,” said Wright.
She hopes that she can partner with other businesses in the center and maybe help start community events and markets at the shopping center. “One thing that Hollin Hall has that my current space doesn’t is other vendors and businesses. I’m between a bank and a restaurant, so I’m the only small business that’s any sort of retail down where I am, but I’m looking forward to going up and being part of other retail spaces where there are people milling around and there is life to the shopping center,” Wright explained.
The new store will be tucked in the back of the center behind the 7-Eleven in the space formerly occupied by Rooga’s Sports Essentials. Wright is hoping to open sometime in early September.
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