It may not look like much now, but pictured above is the future home of Hazel & Rose.

I am beyond thrilled to share that, after weeks of looking, I have signed the lease for the Hazel & Rose storefront. The space is inside The Broadway, a building that used to be home to the Land O' Nod Mattress Company and is currently home to wonderful businesses like Spyhouse Coffee Roasters and 612 Brew. The Broadway is owned by First & First, who does a truly fantastic job restoring buildings and turning them into spaces you can't wait to visit. I love their commitment to history, community, and design. 

I am lucky that my search was only a few weeks - it can easily take much longer to find a space that's the right look, size, price, and in the right neighborhood (especially if you are not using a broker because you are a start up and need to be thrifty). Almost all my time during those weeks was spent scouring Craigslist and various commercial real estate listing sites. I even spent days simply driving up and down neighborhoods that I thought would be promising, and that's how I found this space. 

It was not easy to remain level-headed as I made the decision to lease this space; I'd been itching to get something locked down since I decided to build Hazel & Rose months ago! Fortunately, I had received solid advice from former colleagues, new friends, and fellow entrepreneurs, and I took my time looking, asking questions, and researching to be sure that this was the right fit. 

Now that Hazel & Rose has a space, the real work begins. Today was spent reaching out to the designers that I got to meet in New York so I can place my first orders. Between now and January, I'll need to confirm an electrician, lighting design, insurance policy, floorplan design, and fixtures budget, among other logistical tasks, and I couldn't be more excited.

Hazel & Rose is shifting from hypothetical to inevitable.

P.S. If you were on my mailing list already, you've known about this announcement since Friday. If you are not already on my mailing list, just imagine all the future announcements that you could hear first when you sign up below!