Interior design firm relocating from city to River Road Shopping Center

Jack Jacobs August 31, 2023 0

Interior design firm Flourish Spaces is planning to relocate to 5019 Huguenot Road this year. (Jack Jacobs photo)

A Jackson Ward-based interior design firm is on the move to the West End, where it plans to expand on the retail operation it launched as a pandemic-era pivot.

Flourish Spaces aims to relocate to the River Road Shopping Center II this fall. It has inked a lease on the 3,000-square-foot storefront at 5019 Huguenot Road formerly occupied by women’s clothing store Lilly Pulitzer.

Both the Flourish Spaces interior design and retail operations are planning to vacate their current location at 221 E. Clay St. in Jackson Ward.

The firm is making the move because owner Stevie McFadden believes there’s better foot traffic in the new location and potential for even more with the pending arrival of another newcomer to the center.

“We saw this as a great opportunity to really go to a place where there’s more foot traffic. Especially with (the upcoming) Stella’s market, and there are so many other vendors I know our customers and clients frequent,” McFadden said.

Stella’s Grocery, a local chain, is working on opening a new location on the end of the retail strip in space formerly occupied by Starbucks.

Stevie McFadden. (Photo courtesy Stevie McFadden/The Scout Guide)

The change in location also offers a bigger venue for Flourish’s retail arm, which is expected to offer a wider selection in the new spot. McFadden estimated that about 70% of the space would be used by the retail showroom.

“Our (retail) space is really dedicated to showcasing the layers that go into a home. Certainly furniture, but also rugs, décor, the art, things that make a home personal,” McFadden said. “To have the space to showcase all those things and let us change it out with some frequency, the space is perfect for that.”

McFadden said the company’s retail arm, founded as Flourish Collective in late 2020, is being rebranded to Flourish Spaces to be consistent with the name of the interior design firm.

The retail venture was founded as a collective in which independent vendors also used the showroom. McFadden said that concept has evolved such that the retail experience is largely now an in-house operation.

“I think it’s been a gradual shift that’s happened over time. We’ve continued to love to feature local talent and makers,” McFadden said. “We really wanted to make an investment there and have that feel consistent with what we love as a design firm from a look and quality standpoint and continue to layer in those local makers and artists to make a space unique.”

McFadden plans to expand the retail team with a full-time sales manager and a couple part-time sales associates. One current full-time shop worker is making the move over to the new location.

The interior design team has six people including McFadden, who founded the firm in 2014.

McFadden said that while her business is leaving Jackson Ward, she intends to hold onto the building on Clay Street she’s owned since 2018. She is on the lookout for a commercial tenant to set up in the property.

McFadden said Flourish Spaces is planning to be open in the new location by the end October. Her lease on the storefront starts Sept. 1.

Other current tenants in the center include women’s clothing store Quinn and Osaka Sushi & Steak.

Jack joined BizSense in 2020, covering startups, retail, healthcare, public companies and nonprofits. He previously reported for the Virginia Gazette and Tidewater Review. He is a graduate of Christopher Newport University. Reach him at [email protected] or 804-554-6545.