change is inevitable. growth is optional.

It's my job to write this epilogue, and as jobs go, it's fairly easy. No sadness. No bitter sweet. Perhaps the easiest thing I'll do all summer. As I type Sarah is busy making candles, while also choosing paint swatches and trying to coordinate the carpenters to hang the door of 240 S 11th, Alli is labeling and helping customers, and I've just returned from handing the agent our official notice to vacate 117 S 13th Street after the holidays. We neither take with us nor leave behind any regrets.

When we moved here fifteen years ago, 13th Street was full of promise for retailers, and for many of those years it did not disappoint. Our space on the street gave us foot traffic, a buzzy neighborhood, and the kind of visibility that serves a business very well. While here we've been graced with multiple best of philly awards, a retailer of the year honor, and loads of love from so many magazines, papers and television programs that we've grown a solid base of regular customers both in store and online. On various occasions we spread our wings, attempted new endeavors and saw what there was to see. At the end of the day, the real joy for us has been the core business. The workshop and the store. Our tenure on 13th Street has offered us an opportunity to succeed at the brief. Live lives we love while creating quality, effective natural bath, body and skincare products.

though we try hard not to stray from the path, sometimes the path strays from us.

Our commitment to Philadelphia stays constant. We do not waiver. Center City is our home. While many might be feeling a lack of leadership, fresh ideas and solutions to the problems that seem to double by the week, packing up and running away solves nothing. It actually makes the problem worse. We hear daily from locals, suburbanites and out-of-towners how unsettling the city feels to them. At times we feel it too, and while there may be no easy fix to our problems, it does nothing to dim our resolve. Anyone who has been around here long enough knows that Philadelphia has it's own particular ebb and flow. We do however have a duty to our customers to give them a pleasant, safe and convenient experience when coming to see us. Easy access to a parking spot where you can run in and pick up your favorites is also a requirement. Our vision for the next seven good years allows us to better connect you to the hands-on experience of how things are made, and it allows us to recreate a more tactile shopping experience.

For now we look forward to these last few months on 13th Street as we build out the new spaces, and to welcoming you into our new store and workshop over on 11th Street come January 2023.

Steve

244 - 204 S 11th Street  -  workshop entry left - store entry right

you'll be able to see things being made in the workshop daily, and we will be welcoming you into the workshop space for classes, podcasts and special events throughout the year