Lexington, KY - There are a handful of new kids on the block along Clay Avenue, helping further cement the street's reputation as a desirable Lexington shopping destination.
Gene Slusher, the owner of The Lexington Angler, which opened in August, is bringing the Orvis brand back to Lexington after a long absence, as well as more variety to Clay Avenue: his shop, which specializes in the sporting life apparel and equipment, is the first shop on the stretch geared toward men.
"Clay Avenue was really the only place I wanted to put it," Slusher said about opening the new store. "I looked at a lot of other places and nothing really caught my eye. My clients shop here regularly. They live in 40502 and they're here. It's up and coming. I think in a few years this is going to be a beautiful street full of boutique shops even more so than now."
And with "mentors" on the street like Peggy Queen of Peggy's Gifts & Accessories, a 21-year-old staple of Clay Avenue, Slusher's dreams of making the street even more shopper friendly just might be a reality.
Growing is good, but Queen said maintaining the unrivaled customer service and charming atmosphere are equally as important as adding more mass in shops and customers.
Over the years, changes to the street have been subtle, and it is uncommon for stores to go out of business due to a lack of customers. Part of that can be credited to the fact that Clay Avenue stores don't "step on each other's toes," Queen said. "We just make it a nice place for people to come and get a variety of things."
Sarah Woodworth, who recently opened Monkee's of Lexington with her mother, Janet Schwartz, is keeping this spirit of variety alive. Along with its collection of women's apparel and accessories, Monkee's has a large emphasis on shoes.
"My ultimate goal is to grow the shoe business," Woodworth said. "I'm so excited about bringing shoes to Lexington. But for long term goals, I want to be here for years. We have found the location and from what I've seen in the last few years, the clientele is here. So I see this thing being successful."
Monkee's now resides in what was once A.J.'s Casuals, which downsized and moved around the corner to High Street. The timing of the move could not have been better for Woodworth, who said she has wanted to own a boutique since high school and Clay Avenue was the only place she would consider doing that. Woodworth, who switched into the retail business after working as a high school English teacher, said Clay Avenue has "become a destination to shop ... We're going to help you find something that you can't find anywhere else."
Queen echoed similar thoughts.
"A lot of times out-of-towners will come just to Clay Avenue, which is neat, we're always excited to hear that," she said. "When we first started, there were not boutique streets, this is the only boutique street, and others have popped up in other areas now."
She compared Jefferson Street on the west side of downtown as a similar street, in an up-and-coming sense, except with restaurants.
Jeff Minor, the manager of the newly remodeled Clay Avenue beauty salone VocÈ said he'd like to even see a few more food options on the street. He pointed out, though, that the biggest issue is zoning. VocÈ is one of the last establishments on the block with business zoning before the street turns into a historic residential neighborhood.
"It would be nice if we could open more businesses down the street," Minor said. "I've always thought if we could go on down the street it could be somewhat like Bardstown Road in Louisville, where you have all kinds of shops. If I had my way that's what we would like to be, but of course it's only eight or 10 buildings. It's not even a whole block."
As city planners have focused much of their attention on the nearby downtown core of Lexington, Queen points out that many of these revitalization projects also stand to benefit Clay Avenue, just a few blocks away. "I think it can only continue to get better as downtown revs up," she said.
Slusher hopes it will continue to rev up. As a brand new shop owner in a down economy with the only men's apparel on the block - he also handles orders for women's Orvis products - he still feels optimistic and hopeful to carve out his own niche like his predecessors.
And the lifestyle of the Chevy Chase area is what Slusher hopes to capitalize on, like so many others have.
"It's located right in between their higher end living and the downtown area which is perfect," he said. "People that live there work there and they go back and forth and they see it every day."
And with parking immediately next to the store or the scenery of a tree-lined sidewalk to enjoy, who needs the mall?