Tricia Melvin, owner of the retail store Dragonflies, is undertaking a new venture —converting a restaurant space into a retail space.
Renovating a space for Dragonflies is nothing new to Melvin. Melvin started the business in November 1999, and since then, she has renovated, expanded and moved her business several times.
The existing space in Anderson Square on Oleander Drive, for example, has been previously renovated to make room for a growing baby section.
“I did say when I moved back here [Anderson Square] that I was never moving again. So, I have to eat my words on that,” Melvin said.
On Nov. 6, Melvin closed on the property that previously housed Midtown Seafood restaurant for an undisclosed amount. The 9,700 square-foot building will be slightly larger than the current 9,000 square-foot space.
Many Wilmington natives associate the building with the former Annabelle’s Restaurant, Melvin said. “And so I think taking a building that has memories attached to it, people will want to go in it and [will] want to see it be saved versus just sitting empty on Oleander.
“My feeling about it is that it looks like a building that would be downtown, but it’s in midtown. It really is a neat space. There’s a lot of exposed brick,” Melvin said.
As the owner of the building, Melvin feels she has more creative control to implement her vision of what the store and building should look like.
To begin renovations, one of the walls at the entrance of the store will be taken out to open the space up. Other renovations include a fresh coat of paint to brighten up the room, removing the tint off windows, taking out the bar area and renovating the kitchen for storage area, Melvin said.
On the outside, Melvin said she would like to remove a few of the shrubs blocking the main entrance so that customers can see the building is a retail unit from the road. Additional paint will be added to the outside as well, Melvin said. And as far as the Midtown Seafood sign in the front of the building, she would like to use that sign for her store.
“We’re hoping to use it somewhat…we may cover that space and put different signage on there,” Melvin said.
Moving away from the current retail unit will take away from some of the foot traffic through Anderson Square, but because of the move, Melvin said there has been a lot of interest generated from the announcement.
“We’re excited about it. It’s scary because the economy is still not great, but I feel like it’s a good position on Oleander, between Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s,” she said. “I think there is a lot of business here…I’m optimistic that it will be a good move.”
Melvin said Dragonflies will occupy the Anderson Square unit through the holiday season. Melvin hopes the new building will be fully operational by February 2013.
