Abellas’ Eileen Bible
A Southside mall waiting for its multimillion-dollar upgrade has landed a dog-centric tenant, while another of its retailers rebrands and expands.
Stony Point Fashion Park recently signed on Abella Cakes, a dog treat bakery, to take an 1,100-square-foot space in the mall. The shop opened June 6 and replaces Three Dog Bakery, another dog treat purveyor that shut down last year.
Abella Cakes owner Eileen Bible launched the business from her Short Pump home four years ago out of a desire for healthier treats for her pups. The venture makes and sells cakes, cannoli and cupcakes for dogs but the baked goods can be eaten by homo sapiens too.
Abellas’ new Stony Point storefront.
Bible began Abella Cakes as a side business to her full-time work in telecommunications for Anthem. She left the healthcare company last year to run Abella Cakes full-time, doing events around town at places like the Richmond SPCA and Strangeways Brewing.
Bible bakes her goods onsite at Stony Point and sells treats like bully sticks and non-alcoholic dog beer in addition to baked goods. Small cakes sell for about $18 and larger cakes can cost $35. Bible said she sells about 10 cakes a week.
Bible said when Three Dog Bakery closed it created an opening for Abella Cakes to grow.
“My business really expanded once Three Dog Bakery closed,” she said. “I just seized the opportunity.”
Bible would not discuss the financials of Abella Cakes’ opening. She said she designed the store herself and enlisted Brooks Handyman Services to work on the space.
She said she was attracted to open in Stony Point because of its welcoming attitude to man’s best friend: dogs are allowed in the mall.
“Stony Point is the dog mall,” she said.
It’s also the mall that’s in the process of adopting a new look. Last year, the mall’s Chicago-based owner, Starwood Retail Partners, announced a $50 million plan to upgrade the center’s outdoor areas and add more retail options. Starwood purchased the 13-year-old mall in 2014. Stony Point’s marketing director Karen Smith did not respond to inquiries about the status of the mall’s redevelopment plans.
In the meantime, retail changes at Stony Point Fashion Park have included the linen company Yves Delorme’s departure for the River Road Shopping Center in the West End and Fido Park Avenue opening at the Southside mall last year. Last week, BizSense counted 12 empty storefronts at the 660,000-square-foot shopping center.
Environs’ Gerald King
Elsewhere in the mall, Environs Bedrooms will soon re-open in a new 9,800-square-foot space near its current storefront. The move nearly doubles the shop’s footprint and will also coincide with a rebranding of owner Gerald King’s venture: the company will eventually go by Environs Urban Home.
King said the move into the former Gap space was needed so Environs could add more home furniture like futons and kitchen islands to the sales floor. Like many brick-and-mortar retailers, King’s challenge has been to stay competitive with e-commerce businesses.
He said he stays competitive with low markups on his furniture to match internet prices. King said his big sellers are futons, bedroom items and mattresses. He said he’s been pleased with his various storefronts in Stony Point, where he arrived in 2008.
“It’s a slower pace than, say, Short Pump,” King said. “It’s a nice, relaxed place.”
Abellas’ Eileen Bible
A Southside mall waiting for its multimillion-dollar upgrade has landed a dog-centric tenant, while another of its retailers rebrands and expands.
Stony Point Fashion Park recently signed on Abella Cakes, a dog treat bakery, to take an 1,100-square-foot space in the mall. The shop opened June 6 and replaces Three Dog Bakery, another dog treat purveyor that shut down last year.
Abella Cakes owner Eileen Bible launched the business from her Short Pump home four years ago out of a desire for healthier treats for her pups. The venture makes and sells cakes, cannoli and cupcakes for dogs but the baked goods can be eaten by homo sapiens too.
Abellas’ new Stony Point storefront.
Bible began Abella Cakes as a side business to her full-time work in telecommunications for Anthem. She left the healthcare company last year to run Abella Cakes full-time, doing events around town at places like the Richmond SPCA and Strangeways Brewing.
Bible bakes her goods onsite at Stony Point and sells treats like bully sticks and non-alcoholic dog beer in addition to baked goods. Small cakes sell for about $18 and larger cakes can cost $35. Bible said she sells about 10 cakes a week.
Bible said when Three Dog Bakery closed it created an opening for Abella Cakes to grow.
“My business really expanded once Three Dog Bakery closed,” she said. “I just seized the opportunity.”
Bible would not discuss the financials of Abella Cakes’ opening. She said she designed the store herself and enlisted Brooks Handyman Services to work on the space.
She said she was attracted to open in Stony Point because of its welcoming attitude to man’s best friend: dogs are allowed in the mall.
“Stony Point is the dog mall,” she said.
It’s also the mall that’s in the process of adopting a new look. Last year, the mall’s Chicago-based owner, Starwood Retail Partners, announced a $50 million plan to upgrade the center’s outdoor areas and add more retail options. Starwood purchased the 13-year-old mall in 2014. Stony Point’s marketing director Karen Smith did not respond to inquiries about the status of the mall’s redevelopment plans.
In the meantime, retail changes at Stony Point Fashion Park have included the linen company Yves Delorme’s departure for the River Road Shopping Center in the West End and Fido Park Avenue opening at the Southside mall last year. Last week, BizSense counted 12 empty storefronts at the 660,000-square-foot shopping center.
Environs’ Gerald King
Elsewhere in the mall, Environs Bedrooms will soon re-open in a new 9,800-square-foot space near its current storefront. The move nearly doubles the shop’s footprint and will also coincide with a rebranding of owner Gerald King’s venture: the company will eventually go by Environs Urban Home.
King said the move into the former Gap space was needed so Environs could add more home furniture like futons and kitchen islands to the sales floor. Like many brick-and-mortar retailers, King’s challenge has been to stay competitive with e-commerce businesses.
He said he stays competitive with low markups on his furniture to match internet prices. King said his big sellers are futons, bedroom items and mattresses. He said he’s been pleased with his various storefronts in Stony Point, where he arrived in 2008.
“It’s a slower pace than, say, Short Pump,” King said. “It’s a nice, relaxed place.”