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July 15, 2019 Deal Watch Today

Hartford landlord to reopen downtown clothing store

HBJ Photos | Joe Cooper Landlords of 257 Asylum St. in downtown Hartford plan to reopen a clothing store there in Aug. 2019.
By Joe Cooper

A new retail clothing store will takeover Hartford’s defunct Sarah’s Coffee House space at 257 Asylum St. instead of the previously announced tenant, breakfast and lunch restaurant The Place 2 Be.

In April, the three-year-old South End eatery announced it planned to lease and launch its second location in the downtown space this summer, but landlord Jodi Morneault, who owns the mixed-use building with her husband, Ron, said she will instead reopen a clothing store there in August.

The Morneaults did not disclose why their potential deal with The Place 2 Be fell through, and principal owner Gina Luari could not be reached for comment.

The couple owns Morneault's Stackpole Moore Tryon men's/women's clothiers on Trumbull Street, and Jodi Morneault previously operated a clothing store at 257 Asylum St. known as Tuesday’s. 

The brick-and-mortar storefront was vacated in late 2018 when Sarah’s Coffee House, owned by James Beaulieu, closed after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Morneault said the space will resurface as a boutique selling men’s and women’s clothing. With pop-up events and “loud music,” the shop will target a “younger clientele,” Morneault said. Its name has not yet been determined, although it may return as “Tuesday’s” or “Stackpole Tuesday’s,” she said.

The Morneaults invested about $200,000 to upgrade the space four years ago with hardwood cherry floors, new carpeting, paint and wallpaper.

“I know the clientele here,” she said of the Asylum Street area, which sits in the shadows of the Goodwin Square office tower. “There is so much foot traffic down there.”

Morneault is still deciding on which renovations to complete at the store, which has 1,000 square feet on both the ground and basement floors. It will, however, be less refined than it previously appeared and will likely showcase a more rustic “warehouse” vibe.

126 Ann Uccello St. in downtown Hartford.

While plans come together for the new retail shop, the couple is in talks with several potential vendors interested in opening a takeout restaurant behind the clothing store at 126 Ann Uccello St.

A long list of small restaurants have occupied the 800-square-foot space, which sits below 36 residential units owned by the Morneaults. In recent decades, it’s housed Subway, Hot Tomatoes, Tapas, East Coast Dog and The Skillet, among others.

Morneault envisions leasing the space to a restaurateur focused on selling takeout meals. That business model has proved successful in year’s past, she said.

“Any restaurant that we ever put in there did a lot of business,” she said. “It always did the best when there was a small restaurant in the back and retail in the front.”

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1 Comments

Anonymous
July 17, 2019

Good luck with your projects! Hartford deserves a vibrant downtown!

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