It looks like soon a new tenant will be opening its doors at 8211 Fenton St. Silver Spring Mart - Beer & Wine is taking over for - and who can forget - Mama Fashion's Gallery. Mama didn't seem to fare all that well. If I remember correctly her shop wasn't open for much more than a year. Although I never set foot in the shop, it seemed to be a collection of African and other fabrics mixed together with kitchen ware.
You'd think that combination would have put Mama over the top - but I guess Fenton Village just wasn't ready for it. You watch - I bet Mama ends up in Bethesda or a trendy DC 'hood and we'll be kicking ourselves for not supporting her!
The new tenant is sandwiched between my favorite Turkish Cobbler (Arinas Shoe Repair - please give him some business. In all seriousness, he does great work. And he could be a cousin to one of the Mario Brothers!) and Sure Fit Lock and Safe. And let's not forget the folks who ran the shop before Mama - for years and years it was the Electric Shaver Shop. I had to believe in the 21st century the ESS wouldn't last too long. It's a shame but the 2003 law requiring all men to grow beards was a bit too much for the shop to handle.
From a peek in the window, SS Mart is starting to stock their shelves with wine and other goods. I'm not holding out much hope that this will be much more than a Kwik-E-Mart with Bud instead of Duff, but maybe I'll be surprised. In addition, it seems this might be the same bunch that currently run SS Mart at 956 Thayer. I think they must be getting out while the getting is good since 956 Thayer and its two neighbors - Roadhouse Oldies and a travel agency - won't be with us too much longer. The landlord there seeks to raze the structure and replace it with an office and retail development. It's a shame about Roadhouse. I think it's pretty cool that we still have a record store in the 'hood (and we used to have two when Vinyl Ink was still open on Bonifant - great punk and indie store). And you gotta love the Roadhouse facade designed by the Pittsburgh Paint and Glass (PPG) Co. If you haven't taken the time to admire it, next time you walk by, check it out.
My hunch is that since the Thayer Ave SS Mart is run by Ethiopian immigrants and that at the new location there is a window sign announcing the sale of injera bread, that this one will be Ethiopian-run too. And if you are not aware, about 20% of all Ethiopians who don't live in the country reside in the DC-area with SS being a big base. So it's not very surprising to see another Ethiopian-run small business open in SoCo. I wish them the best and when I'm jonesing for Twinkies and Bud Lite, I'll know where to go!
3 comments:
The shop is the very same one from Thayer Ave. Spoke with the owner a while ago, who said the rent on Fenton is twice what he paid on Thayer, but that the move is necessary (as you've explained).
I've written in the past both about Vinyl Ink and the Shaver Shop.
The latter was actually quite useful during the brief period I experimented with electric razors and needed a part replaced.
Used to frequent the Shaver Shop. Took my Braun razor in for cleanings and new blades. I actually miss that place. The woman who ran it was cool.
If I remember correctly, she said the ESS was there about 30 years.
There is another ESS in Virginia. I called them after the woman in SS retired and closed the place. The stores were related, but don't know how, he didn't say. I thought it was shops like ESS that made SS.
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