March 28, 2024

Fine Things ‘Remade’

Local business remodels and expands selection, store space

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Erin Erickson can tell when customers have not seen the newly expanded Fine Things Reclaimed the minute they walk through the doors.

Immediately, their eyes take time to adjust to the new surroundings. Sometimes, Erickson said, they even step back outside to make sure they’ve walked into the right building, and they mostly surely have. Although it may look different, Erickson assures visitors the warm and inviting atmosphere has not changed a bit.

Sure enough, those returning customers will scan the roughly 3,000-square-foot shop and imagine how it used to be arranged. The once-bottlenecked store has transformed into a more open format, yet still filled to the brim with home decor, fun trinkets and a bevy of new products.

"We'll get people that come in and go, 'Wow! I knew she was expanding, but I didn't know it was going to be like this!'" Erickson recalled. "Visually, I don't think people expect a store to look like this in Newton."

As an employee of Fine Things Reclaimed for about three years, Erickson has seen a number of renovations to the building located along the 200 block of First Avenue West, but none as expansive as this.

Owner Julia Prendergast hinted at an expansion in spring this year when she covered windows of the building with giant, paper question marks. Originally anticipating a June reveal, Prendergast said the final touches were completed by August. An official grand opening will be in October.

Almost doubling in size, Fine Things Reclaimed now includes a selection of women’s clothing, scrubs and has integrated the floral shop, Fresh Flowers by Fine Things, onto the store’s main level. Prior to the expansion, the flower shop was hidden away in the basement dwelling of the building.

Marji Smith, manager of Fresh Flowers by Fine Things, loves her new workspace, which is seeing much more walk-in traffic than before. She said there are a good number of people who never knew the floral shop existed until it was put on the first floor with Fine Things Reclaimed.

“Traffic for flowers has tripled,” Smith said. “They can see it and they can see me back here working. I think it will make a big difference. And social media is helping us all the time and we’re getting a lot more new customers. People have been very supportive and very complimentary.”

To get Fine Things Reclaimed to look and be what it is now, Prendergast said she’s had help from several friends and community members donating their time to either design or arrange the products in her store or even help with checking in inventory, which is exactly what Val Brown does.

“I kind of just do this for fun,” Brown said. “As soon as things come in, they’re out. You only get so many things in. Our motto is: If you like it, you better get it. Because it may not be here (next time). I think (the expansion) is gorgeous. I love it. Newton needs it.”

As opposed to its previously compacted layout, Prendergast is now embracing the more open concept of the store; as are the customers, who no longer have to feel cramped or closed in. She believes the expanded Fine Things Reclaimed complements Newton and the surrounding retail in the downtown district.

“There’s just really great stores down here, and I think this just proves it,” Prendergast said. “There are more options (and) the people have been amazing as far as support.”

Fine Things Reclaimed is open 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday.

Contact Christopher Braunschweig at 641-792-3121 ext. 6560 or cbraunschweig@newtondailynews.com