East Passyunk: Struggles Of A Small Business Owner
Michelle Dewey is from Wilmington, Delaware. She makes the drive into Philadelphia everyday and hopefully, depending on traffic, it will only take her around 30 minutes. It’s a blistering hot Sunday afternoon when she arrives at her store and with her giant IKEA bag in hand. She immediately starts restocking the shelves. “It’s like free […]
Mayfair: Young Entrepreneur Aims for Representation Through Clothing Business
Wearing gold frilly earrings, a long, over-sized blue sweatshirt and high-waisted mom jeans, Jennifer Mota loves to experiment with bold fashion statements. At 26-years old, she is the owner and fashion designer of Hu-Huako Custom Apparel. Mota takes her business very serious; especially when it comes to making other women feel beautiful in their own […]
Brewerytown: Stylist Veronica Dunbar Shares Her ‘Fit for a Queen’ Dream
Veronica Dunbar has called Brewerytown home for two years now. Originally from Southwest Philadelphia, she grew up in her father’s barbershop, where he worked for nearly 40 years. Surrounded by hairstylists from a young age, she knew this would be a profession that would not only feel like home, but bring positivity to those she […]
Fishtown: Get Up’s Gettin’ it in the Park
Anyone who has been to the Electric Factory in the Callowhill neighborhood has seen local artist Get Up’s creations on the walls inside. The 31-year-old Kensington native has been creating street art in the city since 2012, after living and working in Oakland for six years. Get Up is not only a street artist, he is a musician and […]
LGBTQ: The Value of Drag
Philadelphia has a thriving drag community, with drag shows all over the city and an ever-growing population of performers. On any given night, a drag show is likely going on somewhere in town. Throughout history, drag has employed very rigid rules for its queens, often in relation to physique and size. However, with the growth […]
Rittenhouse Square: As the Decades Pass, Clothing Store Owner Keeps Pace With Changing Fashions
The visually stunning windows of Sophy Curson on the corner of 19th and Sansom streets stand out in the sea of industrial and vintage-looking storefronts. The slanted tile roof and floor to ceiling windows are inviting and intriguing – much like store itself. Sophy Curson has been in business since 1929. According to family lore, […]
Olney: Barber Enjoys Reputation For Sharp Blades And Words
On a typical day at Barbers Inc., the environment is lively. Laughs, jokes and conversations about sports and societal issues flow about the shop and continue outside the doors into the community. It’s a safe haven for some, and for others a chance to partake in good conversations. For lead groomer David Choung, the barbershop gives him the […]
South Philadelphia: T-Shirt Shop South Fellini Opens on East Passyunk Avenue
With its bright-blue exterior and mosaic sign, South Fellini makes its presence known on East Passyunk Avenue. Opened Oct. 1 at 1507 E. Passyunk Ave., South Fellini, owned by Philadelphia filmmakers and artists, Johnny Zito and Tony Trov, is the first physical location of the duo’s internet store of the same name. The store sells […]
Old City: Where You’re Never Too Spoiled
Rene Galvin opened Never Too Spoiled in 2008 as a seasonal shop in Atlantic City’s Historic Gardner’s Basin. Galvin opened the small storefront mostly to run Internet sales out of but after falling in love with it, she decided to make it a more permanent business. The little shop down the shore blossomed into a quirky and vibrant boutique […]
Lawncrest: Consignment Store Owner Celebrates 31 Years of Operation
With a background in performance dance, a stick-to-it mentality and a fashion sense influenced by her parents, 77-year-old Merle Weiner celebrates the fact her childhood still influences the way she runs her small consignment shop. Located at 912 Cottman Ave., Merle’s Clothes Closet is a retail store filled with high-end clothing, jewelry and other accessories. “One woman […]