When David Brooks opened up Appalachian Spring, a handcrafted gifts and handmade jewelry store in 1990, Reston Town Center was nothing but a slab of concrete.
Now, as residential buildings touch the skies and redevelopment plans aim to revitalize the core of the area, Brooks is closing his Reston store on 1187 Market St. and shifting his focus to the Rockville location.
The business decided to not renew its lease because customer traffic reduced considerably over the last few months. Paid parking, which was instituted earlier this year, accelerated limited customer traffic, said Brooks, president of Appalachian Spring.
“We’ve seen this for a while. The parking probably accelerated it. I can’t be sure that parking is the complete reason, but a lot of customers have told us that they weren’t happy about that,” he said.
Appalachian Spring was one of the first businesses to come to Reston Town Center. It began in the Georgetown section of Washington, D.C. in 1968 with the goal of bring a collection of handcrafted products to the community, according to its website.
The location in Union Station (50 Massachusetts Ave.) will also close in the coming weeks.
Brooks said he enjoyed keeping his business in Reston. All items are 20 to 50 percent off in both stores. The business is expected to close by the end of January.
“We’ve enjoyed being in Reston all these years more than anything. It’s been a major part of our company. We’ve sort of grown up with the town center and the community has driven our business as it goes along. We are thankful to all of our wonderful customers for supporting us all these years,” he said.
Photo courtesy of Appalachian Spring
