Crush Boutique has relocated to 138 Charles St., previously the proposed location of Blue Moon Smoke Shop’s ill-fated Beacon Hill location.
“It has been wonderful,” Rebecca Hall, who co-owns Crush with childhood friend, Laura Ayers, said Tuesday of their move to the new location. “Obviously, it’s only Day 3, but it’s a much more pleasant shopping experience because there’s more foot traffic being at the street level, and there’s more natural light.”
Hall and Ayers opened Crush in a 700-square-foot garden-level retail space at 131 Charles St. in 2007, whereas the new space comprises 1,500 square feet (1,100 square feet of occupiable ground-level space, plus the basement), which will allow them to not only sell the women’s clothing and accessories they always have, but also to expand into carrying home décor and gifts.
“When we opened 14 years ago, we were 25 years old and happy to get any space on Charles Street, but our dream was always to get a space that was larger and at street level, especially because so many of our customers are mothers with strollers, so stairs can prove a bit detrimental for them,” said Hall. “We’re so grateful for the time we had at that location because it served us well, and without the success we had there, we wouldn’t have been able to move to this street-level location to expand a bit. It was an amazing 14-year run there, but it was time for us to move on.”
Margaret Mishara, the landlord for the property at 138 Charles St., wrote: “We believe Rebecca Hall and Laura Ayers and Crush boutique will be a great addition to this part of Charles Street. Thanks to Eliott Levine at Olde Forge Realty for introducing Rebecca and Laura to the space, and to Kassandra Renard who designed the space for a high-end boutique. We feel that the opening of Crush Boutique this past Monday will contribute to the resurgence of Charles Street.”
Hall and Ayers also own and operate Whitney + Winston, a shop specializing in gifts and accessories at 113 Charles St., and they also previously had a second location of Crush on Newbury Street that closed last spring after eights years in business.
In March, Blue Moon Smoke Shop, which has several other locations throughout Greater Boston, scrapped its plans to open at 138 Charles St. after signing a 10-year lease for that location following a virtual public meeting sponsored by Rep. Jay Livingstone and City Councilor Kenzie Bok that drew around 160 neighbors, most of whom were vehemently opposed to the plan. Among their foremost concerns was that the proposed smoke shop would be in close proximity to Hill House and multiple elementary schools, including The Advent School, Park Street School, Torit Montessori School and Beacon Hill Nursery School, and located just a few doors down from J.P. Licks, an ice cream shop at 150 Charles St.
Before that, Danish Country & Modern, which specialized in Scandinavian antiques and mid-century modern furniture, had been the retail tenant at 138 Charles St. from 1984 until last New Year’s Eve.