DOPP Local shoe designer Shayla Dopp is opening a retail space in Trumpetvine Court in downtown Berkeley. The space was formerly occupied by clothing boutique Endorphins. Dopp designs shoes in Oakland and works with a small factory in Los Angeles who hand-makes the final product. “The shoes are made from leather bi-product of the meat industry and are vibrant, unique and comfortable,” Dopp said. Before finding the space in downtown, Dopp previously ran her business from home, participating in every popup opportunity that came her way. She was immediately drawn to the architecture of the building in Trumpetvine where she said she feels at the heart of all the hustle and bustle. She enjoys the ambience of the garden courtyard of Jupiter and like-minded vendors, too, making it an ideal setting for her. “I love being in the center of all the arts and culture here. It’s a beautiful thought to envision all the talent surrounding the space,” she said. A grand opening will be held Sunday Aug. 5, from noon to 6 p.m. “I will be welcoming people in for a glass of lavender wine and [will have] a large array of colorful, comfortable heels,” she added. Dopp, 2115 Allston Way #1, Trumpetvine Court, Berkeley 94704. Open Wed. through Sun., noon to 6 p.m. beginning Aug. 5. Connect on Instagram.
NOOR & SONS RUG GALLERY After nearly nine years in business, Noor & Sons Rug Gallery is closing. The store will begin an inventory liquidation on Aug. 15. Noor Khan arrived in the United States in 2000 and opened his store on Solano Avenue in October 2009, selling naturally dyed and hand-spun wool rugs and providing rug cleaning, restoration and in-home consultation. Khan hopes to close by the end of December. “If we still have inventory we will continue our closing sale until the end of March 2019, ” he said. The lease for the store ends in April 2019. “We have a small warehouse which we use for storing our extra rugs and a small amount of wholesale which we think we will be keeping.”
Khan and his wife, Sobia, who grew up in a rug-weaving family, run the store. She was born in Afghanistan and raised in Pakistan during the Soviet invasion. Noor Khan hails from Northern Pakistan where his father, Jora Agha, started a rug-manufacturing business. Khan’s father commissioned individual Afghan rug-weaving families, selling goods to Western rug dealers with the help of a wholesaler based in Cambridge, MA, and nonprofit organization Cultural Survival. Noor and Sobia met in Pakistan, have been married for 22 years and have five sons.
The Rug Gallery’s collection is mostly from Afghanistan and Pakistan but includes high-end rugs from Turkmenistan, India, Iran and Turkey. The Khans are closing up shop and moving back to Afghanistan to spend more time with family. “We we will be raising our three younger children there while our two oldest sons will stay in the United States to attend college,” Khan said. Noor & Sons Rug Gallery, 1898 Solano Ave. (at The Alameda), Berkeley 94707. Tel: 510-559-8987. Open Mon.- Sat., 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sun., noon to 5 p.m. Connect on Instagram.
PARTY HEAVEN The home party goods supplier has moved from 2570 Bancroft Way in Berkeley. The store’s new location, vacant for the past eight years, was previously home to the Adidas store which closed in 2013, and Dick Clark Sporting Goods prior to that. Party Heaven first opened for business on Telegraph Avenue as Paper Heaven in 1978 and is owned by Yvonne and Jules Weiss. It then moved to Shattuck Avenue for about 20 years. In 2010, the store relocated to Bancroft and changed its name from ‘Paper’ to ‘Party’ as it shifted from paper goods to party goods, costumes and costume accessories such as wigs, hats, gloves, masks. They also carry basic party supplies, balloons and cards. The store’s most recent move comes about after Landmark Properties acquired the Bancroft Way location for development of The Standard, an eight-story mixed use space which will begin construction next year (see more info below). Party Heaven, 2333 Telegraph Ave. Tel: 510-540-7914. Open Mon.-Fri 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Sat., 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sun., noon to 6 p.m. Connect on Facebook and Instagram.
THE STANDARD Landmark Properties, a Georgia-based real estate company specializing in student housing communities, purchased the property on Bancroft Way (across from UC Berkeley) and plans to build an 8-story, mixed-use building. The structure, dubbed The Standard, will house up to 136 apartment units and about 21,000 square feet of retail space. The existing property has supported nine commercial businesses— five of which have already relocated (see above) — and is currently comprised of an underground parking garage, Bancroft Center (2558-2588 Bancroft Way), and the Fred Turner building (2546-2554 Bancroft Way). The garage will be re-designed, Bancroft Center will be demolished and The Fred Turner building, a Berkeley landmark designed by Julia Morgan, will be at least partially preserved, according to the city of Berkeley website.
Several businesses, retail and food vendors, have been impacted by the acquisition including Copy Central which moved to Telegraph Avenue, Avant-Card and Cal Flowers. “We’re working with all of the tenants around there to find a place and relocate them,” Stuart Baker, Executive Director of the Telegraph Business Improvement District, told The Daily Cal on July 16. His organization worked with Copy Central on its move and is now working with Cal Flowers to find them a new retail space. Tenants were notified six months ago and must vacate by December 2018. Landmark Properties also manages StoneFire on Milvia and University Avenue, which opened in August 2017. The Standard is being developed in conjunction with Walnut Creek-based Johnson Lyman Architects. Construction is slated to begin in the spring/summer of 2019.
Shop Talk is Berkeleyside’s regular Berkeley local business column. If you’re a Berkeley business with news, or a Berkeleyside reader who has spotted a change in your neighborhood or on your travels, shoot us an email with the details at editors@berkeleyside.com. Read previous Shop Talk columns. And catch up with all food business news with our Nosh coverage.
