Closing time
The high number of diverse, dynamic local businesses is part of what makes the Holy City such a unique place to live and work, according to Charleston’s Business and Neighborhood Services (BNS) director Meg Thompson.
While there’s a lot to celebrate when it comes to locally owned business in the Lowcountry, rising costs and rampant development have driven more than a handful of area favorites out of business. Red Orchids China Bistro in West Ashley, a longtime recipient of the Charleston City Paper’s Best Chinese Restaurant award, announced its closure in early April, followed soon by North Charleston used bookstore Mr. K’s.
“We are always facing forward,” Mr. K’s co-owner Mary Dabir told the City Paper. “It’s definitely sad. It’s always fun having people get to know us. … What we didn’t expect was the response — we actually had two customers come in and break down in tears. That just really breaks your heart. They said, ‘This is my happy place.’ We knew people would be upset, but not to this extent. It’s really heartwarming.”
Red Orchids co-owners Kelly and Tony Chu shared similar sentiments.
“The laughter and joy we’ve shared and the meaningful relationships we have built throughout two decades will be most treasured,” they wrote on Facebook. “It pulls on the heartstrings, but let’s celebrate the closure of this chapter together.”
Rising costs only part of the problem
Both Dabir and Kelly Chu cited rising rent as a hurdle in maintaining business in the Lowcountry. Dabir said the store’s rent was set to go up by more than $4,000 per month. But the biggest factor in the closure of Red Orchids was the nearby development planned in the Ashley Landing shopping center. Chu said the building’s landlord did not renew the lease on their previous space, but reserved a new storefront for Red Orchids in the same shopping center.
“We looked at the cost of rebuilding, and it just wasn’t something we were ready for,” Chu said. “The space just didn’t feel right, either. It’s just like buying a house — you should feel like ‘This is my next home,’ and there was just a hesitation there.”
The Chus own another business, Cirsea, an ice cream brand sold in over 40 locations across the Lowcountry. But rising rent is putting pressure there as well, Chu said, as monthly rates are poised to nearly double.
“When we talk about property value, it’s not just about gentrification. It’s about capitalization,” said Ruth Jordan, the city of Charleston’s minority business enterprise manager. “In a lot of cases, people can no longer afford brick and mortars, or we see a lot of people transitioning to food trucks and microbusinesses to cut costs.”
Cycle of business ‘healthy,’ officials say
While it’s hard to see old favorites phase out, Thompson said, new locally owned businesses are popping up in Charleston nearly every day. And a lot of those businesses are bolstering women- and minority-owned business rates, Jordan said.
“About 43% of all these businesses opening, particularly the microbusinesses, are being opened by minority women,” she said. “It’s an opportunity for things we haven’t seen, and I always tell people to explore those opportunities.”
The constant cycling of business is part of what makes a healthy and dynamic economic sector, Thompson said.
“As sad as it is to lose these favorites, I’m so excited that there are so many new restaurants coming to the city — more than ever before in my time at the city,” Thompson said. “I’m excited to see these new businesses coming in and filling that void.”
While support is offered, there is little the city can do about property owners raising rental rates on the space.
“The focus here has been on retaining and supporting our local businesses as much as we possibly can,” she added. “When one closes, another one opens. Now, if we have these doors that have been shuttered for years and years, that may be a sign of something negative, but when you have what we’re seeing here, we don’t see that as a problem.”
But in certain pockets, like the area surrounding Tanger Outlets in North Charleston, locally owned businesses are struggling with astronomical rent hikes stemming from incoming large chains like Topgolf and luxury hotels springing up across the street.
“We would still be there,” Dabir said. “The rent just kept pushing up and up, and with Topgolf coming in next door … we couldn’t sustain it any more. … The landlords are very nice, they just think the area is being developed so much around Tanger that it justifies the higher price-per-square foot. We want the best for them too, I guess.”
North Charleston officials did not respond to requests for comment.
“North Charleston is only 50 years old, and it has gone through one of the largest transformations in the history of this area,” Jordan said. “All of the new manufacturing companies there now, and all these extra efforts — it’s just the new, happening place.”
Support is offered, but can fall short
The city’s Business and Neighborhood Services department works to connect local business owners with resources and organizations that can support the business in several ways. It hosts workshops on capital, marketing, contracting, legal basics and more as well as hosts several networking opportunities throughout the year, including the annual Small Business Opportunity Expo where more than 300 businesses connect with new staff, resource partners and other agencies.
On the horizon is the city’s Entrepreneurial Resource Center, which will offer affordable commercial and office space for minority- and women-owned businesses on the peninsula, as well as access to other resources. It’s set to open in spring 2024, Thompson said.
Despite the resources offered, some business owners can still struggle to keep afloat in the ever-expanding and ever-more popular Lowcountry.
“Charleston is just a little bit hard for finding a space,” Dabir said. “It has so many different pockets — it can be a little tricky. We had a hard enough time finding the place we’re in now.”
Chu agreed, saying while she would love to continue operating businesses in Charleston, she is open to other options.
“We aren’t necessarily set in stone here,” she said. “We’d like to stay here because we live here, of course, but we just don’t know. There aren’t a lot of [commercial] places that are available right now.”
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