Change abounds downtown

New stores opening in Palmer Square and surrounding streets.

By: Jennifer Potash
   A patch of new businesses, both locally owned and chain stores, are popping up in downtown Princeton.
   In Palmer Square, The Papery, a purveyor of fine writing supplies, journals and other paper goods, will move into the former Gap Kids location on Hulfish Street, said David Newton, vice president of Palmer Square Management. The Papery has five New Jersey stores, as well as locations in Greenwich, Conn., Scarsdale, N.Y, and Bethesda, Md.
   Following the closure of La Plume et Papier on the square earlier this year, Mr. Newton said he sought another stationery store. The Cotton Company, first brought to the square as a seasonal or temporary shop, will now become a fixture, Mr. Newton said. The store offers comfortable women’s clothing in sizes small to plus-sized and features the Cotton Company brand and other brands such as Lily Pulitzer, he said.
   The store is owned by Karen Thompson, who also owns Lace Silhouettes, an intimate apparel shop located in the square, which "shows an enormous vote of confidence by this owner to our location," Mr. Newton said.
   Another recent addition to the square, Blue Mercury at the corner of Palmer Square West and Hulfish Street, offers upscale beauty and cosmetics as well as an in-house spa that opened April 25. The Princeton location is one of the regional chain’s best-performing locations, Mr. Newton said.
   Some mainstays at Palmer Square will depart this spring — Jaeger’s, a women’s clothing store, and Le Sportsac, a travel and accessories shop, Mr. Newton said. Jaeger’s, an international chain, decided to close all its U.S. locations and Le Sportsac, a smaller national chain, is refocusing its business.
   Camber’s Café has also left the square, he said.
   In other downtown developments, Cosmo Bleu, a hair salon, will move into the former space of Edith’s Lingerie at 170 Nassau Street by July.
   Owner Lynda Raffeul of Princeton Township also owns a salon in North Brunswick. She said she had wanted to open a salon first in downtown Princeton but had a non-compete clause to honor.
   "I’m very excited to have the salon downtown," she said. The salon will offer a range of hair services for men and women but will not do pedicures or manicures.
   Another new business set to open this spring is La Patisserie, a French bakery on Tulane Street. Owner Edwidge Fils-Aime, a Montgomery resident, did not return calls seeking comment.
   Another recent addition to the downtown is Giselle, a dance and activewear shop at 20 Nassau St. owned by Victoria Suchenski, a Princeton Township resident. With a daughter active in ballet, Ms. Suchenski said she saw a niche for a store catering to dancers.
   In addition to a bevy of leotards in a rainbow of colors and patterns, Giselle also sells high-performance toe shoes and dance shoes that dancers would have to travel to New York or Philadelphia to find, she said.
   Image Photo, now based at 20 Nassau Street, will move to the former Pyramid Books location at the corner of Witherspoon and Hulfish streets. Owner Edward Jo said the larger store will allow Image to add more digital photography services and custom framing and poster printing. He anticipated opening the new location by June 15.
   The Carousel, a luncheonette in the east end of Nassau Street, is slated to move to the former Vibes record shop, but the date is not known. Owner David Schnieder could not be reached for comment.