By Lauren Otis, The Packet Group
After six years on Nassau Street in Princeton, ballet boutique Giselle has executed a commercial glissade, moving its shop to nearby Kingston.
Increasing rent and the difficulty customers had in finding parking in downtown Princeton contributed to the move, but ultimately it came about because she found a space in Kingston that was an excellent fit for Giselle, said Victoria Rogers, sole proprietor of the business.
Giselle has already vacated its former storefront in the 20 Nassau Street building in the borough, and is seeking to reopen in the middle of January at its new location at 10 Academy St. in Kingston, Ms. Rogers said.
”It’s going to be very charming,” Ms. Rogers said of the historic stone building that will house Giselle in Kingston. The building has an Old World charm that will fit in perfectly with Giselle’s equally Old World business of supplying pointe shoes, tutus and other clothes and equipment for ballet dancers young and old, she said.
”I bought it about a year ago,” Ms. Rogers said of the 10 Academy St. location. “I spent about a year trying to change the zoning (to accommodate Giselle) and they finally OK’d it,” she said.
Ms. Rogers said no longer being in downtown Princeton will not affect her business, and may in fact make it more convenient for her customers, who often travel long distances for personal attention and special fittings for pointe shoes and other ballet accoutrements. “They have to fit perfectly,” she said of the specialized shoes that dancers use to balance on their toes.
Although aspiring dancers will always need the equipment and attention she supplies — “In this area there is really nobody else like me,” she said — and parents will give up many things before they will give up ballet lessons for their girls, “this past year was really tough,” because of the poor economy and her own changing circumstances, Ms. Rogers said.
Customers who normally might buy three leotards are only buying one to save money, and accessories such as leg warmers are being forgone, she said. “But I think we’ll hang in there,” she added.
”The rent was just undoable,” at her former location, Ms. Rogers said, with her lease including a contractually guaranteed rent increase each year. The free parking in Kingston will also be a relief for her customers, who often found they had been issued a parking ticket if they took too long at her shop, she said.
She is not leaving Princeton without regrets, however, Ms. Rogers said.
”The thing I’m going to miss the most, I’ll really just miss the people, all the merchants that I saw every day,” she said. “There’s some wonderful people who own those little stores,” in downtown Princeton, she said.
Giselle will be located at 10 Academy St., Kingston, and is scheduled to reopen on or around Jan. 15. For information, call the store at 609-497-9070.
