By Dave Matlow
Spruce Home & Garden will open at 90 Post Road East, the historic old Town Hall building, with a preview party on Nov.10 according to Steven Wilburn, a managing director of the new business.
A preview party is set for Nov. 10 at the new business. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
Wilburn, a resident of Sherman, said the Westport store will be its third location. He said the first Spruce store opened in New Milford about one year ago after which another opened in West Hartford.
“We’ve chosen Westport for an expansion location because it’s the hub for shopping in lower Fairfield County and it pulls from other local towns,” he said. “It’s like a shopping center without a roof.”
Wilburn said the store will carry a wide range of accessories including fiberglass pots and urns for planting as well as chandeliers and furniture. He said that in addition to its 2,450 square feet, the business seeks approval for outdoor displays as well.
Wilburn said he was employed by Saks Fifth Avenue for 20 years where his most recent role was its creative director of visual merchandising.
The preview party is scheduled from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. and the public is invited. Wilburn said that 10 percent of all purchases on Nov. 10 and 11 will be donated to the Westport Historical Society (WHS).
He added that Spruce will sell T-shirts for which all proceeds will be donated to WHS.
The broker representing the owner was Franco Fellah of Westport’s HK Group. The broker representing Spruce was Sharon Madden if David Adam Realty.
Last April, Restoration Hardware abandoned its plan to expand its Post Road East presence next door to the Old Town Hall to sell outdoor furniture, according to owner Rob Haroun. (See WestportNow April 22, 2011)
“They just couldn’t get their arms around the outdoor furniture concept and the use of the outside display area,” he said of the California-based specialty retailer which has occupied the old Fine Arts Theatre property at 76 Post Road East since 1999.
Haroun, a Westport-based developer who purchased the 1908-built stone structure at 90 Post Road East in March 2010 for $2.35 million.
