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Boulevard Mercantile relocating closer to downtown Spokane

Boulevard Mercantile owners from left, Dan Webb and Joellen and David Jeffers pose for a photo outside of their business on Monday, Jan. 27, 2020. The business has been at its current Monroe Street location for five years, but will soon relocate to a building with nearly double the square footage at 1012 N. Washington St. on March 6. (Libby Kamrowski / The Spokesman-Review)
By Amy Edelen amye@spokesman.com(509) 459-5581

Boulevard Mercantile, a purveyor of vintage furnishings, decor and clothing, is moving from Monroe Street to a space closer to downtown Spokane.

Owners Joellen and Dave Jeffers and Dan Webb will relocate the business to 1012 N. Washington St. in March because their lease on the Monroe Street property is expiring and there’s a need for more retail space.

“We’ve enjoyed being here on Monroe Street, but we kind of outgrown this space and found a need for something bigger and what we feel is a better fit for our business, vendors and the community,” Webb said.

Dave Jeffers said they considered several sites in Spokane before leasing the 6,000-square-foot former Spokane Lighting and Design building on Washington Street, which has more than double the space of Boulevard Mercantile’s existing store.

“We are excited to breathe a little bit. Our vendors are pretty crowded in here, and most of our vendors are taking on a little bit more square footage in this new building,” Joellen Jeffers said. “We are adding a few new vendors, but mostly, we are all going to be able to spread out, including us three. Right now, our square footage is limited because we leased it all out to our vendors, and in order for us to grow, we need more space.”

The business plan also includes hosting pop-up events for local artists and expanding the store’s vintage clothing selection at the new location.

“We have a lot of clients from Japan, and other vintage shops buy from us, so our clothing section is going to be huge,” she said.

Webb and the Jeffers opened Boulevard Mercantile five years ago in a triangle-shaped, historic building at 1905 N. Monroe St. The building housed a hardware store after its construction in 1912. After Stewart’s True Value Hardware closed in 2012, Catholic Charities operated a retail store, Furnishings for Hope, on the ground floor of the building.

Webb said he’ll miss the history of the old Stewart’s True Value Hardware building.

“We are only the third tenant to ever be in this building,” he said.

Boulevard Mercantile is closing its Monroe Street store Feb. 22, and renovations will soon be underway on the new location, including demolishing the interior, installing utilities and adding new windows and a roll-up door to the front of the building.

“It’s kind of going back to its original state. Spokane has a lot of unique buildings, and that one has got a good look to it,” Dave Jeffers said. “The new landlords are very anxious to make it look even more incredible.”

Spokane County records show Josh Soehner, a real estate investor with NW Cornerstone Services, purchased the building that will become Boulevard Mercantile’s new homefor $975,000 in January.

Webb said he’s looking forward to additional foot traffic at the new location, because of its proximity to downtown Spokane.

“It’s an exciting place to be, and I think there’s a lot of potential there,” he said.

Boulevard Mercantile will have a grand-opening at its new location 5-9 p.m March 6.