EYE ON BUSINESS: Lakewood Ranch boutique moving to UTC

Wish Boutique owner Jan Nicolson remembered when Lakewood Main Street was a shopping-centric part of town.

The Venice resident has owned Wish Boutique for seven years and it was simply called Wish when she bought it. At the time, Nicolson said restaurants and a couple of service businesses blended with a wide variety of retails stores including Chico’s and Soma and White Rose.

“It was attractive to women to come and shop on the street,” Nicolson said. “They had multiple stores that they could go to and they could sort of make an afternoon of it. That's what initially attracted me to Lakewood Ranch Main Street. And over the time that I was here, I saw that change.”

Wish Boutique moved to its current location on the same street three years ago, allowing Nicolson to expand into clothing, shoes, accessories and miscellaneous items such as candles, dishes, towels, coasters and cocktail napkins. Though Nicolson said she has an established customer base, it has been difficult for her to find new customers because of a decrease in shoppers along the street.

For that reason, she will move to University Town Center May 1. Her new store will be located at 257 North Cattlemen Drive next to Rusty Bucket Restaurant & Tavern. Nicolson said moving her store to UTC will allow her to expand her customer base.

“You have shopping at the mall, you have shopping on the other side of the street, and you have shopping on the other side of University Parkway,” Nicolson said. “That is becoming a very vibrant shopping area. So that in itself drives foot traffic.”

She worked with Benderson Development Company Principal Evan Benderson while planning her move and came away impressed. She said Benderson has a long-term strategy to make the area more attractive for shoppers, including bringing more entertainment options and amenities to the area.

“I really liked what they were doing there along Cattlemen, where they’re building more of a pedestrian-type of area, as opposed to going into a big box store shopping center or having to go inside of the mall,” Nicolson said. “I think people like more pedestrian areas. I believe that area could become a little bit more like St. Armands. You've got a little bit more of a nighttime crowd and you've got expanded hours of things that appeal to different customers and people.”

However, Nicolson still has one hurdle to clear. Although she has already reached an agreement with Benderson, her new location has been stuck in the Sarasota County permitting process since January as the county continues to evaluate her plans and ensure they match county standards.

She was told to expect final approval imminently, though she has already been told that once before. Once she receives approval, she will be allowed to decorate the new store’s interior, place a sign on the outside of the building and so forth.

Nicolson is grateful Lakewood Ranch has given her three extensions on her current lease, so Wish Boutique can stay through April 30. If all goes smoothly with permitting, which is a substantial if, Nicolson wants to open her UTC store the next day, May 1.