The curtain is falling on one of the last retail stores on Capitol Square.
After 23 years, the Ohio Theatre Gift Shop will close for good at the end of the month — a victim of many of the same trends that have crippled Columbus City Center.
“It’s just a lack of business,” said Shirley Kiger, one of 46 volunteers who operate the nonprofit store next to the Ohio Theatre on E. State Street.
“The economy has hurt us, and we don’t have much walk-by traffic. Things have slowly been going downhill for the past two years,” said Kiger, who has worked in the shop for 15 years.
Kiger and volunteer Shelby Rhyne put up “Going out of business” signs this week and were marking down most merchandise by 50 percent. The shop’s only paid employee — a store manager — was let go Monday.
“It’s a very sad moment for us,” said Lois Allen, president of the board that oversees the business and made the decision to close.
The store, which is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and during Ohio Theatre performances, sells a variety of theater-related merchandise: vintage posters, stuffed animals, compact discs, jewelry, opera glasses and decorative nutcrackers.
Profits are donated to Opera Columbus and the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts.
Despite having modest overhead costs — the monthly rent of $800 paid to CAPA includes utilities — the store has operated at break-even for the past two years, leaving nothing to be donated, Allen said.
The delayed start of the Columbus Symphony season hasn’t helped, she said.
Shopper and Downtown worker Molly Eggert was one of the first customers to learn about the closing.
