Jul 15, 2009

Expanding in a recession: Periwinkles plans 3rd storeBy Christine LaueOmaha.com

Bill and Linda Kirshenbaum, owners of Periwinkles for Her gift shops at Westroads Mall and Village Pointe, plan to paint the new store at Bel-Air Plaza pink and call it “Pinky”Winkles.

“It’s scary opening a new store in this economy, but I think we found a great little spot,” said Linda Kirshenbaum. “There’s a magical excitement about it.”

The Kirshenbaums’ excitement largely is due to what they said was a surprising success at the location, which is between One Drake Place hair salon and the Wine 121 wine shop near the northwest corner of 120th Street and West Center Road.

In May, the Kirshenbaums bought the previous tenant’s gift shop merchandise from a bank, which had taken possession of the inventory after the owner defaulted on a loan. The couple said they didn’t plan to open a third Periwinkles there or elsewhere. They bought the inventory, for a price they declined to disclose, thinking they simply would sell it in a few weeks.

But, the Kirshenbaums said, they quickly discovered that the configuration of the building created a unique situation: Doors open to both of the neighboring businesses, allowing salon customers to shop for gifts and sample wine while having their hair colored.

And merchandise that didn’t sell well at the two Periwinkles stores sold well at the Bel-Air Plaza location, Linda said. “It’s just been so busy. The traffic is great over there,” said Bill. “We just decided to sign a lease, to stay there.”

The store will have a different name and offer “girlfriend gifts” that are similar to but different from their Periwinkles merchandise, which includes Vera Bradley fabric purses, Brighton jewelry and other accessories and gifts, the Kirshenbaums said.

“We’re going to kick it up a notch, as my wife says,” Bill said.

The inventory sale, which started June 3, will run another four weeks, Bill said. Then the store will close for about two weeks and reopen in early September as “Pinky”Winkles.

The couple are optimistic about opening a store during a recession because business is up 10 to 20 percent this year over last year at their two Periwinkle stores, Bill said.

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