Here’s when a popular Charlotte boutique will open its third and largest store yet

This story was updated May 5 with the store’s opening date and grand opening celebration.

A popular Charlotte boutique is growing even during a pandemic.

Moxie Mercantile will open its third and biggest store location on May 18 in downtown Matthews.

Owner Michelle Castelloe said the 2,700-square-foot space on 159 N. Trade St. is a perfect fit for her shop that sells personal and home accessories. The building interior, with hardwood floors, built-in cabinets and black counter, are “aesthetically perfect,” she said. “It fits my brand, mixing in vintage goods and having a building with character.”

The larger space also means Moxie will be expanding its offerings to include — exclusive to the Matthews store — clothing lines Farm Rio and Young, Fabulous and Broke (YFB), plus other products like Brooklyn Candle, and Ophelia and Indigo.

Castelloe said she chose Matthews because of its downtown and customers’ requests to open there. In the fall, Castelloe posted on Instagram that she was looking for a new location — and Matthews was the No. 1 most-requested area.

“We need to preserve the character of these small communities,” Castelloe said. “Local businesses are what make neighborhoods and towns cool and vibrant.”

Despite the coronavirus pandemic shutdown a year ago for two months and sales being down 50% in third quarter, Castelloe said sales bounced back in 2020 and were on par with 2019.

“The pandemic was hard but the community support for hyper local shop and artists has been amazing,” she said.

Castelloe said it seemed like a good time to find a new location if another business closed or didn’t want to reopen.

The new store will be managed by longtime Moxie employee Amy Williams. Castelloe expects to hire about eight employees.

A grand opening celebration will be held May 22, with 10% of the day’s profit going to Thompson family support and stability program. Store hours are 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and noon-4 p.m. Sunday.

About Moxie Mercantile

Castelloe opened the Moxie Mercantile in Plaza Midwood six years ago. A second location in Davidson followed three years later. In all, both stores have 15 employees, she said.

The retail shop focuses on selling local and national artists’ jewelry, pottery and other goods, as well as vintage finds, barware, some children’s items and clothing. And, Moxie continually switches up its product lines based on customer requests.

Moxie also offers a 100-square-foot studio space for sublease. In Plaza Midwood, for example, Grow Charlotte and Twenty-Two West outgrew the space within months, according to Moxie. Matthews vendors are encouraged to apply.

Castelloe, with more than 20 years managing national retail brands like Anthropologie, also seeks vendor brands that give back in their business models, such as Half United, Able and Linnea’s Light candles.

“I like to find brands doing good outside of making money,” she said.

This story was originally published April 8, 2021 at 2:08 PM.