memory lane—bham — Memory Lane 205 has a new location in Downtown Birmingham. Photo via Jacob Blankenship for Bham Now

Downtown Birmingham has been booming with new businesses—have you been able to keep up? If you haven’t, don’t worry! We’re bringing back Small Business Monday to keep you up-to-date. This week’s feature is Memory Lane—the vintage clothing and sneaker boutique that’s opening their flagship location on 1st Ave. N. Check it out.

Memory Lane’s dynamic duo

memory lane 205 — Their sneaker selection is endless. Photo by Jacob Blankenship for Bham Now

Memory Lane is a retail store that sells vintage clothing, streetwear and sneakers. It is a great place to find second-hand, good-condition sneakers as well as some of the newest styles and releases—like Yeezys, Jordans and OFF-White.

Business partners, Chris Smoot and Tanarius Hayes, both shared an interest in sneakers and styling clothes. As this interest and their entrepreneurial mindset collided, this business was bound to happen. It became a reality after Smoot saw a buy/sell/trade store in Paris years ago.

“I thought that it would be cool to have a store like that back home in Birmingham.”
Chris Smoot, Co-Owner, Memory Lane 205

In December 2017, Smoot opened Memory Lane’s first location in Bessemer. This is where Smoot met Tanarius Hayes—his future business partner. Tanarius Hayes had been purchasing and reselling sneakers online when he met Chris and quickly jumped unto the team.

They opened their second location in Georgia in October 2020.

First Avenue North’s new lane

memory lane—birmingham — Here’s a sneak peek inside their new location. Photos via Jacob Blankenship for Bham Now

What makes Memory Lane unique is the way they obtain their merchandise. Hayes told us that unlike most consignment stores, they become the sole owners of their items by buying outright—that way they can determine their own prices.

When asked what their favorite part of being a business owner in Birmingham, Hayes and Smoot said:

“We are not quite sure yet because we haven’t opened, but at the moment we’d probably say the access and availability of being close to so many different businesses and places, especially restaurants. We LOVE to eat over here.”

Their goal for Memory Lane is to bring a selection of sought after sneakers and clothing that no other store in the city has to offer.

BIG NEWS, BIRMINGHAM

mL- bham — Memory Lane—Birmingham opens this Friday, September 24th! Photo via Jacob Blankenship for Bham Now

Memory Lane is opening their third location in Birmingham this Friday, September 24th at 11AM.

“We chose this location because we feel that it is in a nice, prime location. Plus, the interior of the store really caught our eyes.”
Chris Smoot and Tanarius Hayes, Owners, Memory Lane

You can find their new shop at 2320 1st Avenue North. Check out their other locations.