Homewood antique store’s Feb. 2022 closure will displace 40+ vendors — seeking new home

Homewood Antiques and Marketplace stunned patrons this weekend announcing it will close its doors after 11 years in February 2022.

Chris Collins, owner of the bustling and beloved Edgewood neighborhood store never intended to leave.

According to a Saturday morning Instagram post, on December 3rd, Collins learned the building had been sold. Days later, the new owners told her they had other intentions for the building facilitating Homewood Antiques’ February departure.

Below is her Instagram announcing the closure:

Took a Chance on the Neighborhood

In a brief interview at the shop, Collins proudly described to Bham Now the inspirational entrepreneurial Homewood Antiques story.

“We took an old, dirty building that had been empty for over five years. This strip was pretty empty. And across the street there were only two businesses. So it was kind of quiet and kind of lonely, kind of desolate down here, especially at night. We took this building and we opened up an antique store with lots of different vendors, a very unique store that didn’t have any borders that looked like one big huge pretty store where everybody worked together. A lot of people worked really, really hard here for a lot of years.”

40+ Small Homewood Businesses in One

The one thing that breaks her heart about the pending February closure is the impact it will have on the 40+ vendors that work within the store.

“The worst thing is… it’s not my store,” Collins said.”This store represents 40 plus small businesses, the majority of them female. For some of them this is their only source of income and they are Homewood residents. We have an upholster in the back. A lady that does framing. We have a sweet little old lady who’s 84 years old who works with us where this is her only source of income and her husband died during the pandemic. These are the people that are being put out of business. It’s not just me. I’m just the person that put it all together.”

What’s Next

What’s next for Homewood Antiques? They are beginning to search for a new home, but it’s going to be hard to duplicate what they have in Edgewood.

“We’re just going to hang in there and do the best that we can,” Collins added. “There’s nothing I can fight. There’s no way I can fix this. I can just see if we can find another place. You can’t just take this door and put it just anywhere. It has a certain kind of feel to it. I gotta find another place.”

Thankful to her loyal customers — Collins asked for help to find a place.

“Please put the word out. We’re all about community. Our customers are like family to us. So if somebody knows a realtor or somebody who has an empty building we are open to discussions,” she concluded.

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