Club Duquette closing Woodlawn storefront, keeping online business open

One of Birmingham’s coolest and most popular retail stores is closing its brick & mortar store in Woodlawn on December 31st.

Club Duquette, the retail shop in the Woodlawn neighborhood that was once featured in the New York Times, Washington Post and Southern Living, made the announcement on its Instagram page today.

Club Duquette – modern mom and pop store

Billed on their website  as “a modern mom and pop quality lifestyle brand with clothing, supplies, and good vibes for all people,” the hip retail business owned by Duquette and Morgan Johnston will continue its online shop.

Club Duquette excerpt from Facebook

On Wednesday evening the Johnstons posted on Facebook a heartfelt letter to Club Duquette customers and the Woodlawn community. Read the letter in its entirety – HERE.

Below is an excerpt from the message announcing the storefront’s closure on the Club Duquette Facebook page — explaining their next steps:

“We are full of emotions as we share that we have made the decision to close our brick and mortar shop on December 31st, going fully online with a honed in selection of our everyday favorites and yours too.

As Morgan’s art career has grown and as I’ve returned to a deeper practice inside the musical part of my life, it’s time to take a leap of faith and jump off the cliff, taking a step into a new era for our family. 

Community is always at the heart of what we do, and this is one of the most emotional, multifaceted and frankly, terrifying steps we’ve ever taken. It actually feels a lot like when we decided to take a leap and open Club Duquette. 

To clarify, this is NOT the end of Club Duquette. This is a radical metamorphosis. We look forward to continuing our Friday Five newsletters and playlists, connecting you with a more finely curated selection of goods from our friends and retail partners, vintage drops and popups and growing our own manufacturing, which is our family’s roots. 

Not everything has to be bigger to be better. 

It’s brave and wise to allow a natural ending of a thing, to let it change you and to become something new on the other side. 

Come see us through the holidays and hang! We ask you to come down to the shop and also shop with us online! It would warm our hearts to see you and take care of you, and by shopping with us through the holidays, you help play a part in the next chapter of our journey as a family, a true mom and pop. For this reason, we will be offering no sales or specials through the holiday season. 

SUPPORT SMALL BUSINESSES! 

We will be throwing one last full on party to celebrate this transition. Come be a part of the history! Details forthcoming.

With deep love and gratitude,

Duquette, Morgan and Tennessee Johnston

Special message from Club Duquette

In note to Bham Now, the Johnston family wanted to stress that the Club Duquette brand will continue on with their regular Friday Five newsletters and playlists. They will also continue to offer a selection of their favorite products on their website as well as pop ups locally and around the U.S..

One last message they wanted to convey, their deep gratitude to Woodlawn. From their Instagram post.

To all you people, we are eternally grateful. 

And to the community of Woodlawn, our endless gratitude. We have learned more about community and family from you. Thank you for teaching us, for rallying alongside us, for challenging us and for welcoming us in your homes and hearts. 

Our lives are forever changed by this experience of the past eight years. 

Perhaps, that’s the secret to Club Duquette’s success. Love of family, friends and community.

Do you have a favorite Club Duquette memory? Tell us your favorite one on social media by tagging us at @bhamnow