It’s not uncommon for late winter in Wellesley to be a time of business movement. Sometimes, a certain number of storefronts that were filled throughout the all-important holiday season decide to go dark once the Q4 financial ledgers tell their story. Other times, pop-ups with a short-term lease sweep the floors and turn out the lights, as agreed. Other reasons from owner retirement to a need for a lifestyle change might come into play. We took a walk around town and noted over a dozen places that could use new tenants.
Wellesley Square, Church Square
A couple of the more notable empty spots are the double storefronts formerly occupied by home furnishings and gift store Laurel Grove at 25-27 Washington St. in Wellesley Square, which opened in 2020. Now we’re not sure where we’ll find host gifts that say, “My favorite color is bourbon.”
Another large space was home to Papa Wheelies in Church Square, which closed in October 2024 after about a year of providing area cyclists with a full line of hybrid, mountain, electric and road bikes, and accessories. A sign in the window promises the store will reopen after an upcoming ownership change, but so far we haven’t seen any such evidence.
Also in Church Square, pop-up Grey Heron, which offered beautiful blankets and pillows, closed after the holidays, so that space at 24 Church St. is again available.
The Cashmere Sale’s pop-up store has kept 35 Central St. humming along for about eight weeks during the holiday shopping season for the past couple of years (10+ years in all at various spots in town!). If not for Wellesley’s extreme need for soft and cozy sweaters, hats, and mittens, who knows how long that spot, which hasn’t had a permanent tenant there for several years, would remain dark and chilly?
The space that held Wolfers Lighting at 61a Central St. is available. And Panoply Spa and Boutique at 558 Washington St. permanently closed last month. Lacrosse Unlimited is still thriving in Wellesley, just not at its original 55 Central St. location. They now outfit lax-aletes at 32-34 Church St., and their old spot remains empty.
Webster Bank still does business in Wellesley Square, but it reduced its square footage, leaving the adjacent space empty. Coldwell Banker will fill that slot, which is next to Laughing Monk. The space at 71 Central St. where Coldwell Banker has been resideing next to Dellaria is listed by the property owner as having a lease pending.
In addition, there are still 12,500 more sq. ft. for owner Linear Retail to fill up in that subdivided building where Shake Shack has had the prime corner spot since spring 2024. No word yet on what else might be coming in, though we see that a lease is pending for the lower level.
Also, the space next to Fulham Salon (across the street from Truly’s) is empty.
Just west of Town Hall, the space at 555 Washington St. that long housed Lemon Thai Cuisine is quickly being re-occupied by a restaurant called Charm Ramen & Rice.
A couple of “forgotten” spaces include 11 Central St. (next to Juniper restaurant), and the teeny downstairs spot at 31 Central St. Remember Trappings, that very popular preppy clothing store, circa 2004-2011? Rumor has it that the owners went boho and decamped for an Eat, Pray, Love experience. The equally preppy Monogrammed Cottage followed in its espadrilles for a short while after. The loss of both resulted in a Wellesley that’s a little less less pink-and-green, with hair gone wild due to the local shortage of headbands.
It’s been a long goodbye, but Autolab has pulled its garage doors down for good. We interviewed owner John Donovan back in October 2023, and he told us all about his 50 years providing auto services work at the 8 Spring St. location, within view of the library and Hunnewell Elementary School. It took time for John to empty the garage its decades of accumulated tools, vehicles, and equipment, but the job is done. Thanks, John, for keeping so many of Wellesley’s cars in fine condition.
“Although It’s really sad to see some of the tenants leave that have been here for so long, (they will be missed), it’s really exciting to see some new merchants come into the square to fill some of the empty locations. Also I’m really excited after reading an article to find out that Wellesley is named the biggest “boomtown” in Massachusetts. So for any merchants considering coming into town, now’s the time!” Demian Wendrow, owner of London Harness and Tumi said. Wendrow is also the president of the Wellesley Square Merchants Association.
The Taylor Block
With the Taylor Block being up for sale, there’s no telling what will happen at the 540-568 Washington St. address, at the intersection with Grove Street.
Frank Petz, managing director of the capital marketing team at Colliers, the brokerage firm that has the listing for the property, told us his team is in the middle of accepting bids. “We’ve had good interest from both local and regional players,” Petz said during a telephone interview. “This is a good opportunity to make a long-term impact on Wellesley.”
Petz says there have been various ideas brainstormed about how the Taylor Block might look, but in general, mixed use has been suggested. It’s too soon to say what would become of the current tenants. Businesses such as Old School Pizzeria, Rice Burg, Comina, and Tutto Italiano are among the tenants on this stretch.
We think it’s likely that since an acre plus seldom comes up in a major Wellesley business district, nobody should be surprised if the Taylor block is torn down and reimagined.
Know of Wellesley businesses coming or going? Let us know: theswellesleyreport@gmail.com
Linden Square
A Linden Square representative reports that the popular shopping area is currently 99% leased, with the former Magic Beans space being just about the only untenanted storefront in the area anchored by Roche Bros.
“Linden Square remains a valuable asset to the community, offering a diverse range of businesses that attract customers multiple “trips” per week,” said Liz Ryan, vice president of Regional Leasing for Federal Realty. “Our recent property upgrades and the addition of key retailers have further strengthened Linden’s market position. As a result, we are experiencing a significant increase in retail leasing demand which has enabled us to take a strategic and thoughtful approach to ensure our tenant mix meets the evolving needs of the community. We are excited to announce additional new Linden Square tenants in the coming months.”
Van Leeuwen ice cream, set to open this spring, will bring flavors like lemon poppyseed muffin; vegan strawberry shortcake; earl grey tea; and premium ice cream bars. We’re told Karma, which has been gearing up for its grand opening for a couple of years, will also open in spring. A Karma sign recently popped up.
Wellesley Hills area
The former Citizens Bank space at 392 Washington St. (near the UPS store) has been closed since last April. So has Bank of America in the Waterstone area… Brookline Bank plans to move its Wellesley branch there.
Speaking of banks, J.P. Morgan has opened its new office where acquisition First Republic and its wonderful window waterfall previously stood.
The town’s take
Wellesley’s assistant executive director Corey Testa weighed in via email on the business climate in town. “The Select Board and business community have worked tirelessly to make Wellesley a more welcoming place for restaurants and retail establishments, particularly over the last 5-10 years. We love to see empty storefronts filled and are continuing to work with business leaders and residents on policies to further support economic development. It’s quite evident that changes Wellesley has made, such as removing intent to dine from our alcohol bylaws, streamlining permitting, partnering with merchant organizations on community events, have had the desired effect—we have become a destination for shoppers and diners, not just from our community but from the region as well.”
So far although the empty storefronts around town translates into tens of thousands of square feet of space, nobody’s talking yet about turning blank spaces into temporary art galleries, as was done in 2021 to give the town a cared-for vibe.
By our count in this story, Wellesley is looking for around 17 businesses to come into town with their great ideas and fresh energy. If you hear of any that are coming, please let us know at theswellesleyreport@gmail.com so we can shout them out in our regular Business Buzz column.
YES, I want to get up in Wellesley’s business—sign me up for Swellesley’s free weekday email newsletter
So sad that more ethnic restaurants, breakfast/lunch casual dining spots (remember Videlia)& small boutiques are going to surrounding towns due to high retail rent in Wellesley.