Moray Pl homeware store Klein & Blue opened its doors earlier this month in the former Two Squirrels Vintage Emporium premises, which closed in August last year.
Owner Riah McLean — who also owns Vogel St Kitchen and is the original owner of Heritage Coffee — said the store was her first proper venture into retail.
She had briefly started a small homeware store called Mrs Brown in the back of Vogel St Kitchen, when it opened in December 2014.
But two days in, Ms McLean said she realised the cafe needed to be her main focus.
“We had so many customers, not enough seating, and I thought, ‘Right, this is not quite the right thing and it’s in the wrong place’.
“So I packed that up after a week and now I’m doing it properly 10 and a-half years later.
“I think I probably knew I would always do this.”
The cafe had since reached a point where it did not demand all of her time and energy, which factored into her decision to open Klein & Blue.
While she did not consider the economy to be thriving at present, Ms McLean said she strongly believed if you did the right thing and backed yourself, things would work out.
She had always found Dunedin a supportive and vibrant city to do business in.
Retail could sometimes be a little generic, but Dunedin was a city “full of creative people”, she said.
“I wanted to create something that was more layered and more surprising and more full of character than what a lot of sort of main-street retail shops can be.”
The store sold select furniture and homeware — particularly locally-made products and some vintage pieces — and also advertised consultations for residential and commercial renovation projects.
Its name came from her “long-standing love affair” with the colour Klein Blue — a shade of blue developed in the mid-19th century by French artist Yves Klein.
It was also the colour chosen for the store’s countertop tiles.
She hoped customers would love the store “as much as I’ve loved making it”, Ms McLean said.
