Rite Aid to close second store, shoe biz opens, vacancy filled, building demolished
Rite Aid, which filed for bankruptcy in October, is closing a second store in Thurston County, the business confirmed in an email to The Olympian.
The location to close is at 691 Sleater Kinney Road in Lacey. The store’s last day is Dec. 14. Customers can then pick up their prescriptions at Walgreens at 4540 Lacey Blvd., according to a spokesperson.
That’s the same tack the business took when it closed its store at 8230 Martin Way E. on Sept. 27. The following day all prescription files were transferred to the Walgreens at 8333 Martin Way E.
Rite Aid filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, a process that will allow it to speed up its plan to close under-performing stores, The Associated Press reported.
Other business happenings
A couple of self-described “sneakerheads” are opening their first store this Saturday in west Olympia, co-owner Johnathan McMillan told The Olympian this week.
The business is called Sole & Style and it opens at 10 a.m. at 1025 Black Lake Boulevard SW, Suite 1B. McMillan is opening the business with friend and business partner Nate Evander, who has been selling shoes online for years, McMillian said.
McMillan pitched him on the idea of opening a brick-and-mortar site, and after months of planning, the business has arrived.
The business will sell shoes, but it’s not just sneakers. They are selling a range of shoes, including designer shoes, as well as clothing and accessories, including high-end purses, McMillan said.
“We are not just catering to sneakerheads, but to everybody so that all feel welcome,” he said.
Items also will be offered at a variety of price points so that “no one feels priced out,” McMillan added.
If McMIllan’s name sounds familiar that’s because he has long been associated with Centralia College in Lewis County. He earned his associate of arts and bachelor’s degree there — the school has some undergraduate degree programs — then went on to be the assistant men’s basketball coach for 10 years and most recently was the assistant athletic director before deciding to go into business, he said.
He also worked with first-generation and low-income students at the school. McMillan is passionate about sneakers, but also about education, and he’s prepared to talk to adults and youth about the importance of an education at the store, he said.
Another feature of the business: they are going to have a “buy, sell, trade” program, McMillan said.
The regular hours of the business are still being worked out, but for this weekend the business is open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.
Mod Pizza has opened a new location in Lacey at 4022 Pacific Avenue. The business is open 10:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. It’s the third Mod Pizza in Lacey.
A longtime vacancy, also in Lacey on Pacific Avenue across from Fred Meyer, has been filled by an oil change business called Take 5 Oil Change. The site was once home to an auto glass repair business and later a COVID-19 testing site.
According to website information, the business got its start in Canada. However, the site did not include information about the Lacey location.
And there’s one more bit of information about Pacific Avenue in Lacey: A building is being demolished on the street between the Chehalis Western Trail pedestrian bridge and the House of Donuts.
Property owner Capital Development Co., the same group that operates South Sound Center, requested the demolition permit, said Grant Beck, Planning & Development Services Manager, for Lacey.
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If you know of a retailer, restaurant, coffee shop or other business that is opening, closing, expanding, remodeling, or changing its focus, send an email to reporter Rolf Boone at rboone@theolympian.com.
