Mark Oprea
Atasia Etheridge, 32, in the bathroom-photo studio at Shake & Slide, her throwback burger diner that opens on November 11th.
Apple Jax Toys, a nostalgic toy store; Mike the Hatter, a century-old haberdashery; and Shake & Slide, a disco-tinged burger joint, will all welcome customers in new storefronts by the end of November. The trio of openings represent a win for Bedrock, who has tried to rehab Tower City into something useful.
In March, about 45 percent of the three-story mall was vacant, a hindrance that's led Bedrock to adopt a proactive approach in filling the space behind empty windows with hand-picked clientele. That is to say, all three of the new stores had to be sold on the potential of their new spaces.
Atasia Etheridge, 32, the owner of Shake & Slide, was at first skeptical of the potential of a concept-heavy diner at The Eatery's second floor. She had been pitched by Bedrock after last year's All-Star Game, and entertained the space recommended to her at first. (Tower City didn't respond in time for comment.)
"I just didn't want it. I wanted some improvements first. I wanted the aesthetics to look a little better," Etheridge said sitting at a booth in her dining area, referring to the subpar look of dusty railings and broken escalators. "And then, the improvements happened. I came down here, and I was like, 'Oh yeah, it's a go.'"
The owner of the now-closed Sprinkles & Milk in South Euclid, Etheridge has spent the past 12 years pursuing a wide range of entrepreneurial concepts: a beauty salon, a childcare center, now, a throwback hamburger restaurant. She closed Sprinkles two weeks ago, after two years in business, to focus on Shake & Slide.
Decorated in bright oranges and blues, with Marvin Gaye on the PA and Soul Train posters on the wall, Etheridge's eatery is high on personality, which she feels will vibe well with the Downtown crowd, a major marketing point. As is Shake's bathroom.
"It's is a complete TikTok-worthy, Instagram-worthy place to go into and get your picture taken," she said, walking past a mural reading "groovy." "Isn't it cool?"
Across the way, over Skylight Park now awash in wintertime decor, is the newest outpost of Apple Jax Toys, which also has locations in Lakewood and Chagrin Falls. Housed in the former Cavs Team Shop, the 2,500-square-foot space on Tuesday was filled with hundreds of boxes, those containing Lite Brites, miniature Japanase houses, Beanie Babies waiting to be hung on their TY display.
Both Allen Singleton and Diana Hlywiak, its owners, rode the same train of optimism that sold Etheridge: Tower City in sight of Christmastime has some strong potential.
"Honestly, there are a lot of children there on the weekend," Singleton told Scene. "Astro is opening up, too. You have the holiday events, too—Mr. Jingeling is coming. Bruce The Spruce!"
Singleton added, "I mean, there's no place to really buy gifts for children downtown; there was such a void for us."
While there are always concerns about whether people will return to Tower City,
it didn't keep Singleton from his first store in Cleveland proper.
"I’m a very proud Clevelander, any chance to open up a store in the city, that's something I jumped at," he said. "It feels good to be in the city I grew up in."
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