All Up In Your Business, October 1

CORRECTION — An earlier version of this article misstated where Syd’s is moving. Syd’s is leaving its location on Rosemary Street, but staying in Chapel Hill.

Gigi’s Cupcakes opens in Chapel Hill

After a two-year wait, Gigi’s Cupcakes has finally brought its 300 cupcake recipes to 140 West Franklin.

Regional owners Jude Crowell and Rick Setaro hosted the grand opening Friday, which brought in about 500 customers.

“The whole concept is that you have one chance to make a great impression with this cupcake,” Setaro said.

Setaro said the team decided to open up on Franklin in the spring of 2011, but permits were a roadblock.

“We knew it’d be worth the wait,” he said.

Crowell and Setaro became business partners after a 20-year friendship. Operating near a college campus will be a new challenge for the duo, who have two other locations in Cary and Raleigh.

“I’ve got this amazing list of the different cupcake varieties,” Setaro said. “You can mix and match almost anything — take the bourbon cream cheese, put it on a chocolate cupcake and dip it in chocolate.”

Syd’s Hair Shop leaves Rosemary Street

Syd’s Hair Shop will close its Rosemary location after a problem with the original store’s lease.

Store manager Jenny Chrispley said the owners’ original plan was to keep the Rosemary store open, but they were unable to renew the lease.

“For the most part, everyone’s excited and supportive of the move,” Chrispley said. “We are pretty much bursting at the seams at the Rosemary location.”

Joseph Polcaro, who owns the Rosemary Street building, said he was only able to offer Syd’s a two-year lease, though they asked for five years.

Syd’s co-owner Bradford Scott said he was disappointed not to keep both locations, but the shop will still add two chairs and a stylist at its store on Graham Street.

“There are no hard feelings,” he said. “Investing in renovations for just two years doesn’t make sense for the business.”

Chrispley said she’ll miss having a parking lot for clients.

Cameron’s leaves University Mall

Cameron’s gift shop and jewelry store will move to 300 East Main after 32 years in University Mall.
The store will have a soft opening on Oct. 15, followed by a ribbon cutting on Nov. 18 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

“There are some people who are nostalgic for the old store, and I totally understand that,” said co-owner Wendy Smith. “But once we tell them our plans and our vision for the future, they come to the new side.”

Smith, who owns Cameron’s with her sister Bridget Pemberton-Smith, said the pair looked at several different shopping centers before settling on 300 East Main.

“We got in on the ground level and had some good talks with the leasing department,” Smith said. “We personally thought it was a really good fit.”

Smith said the store’s mission is simple.

“We try to sell things that are environmentally friendly, that give back to the community, that have a purpose,” she said.