Kent downtown yarn business making move to Kent Station

After more than two years in the city’s historic downtown, Renaissance Yarns has moved from its location on East Meeker Street and reopening in Kent Station Dec. 3.

According to owner Nancy Skorupa, the move has been in the works for some time.

“I have been looking at Kent Station for a very long time,” Skorupa said. “It’s kind of the new hub of the community.”

Skorupa said she made the move because she feels Kent Station offers a more diverse shopping experience. She also said many of her customers will drop kids off at the movie theater before heading to her shop and this makes it easier for them. She also cited the coffee shop as a pull for her clientele.

“It seems like the right move,” she said.

Skorupa also said her current location, on the opposite side of the railroad tracks from the majority of the Kent downtown corridor, made her business difficult to find. She estimated that more than half of her phone calls each day were customers telling her “I’m lost.”

“I think it will be much more visible,” she said of her new location, located next to Dave’s MiniHobby Shop and the Kent Station office.

Skorupa said she was not worried about the timing of move – right as the Christmas shopping season kicks into high gear – because the new locale will provide new visibility to shoppers.

“I’m very excited its happening right at the start of the season,” she said.

Renaissance Yarns is the third store to move from a downtown location to Kent Station since the shopping center opened.

Renaissance Yarns will also host a “Home for the Holidays” open house from 5 to 9 p.m. Dec. 12 featuring door prizes, giveaways and refreshments.

Brian Beckley can be reached at 253-437-6012 or bbeckley@kentreporter.com