The store opened in the Cotswold shopping center in 1997. Ten Thousand Villages is a non-profit that works with local artisans in Third World countries to bring their goods here to be sold. The artisans are paid a fair wage, Ten Thousand Villages says, allowing them to increase their standard of living.Ten Thousand Villages doesn't plan to open another shop in Charlotte, an employee at the store said. The non-profit retailer now has stores in Greenville, S.C. (updated), Montreat, Greensboro, and Asheville.
(Apologies for not getting this up in time to let people know about their store closing sale. I didn't hear about the closing until this weekend.)
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Shocker.
ReplyDeleteWhat a shame!! This was the best accessory and gift shop in town, with or without the altruistic component of the shop. I am truly saddened by this news.
ReplyDeleteThat's too bad. I liked this store- it was unique and had so many interesting items.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I never heard of the store and I go by Cotswald everyday...Sorry but a little more advertising would be beneficial
ReplyDeleteThey should have changed their name to General Motors and asked for a bailout.
ReplyDeleteYou can still shop their online site, but I hate to see the local store close!
ReplyDeleteWhy? Why did it close? Lease dispute? Poor sales? You all are supposed to be trained reporters....
ReplyDelete...why don't you ever ask why?
Hi Joisey. I have contacted Ten Thousand Villages corporate, and haven't heard back with the "why" yet. I wanted to get the information about the store being closed out there without waiting for every detail, since this is a blog about store openings closings. Thank you for reading.
ReplyDeleteI know this is a blog, but it is no excuse to be lazy, as you are a Harvard-educated journalist. This blog is tied to a major newspaper; it is not a personal blog written by a 15-year-old. Don’t throw out your journalistic integrity on the basis of “it’s a blog,” as you blotch many of your blog entries.
ReplyDeleteA simple check on the Ten Thousand Villages website would have told you that they do not have a store in Greenville, NC; instead they have locations in Chapel Hill, and Raleigh in addition to the Ashville, Montreat and Greensboro locations that you mentioned.
The Greenville location is in another state – South Carolina.
Regarding the closing of the Charlotte location, another simple check of their website would tell you that they are already searching for a new Charlotte location with the intent of opening in 2013.
“We are sorry to report that the Ten Thousand Villages Charlotte store in Cotswold Village location has closed. However, the Ten Thousand Villages home office is currently researching potential new locations with the goal to open a new store in the Charlotte retail market area in 2013.”
http://charlotte.tenthousandvillages.com/
Hi Jack. That information on the website you reference was not there when this post was put up. Also, their PR department didn't return a message, so I talked to an employee at the actual store, who told me they didn't plan to open a new store. Since then, the company has confirmed they hope to open a new store in Charlotte. Thanks again for reading.
ReplyDelete