Framing store finds new place to hang

Published 9:32 pm Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Momentum continues for the downtown Brookhaven area.

We Frame It, currently located at 929 W. Chickasaw St., plans to move to a new location in downtown by mid-summer.

The move to 120 W. Monticello St. has had its challenges, but promises to be a game changer for an ever-evolving store, according to owner Matt Hall.

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Hall, who started working at We Frame It in high school, bought the store at its current location in 2005. We Frame It continues to evolve as a store and has changed significantly since Hall took over.

“When I bought the business in 2005, it was We Frame It and We Tan It. I got out of the tanning business and expanded the store, because we needed the space. When I first started here it basically was just a frame shop. Now we’ve just evolved into things I was given personally as wedding gifts that weren’t available here before,” Hall said.

“We have a bridal registry and we strive to have gifts for every person,” said Erin King, store associate. “We also have things that you’d want for your own home.”

The move to Monticello Street downtown comes with some challenges. In the past, the building has been home to an arcade, a car dealership and a theater. With the building being empty for several years now, the clean-up has been a large undertaking.

“I bought the building in August of 2015. It has been a labor of love. Whenever I’m not here at my current store, I’m over there scraping brick, chiseling plaster. We had 15 30-yard containers of debris. No one really knew what the interior structure looked like before and it’s just absolutely beautiful,” said Hall.

Hall is excited about being a part of the downtown community and will add several new features to the new store.

“A comment several times a week from customers walking in, is that ‘We thought you were only a frame shop.’ That’s one of the main driving forces in us moving. I also will be adding a new name. The home and bridal store will become Hall and Company and we will also have We Frame It. We will have our own parking lot, which is great because parking downtown can be an issue. We’re more of a classic than trendy store. We’re going to expand on the classic home and bridal that we already sell and then over time we will see what our customers drive us to bring in,” said Hall.

Hall hopes the new location will be open for business in mid-summer.