
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, December 17, 1994                   TAG: 9412190050
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A-6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: MAG POFF STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

MARKET STORE CLOSING

Mish Mish Inc., which retails architects' and artists' supplies, will close its store on the Roanoke City Market at the end of January. A store in Blacksburg, where the company is based, will remain open.

John Coles, manager of the downtown Roanoke store, said Friday that Mish Mish owns the two-story building at 14 E. Campbell Ave., which has been offered for sale.

The store has operated on the market for more than eight years.

Coles said the emphasis of the market district has changed from general retailing since Mish Mish opened there. City Market businesses that are successful now, he said, are gift shops and restaurants.

Mish Mish also intends to refocus its business. It will publish a general catalog from its headquarters at Blacksburg, Coles said, and will develop an electronic catalog for the Blacksburg Electronic Village computer network.

The downtown Roanoke store has five employees. Two will go to school and one will retire, Coles said. The assistant manager is considering an offer to work at the Blacksburg store.

Matt Kennell, executive director of Downtown Roanoke Inc., said he had not talked to the company's owner, Steve Miller, but was aware the business would close and that the building was for sale.

He said he sees an opportunity in the closing, though. With the reopening of Hotel Roanoke and construction of a pedestrian bridge connecting the hotel complex with the market area, Kennell said, a lot of new business will be generated. A retail building in the heart of the market will present an opportunity to capitalize on, he said.

by CNB