THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
                 Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, June 20, 1994                    TAG: 9406200215 
SECTION: BUSINESS WEEKLY                     PAGE: 26    EDITION: FINAL  
SOURCE: Richard Grimes 
DATELINE: 940620                                 LENGTH: Short 

RETAIL: "IT'S SLOW, BUT IT'S GETTING BETTER"

Ask him about Duce, the store on Granby Street in Norfolk that he operates with brothers Dana and Antonio Mayo, and you'll get this succinct summary:

{REST} ``Hip-Hop retail.''

Duce, Reynolds will tell you, is more than just a store - it's a concept. And that concept is making over a storefront next to the Riverview Theater into something that Reynolds and his partners see as a little piece of New York in Norfolk - complete with graffiti-covered walls.

``In New York neighborhoods,'' Reynolds says, ``you don't shop in the malls. You shop in the neighborhood stores. And that's what we're trying for.''

One of the things he admires in those New York shops is their variety, and it shows in Duce's stock. In addition to the baggy pants and leather jackets that you would expect, Duce sells other items like watches and gold jewelry. His customers, Reynolds says, are just as varied.

``Hip-Hop all the way to surfers and skaters,'' he says.

Will the New York neighborhood feel of the shop, the eclectic stock and varied clientele make Duce a success? Reynolds thinks so, but he acknowledges it could take some time. It's slow,'' he says, ``But it's getting better.

{KEYWORDS} ALMANAC RETAIL SALES

by CNB