The Beadtender has opened for business in a New Town storefront last occupied by Retro Daddio.
The store specializes in bead jewelry supplies and offers several introductory and advanced classes for those who want to learn more about creating jewelery, according to a news release from James City County.
The store is owned and operated by Sande Hubbard, who has spent more than 20 years working with beads. She previously owned More than Just Beads in New Town, which was open for about five years before she closed to travel elsewhere in the country.
During her travels, she spent time in Hawaii and Idaho. Now that she has returned to the Historic Triangle, she plans to sell beads she acquired on the road.
“It’s like coming home to a neighborhood,” Hubbard said in an August interview of returning to New Town, where many merchants she neighbored in the past remain in place, such as Iron-Bound Gym and the Nautical Dog.
Hubbard plans to host birthday parties and other events at the Bead Tender, which is larger than the space she previously had. That space is now Williamsburg Cupcake.
The Beadtender recently celebrated a ribbon cutting ceremony, when James City County Supervisors Mary Jones (Berkeley) and Kevin Onizuk (Jamestown) joined Hubbard and several others.
The store’s address is 5100 Main St.
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