EDGEWATER — The neighborhood yarn store that kept North Broadway smiling with its huge, orange storefront octopus announced this week it will close on Jan. 31.
Sifu Design Studio owner Lisa Whiting said it was a financial decision to close up shop, and that while yarn sold steadily in the winter, by April she would have already blown through her savings to keep ends meet.
"It's wonderful in the winter, amazing. If every season were winter, I would have no problem," Whiting said. "But in the spring or summer it slows down to such a snail's pace ... and it's just very hard."
She'd promised her partner at the beginning of the year that if by now she hadn't turned a profit, or at least gotten to the point where she could begin to cover her own personal bills and expenses, she would close when the store's lease at 6054 N. Broadway ended, Jan. 31.
And that's what she intends to do.
However, Whiting said though her physical store will be gone, she will continue to hold a weekly "Brunch and Knit" event at Ellipsis Coffeehouse, 1259 W. Devon Ave.
Before closing, Sifu will hold its annual holiday sale from Dec. 18-23, and will be closed from Dec. 24-Jan. 1. Beginning Jan. 2, the store will begin a liquidation sale until its final day, Jan. 31.
She's also going to be devoting herself full-time to a new endeavor: a new knitted clothing line with friend and neighbor Lucia Blanchet called Lisa Lucia.
"A friend of mine was telling me, 'Oh it sounds like Dolce and Gabbana,'" Whiting said, chuckling. "I was like, 'Oh I like that!' Dolce Gabbana, Lisa Lucia."
Though it's bittersweet, she said she will still remain in the neighborhood — a place she's come to love since opening up three years ago.
Sifu had formerly been located in Andersonville, but Whiting said she moved east to Edgewater when she found she could get twice the amount of space for a fraction of her rent in Andersonville.
In a year, she said she'd like to open a studio where she can work and hold classes, though she's not sure if retail would be in her future again.
She's ready to spend more time with her family and take some time to travel — something she's been unable to do for the past five years while running her business.
At the end of the day, she said she hopes to remain in Edgewater, a neighborhood that's been good to her and that holds a special place in her heart.
"It's time for something new, I've got to go where I'm called," she said. "Owning a business, I've learned a lot. If these past five years were my business degree, consider me graduated."
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