Visit the $pent Studio storefront at 819 E Denny Way (Image: $pent Studios)

Thanks to Ryan in the CHS Facebook Group for the photo

• Crime shuts down Likelihood: A Capitol Hill footwear and sneaker boutique has had enough. The E Union location of Likelihood says it is “closed until further notice” after the most recent break-in and a series of ripoffs over recent years. CHS reported on one brazen heist at the high-end sneaker store here in 2021. The sign posted at the shop blames a recent burglary as the final straw and directs sneaker shoppers to Likelihood’s new South Lake Union store. Likelihood opened its backside of Pike/Pine location in 2015 but the area along E Union hasn’t fully filled-in and remains mostly out of the main flow of crowds around the Pike/Pine entertainment core. Ongoing construction on the Madison bus rapid transit project also hasn’t helped put more feet on the streets in the area.
• Nook and Cranny fundraiser: The bustle of neighborhood commerce around 15th Ave E didn’t help tiny book shop Nook and Cranny. The retailer is asking patrons for help after a weekend break-in:
  The night of Sunday, Aug 6th, somebody smashed the glass door of Nook & Cranny books and stole the cash register. Our dear friend Maren needs our help! She’s been working so hard, and has always been a great friend, neighbor, and community member!
  A fan of the store has set up this fundraiser to help — “Help your local indie bookstore get back on its feet; please donate today!” Nook and Cranny opened last summer after neighborhood book lover Maren Comendant learned the previous book shop in the space was closing and bought the store. You can also stop by the 324 15th Ave E store and buy some books.
• Ritual RIP: Indie fashion design shop Ritual is closing its E Pike store. The black-clad retailer opened in 2018 and brought a new independent fashion vision from two industry veterans to the neighborhood. “When we’re feeling feel sassy, we might have some charcoal,” co-owner Sarah Randall Williams told CHS at the time about Ritual’s monochromatic approach that emphasized texture and shape. You can build up your gothic fashion collection and say goodbye — Ritual’s going out of business sale continues at buyritual.com.
• NBD ‘retail lab’ opens: Mushroom culture and fashion shop Sporelust! closed its PIke/Pine shop this spring just as the mushies were starting to pop. The space at the corner of E Pike and Boylston is now back in motion as an “art gallery, pop-up venue, retail lab & community event space” from Seattle ad agency CROWN. The new NBD — No Bad Days — venue isn’t exactly a new retail space but it isn’t not either. One thing for sure? It’s the second neighborhood presence for CROWN on the Hill. The agency’s Zach Huntting moved his Gold Bar venue from South Lake Union to Capitol Hill last year.
• ‘I $SPENT TOO MUCH ON THIS’ — Denny just off Broadway has made a home for $pent Studios, a “1-man army turning unusable second-hand clothing into wearable artwork.” You can learn more about the puny storefront for “reworked garments, as well as a careful selection of vintage clothing” at spentstudios.com.

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