There’s a big sale going on at the Bellies & Babies consignment shop in Del Ray, as the store’s last day is on Sunday (Dec. 15).
There’s still plenty of inventory, like kids and maternity clothing, gear, books, and shelving and racks, said store owner Lee Raynes.
“I feel good that I helped a lot of people,” Raynes said. “The best part of the job was providing comfort to families in a scary time.”
Raynes wasn’t able to find a buyer to take over her brand and renew the lease for the shop at 1913 Mount Vernon Avenue. She said a potential buyer backed out after a six-month negotiation, putting her in a time crunch to find a new one before her lease expired.
“I’m extremely disappointed with the outcome of how this all played out, because we were a victim of time,” Raynes said. “If I had that six months back, I know I could have found the right person for Bellies & Babies, but I can’t dwell on that. Something new and fabulous will go in, and the next chapter will start, and that’s okay. It’s okay to be excited and sad at the same time.”
The store has been open for a decade. Raynes bought the business from its previous owner and reopened just two months before the pandemic in January 2020.
She said that she’s now going back to where she started, by revamping her personal concierge business, Check It Off.
“I’m going to go back to the beginning without the brick and mortar,” Raynes said. “I’m going to start having people send me their to-do lists. Everybody has a list, whether it’s in their head or it’s on paper or in their notes, like me, but everybody has a list of the things they want to get done, and they just can’t seem to make headway because other stuff keeps coming up.”
Raynes is taking her store manager Joanna Zelaya with her.
“We’re going to take the relationships, take the connections, take the knowledge and build a community of people that can not only help you, but kind of get more involved in general,” Raynes said.
The property owner is currently negotiating a lease with a new local business owner, the details of which will be made public next month, according to sources.
