Boutique thrift store opens at College Station

Abilities First is set to open a boutique thrift store in the largely vacant downtown development College Station, around the corner from another of its ventures.

Inspired Boutique, 230 S. Market St., will host its grand opening at 10 a.m. Nov. 7, following by a Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce-sanctioned ribbon-cutting ceremony at 11 a.m. Nov. 17, according to a news release.

The store will resell women’s clothing, jewelry, shoes, accessories, collectibles and home decor to raise money for parent company Abilities First’s endeavors to help those with disabilities.

At its nearby 310 S. Campbell Ave. spot, Art Inspired contracts with businesses for document disposal services, while creating employment opportunities for individuals with developmental disabilities. The venture opened in August 2012, according to Springfield Business Journal archives.

Infill work at the College Station space, kitty-corner from Springfield Brewing Co. at the intersection of Market and McDaniel Street, began earlier this year.

Inspired Boutique enters developer Scott Tillman’s $12 million mixed-use project which has failed to gain much traction with tenants since it opened in 2008. While it’s anchored by Regal Cinemas, Hamels Foundation entered the development in January 2012.

Adjacent to the property, developer Craig Wagoner and his company, Brentwood Management, purchased land from Tillman, which was converted into the College Station Lofts. Though separate from the College Station development, lofts tenant Moxie Cinema is on the same street as Inspired Boutique and Hamels Foundation.