Struthers children’s store makes its move after 18 years

Struthers children’s store makes its move after 18 years

By EMMALEE C. TORISK

etorisk@vindy.com

STRUTHERS

When Melanie Rauschenbach opened Kid’s Stuff in the State Street storefront adjoining her antique shop, her three boys were young, and she’d heard that children’s resale shops were the next big thing.

Rauschenach figured it’d be a low-stress business, with an easily replenished inventory of used children’s clothes and toys, books and furniture.

But she didn’t anticipate it lasting 18 years.

“I never thought it would be around this long, after my own children became adults,” Rauschenbach said. “I think people can relate to a family-owned business, and are very comfortable coming in. They feel like they’re a part of the store, and, certainly, we’re a part of the community.”

In early September, after almost two decades at 6 State St. in downtown Struthers, Rauschenbach moved Kid’s Stuff less than a half-mile away, to 160 Lowellville Road.

Built in 1925 as a grocery store, the structure boasts an original tin ceiling, along with several original light fixtures. Since its construction almost a century ago, it has been occupied by only a few tenants, including an appliance repair store and a rumored pool hall, but then sat empty for the past 35 years.

Its vacancy was both a blessing and a challenge, Rauschenbach said.

Read the full story Monday in The Vindicator and on Vindy.com.