Cozy

At the corner of Hillsboro and 9th street in Durham stands a building which was once a gas station.  This gas station then became a seedy pool hall and that pool hall is now Cozy, which is anything but seedy.  Cozy is a place to find the comforts of home: reading glasses, tea accessories and balls of yarn nestled into cubbies... one can even find a group of women clicking their needles at the wooden table in the knitting corner.  Here, old bed frames are suspended from the ceiling to support whimsical ornaments overhead while the original wood flooring remains clear and unobstructed for easy navigation.  Shaped a bit like a boomerang, the building itself is a cozy nook curled up in a corner lot.  From the street, an old bathtub full of rosemary sits like a loyal lap dog in front of Cozy's beige stucco facade (functioning as a planter AND a road barrier to keep over zealous drivers in check).  Sunlight streams into this little store, thanks to large windows, glass shelving and relatively shallow awnings.  Consequently, window displays are kept to a minimum and carefully composed with sun damage in mind.  Cozy's large quantity of yarn, clothing and leather bags creates a warm tactile experience on the back windowless walls, where displays are grouped with like items for easy browsing.  This textile rich merchandise is then balanced by the bath, tea, stationary products and jewelry, which display well near the windows.  Issues such as storage and parking are touchy subjects here at Cozy... which has remained true to its original gas station form.  Thankfully, the owner has some storage up her sleeve for bulky holiday retail props.

                             

Cozy owner: Deb Nickel.  

Clear circulation along the spine of a non-conventional space.

Like items in large quantities create playful displays.

Glass shelving against a window takes advantage of natural light.