Pure Pet

 Pure Pet will be closing its Carbondale location on the east side of town near Reed Station Road.  the Marion location will remain open. This indicates the Marion location is doing better business than Carbondale because, of course, if the Carbondale location was doing better, it would be the one remaining open.

Walker's Bluff Winery closing

 According to this post on their Facebook page, Walker's Bluff Winery will close permanently in the near future.  The owners blame the increase in property taxes by about $8000 this year to around $400,000. The owners also says the winery has not made a profit in the past 2 years.

I had not heard anything about the winery since Walker's Bluff Casino has opened and was under the impression it had closed down with the opening of the Casino as all the focus of the company, at least promotionally, was on the casino. Incidentally, the closure does not affect Walker's Bluff Casino, which will remain open.

Amazon Hub Delivery

 Amazon Hub Delivery  has opened in Marion. I keep getting notices asking me or my staff to particpate and we always decline.  The problem is, delivery people get paid about $1.60 per package and make 50 to 70 deliveries per day within a three mile radius, meaning about $116 per day. With that many stops, the car's gas milage drops by about 25% and the wear on the car increases significantly, negating the entra money the delivey driver makes.

Hemp n' Stuff

According to their social media pages, both Hemp n' Stuff and Magickal Hippie, which were under the same ownership, have closed down, Magickal Hippie's FB page does make a reference to following them it you want to see "what's happening next". A lot of  dispensaries have opened in the past couple of years in Carbondale to compete with Hemp n' Stuff, which, as far as I could determine, did not sell marijuana, just the supplies fo r smoking or consuming it. 

Carbondale, despite being a college town, has never had the customer base to support a new age show for more than a few years. Country Goddess lasted the longest and it closed after about 4 years.

Horstmans Cleaners

 If you missed it, Horstman's Cleaners, a fixture of downtown Carbondale since 1925, has closed permanently. The demand for dry cleaning has dropped markedly over the past couple of decades and, as workers age out of employment, dry cleaners are replacing them with robots.  The price of roboticized dry cleaning has also dropped. whereas it used to be that it was only cost efficient for dry cleaners with a staff of 100 or more to add robots, they are cheap enough now that cleaners that would employ a staff of 10 can do so.

From wnat I have heard, some of the equiptment Horstman's used also broke down and it is not cost efficient to replace it. Whatever the reason, another bit of Carbondale history is gone.

Closures

 Looks like Fazoli's here in Carbondale and Hardee's in Carterville have both closed up.  From what I have read, Fazoli's employees found out the day the restaurant closed as they were told not to come in to work.  both restaurants have had all the signage removed from the building.

Hawthorne Art

 Hawthorne Art has closed its gallery and event space though the buiness will be active online.  Appears not enough demand for  an additional event venue in Carbondale

Bandana's

 Bandana's has reopened with limited hours. Currently the hours are

Sunday – Thursday: 3:00 PM – 9:00 PM

Friday & Saturday: 3:00 PM – 10:00 PM

Taste Buds Stacks

 Taste Bud Snacks, on the west side of Carbondale, announced on social media they will be closing the Carbondale location, not due to poor sales but because the owner is relocating to Columbia Mo

Lost Forest Coffeehouse

 The Lost Forest Coffeehouse, at the corner of College and Illinois in the old Artistic Minds Tattoo location opened this pas week and so far the reviews are good. I expect it to do well since it is the closest coffeehouse to the main SIUC campus, though Common Grounds is right across the street from the Towers. I hope the owners have plans to reach out to campus as they could draw a lot of traffic from there.

Yummy Donuts

I assume they are yummy since it is in the store name but Yummy Donuts is now open at 606 S Illinois Ave in the University Plaza strip on south Illinois. From what I read, a dozen doughnuts runs about $11. Hopefully

Arcade and Entertainment Venue

 The planed arcade and entertainment venue that was going into the Cricket location at the intersection of Mill and Illinois appears to have run into "proof of concept" problems.  The installed lights have all been removed and "For Rent" signs are back in the windows.

From what I understand, the location was supposed to be a family oriented arcade and entertainment space charging a fee for either flat entry or per hour.

Hippie Haven

 I have seen a link to the following blog post citing Carbondale as the top Hippie town in Illinois circulating around social media. Since the Trip Memo list is pretty light on specifics for Carbondale, I would go with the Thrillist's choice of Makanda as the top hippie town in the estate. 

Now if the Rainbow Gatherings return to the Shawnee and we start seeing the Rainbow People on the Strip again each summer, I would grant the hippie haven nod to Carbondale but since the Forest Service cracked down on the Shawnee Rainbow Gatherings years ago, I doubt we will see them again.

However, if the success of businesses like Legal Smile, Magickal Hippie, Hemp and Stuff and The Psychic Store continue, Carbondale may take the crown from Makanda

Staples

 Staples, despite the emptiness of the shelves, is not going out of business. The Carbondale store is currently hiring part-time sales associates and apparently is looking for 2 full time supervisors and a store manager. Heck of a lot of turnover there, it appears.

Buildings Up for Auction

 Two commercial buildings on the west side of town up for auction. One used to house The Vape Shop and Subway before that.  The other one has been empty so long  I do not remember what was in there, but it has showroom space, there bathrooms and multiple office spaces. Absolute auction so high bid takes them.

The Cellar

 Another downtown bar is or rather has been up for sale. The Cellar has been on the market for a bit over half a year. Asking price is a bit over $2.2 million, which seems a bit steep, at least to me.

Strip Clubs

With the closure of Club Coyote, I think that leaves JB's Showplace as the only strip club in the area. At one time, there were half a dozen in the area. Apparently it is much easier, cheaper and more private to watch women dancing on your home streaming service.

Chocolate

 Expect to pay more for chocolate today as chocolate candy prices are up 10 to 20% over this time last year.  This is because raw chocolate prices have nearly tripled since last year as a result of poor cocoa harvests in Ghana, the primary producer of cocoa, over the past three years. Other countries are planting more cocoa plants but it will be 5-6 years before they are ready to harvest.

Jo-Ann Fabrics and Crafts Closing

 Joann Fabrics and Crafts has declared bankruptcy for the second time in a year, citing sluggish sales and inventory issues. The company will close 500 of its 800 stores and, unfortunately, Carbondale's location is on the list. This leaves Wal-Mart as the only place in the area to purchase yard goods.

Romantix

 Romantix is opening a location in Marion and is looking for a store manager, should anyone be looking for a position.  Pay is around $45,000 per year. Moving into the shuttered Family Video location on West Main