Recently two friends and business partners, Amanda Dolan and Meagan Colby, brought their 1990s-themed online shop, Spark Pretty, to the streets. East 9th Street, specifically.
Dolan told Gothamist that “after about five years of steady online sales and a ton of experience as vendors at vintage markets, we got the itch to try something new. We started doing Pop Up Shops in theme with our favorite era, the era in which we were teenagers: the ’90s!” After a couple of successful pop-up experiences, the duo opened their brick and mortar store this month in the East Village.
Regarding their chosen neighborhood, Dolan told us, “We both have a sentimental attachment to the East Village,” adding, “I’ve lived in the neighborhood for fourteen years, and one of Meagan’s first apartments was on East 9th Street! To us, the East Village has always felt like the heartbeat of Downtown New York. It holds a sense of history and excitement. Forever changing, but also staying true to its roots. We wanted to open a store that would keep the Spirit of the East Village alive.”
