DUBLIN, Ga. — Downtown Dublin has been growing over the past year with new businesses calling the Emerald City home.
Driving down West Jackson Street, you'll see new restaurants, shops, and even lofts. One of the latest additions is a hair salon named Southern Charm Salon.
Wyatt says family brought her back to Dublin seven years ago and that's when she activated her love for doing hair.
"I always wanted to be my own owner, I wanted to have my own shop, do it my way," Wyatt said.
Walking in the shop for the first time, Wyatt says it needed some work, but she knew it was home.
"It had just become available and as soon as my husband and I came in, I wanted it," Wyatt said.
She purchased the location knowing little about its history that dates back to the 1920s.
"It was a bookstore for several years and it would have changed hands several times over and over throughout the decade," said Downtown Development Authority executive director Tara Bradshaw.
Bradshaw says the last known business was an upholstery shop, which by that time made the building unrecognizable.
"For years it had been covered by stucco and a tin wall. Tiffany and her contractor decided to uncover the brick and expose that," Bradshaw said.
Since Wyatt kept the original façade of the building, that allowed her to receive a $5,000 match grant from the Downtown Development Authority.
Bradshaw says the salon is just one of the many new places opening up shop in Dublin.
"We have several businesses coming to downtown soon. We have Detox juice and smoothie bar, which is opening just about a block away, [and] we have a restaurant coming soon," Bradshaw said.
With the continued growth, Wyatt says she's happy she made the old bookstore her new home.
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