STARability Foundation is excited to announce new beginnings and expansion of the STAR Store & Studio located in the heart of the Naples Design District. This community outreach venture opened in 2019, specializing in upscale resale home furnishings, and quickly became a new hub for STARability’s programming. To support the growth and development of this important enterprise, STARability’s leadership recognized an opportunity to relocate the STAR Store to a new, expanded location and enhance the thriving STAR Studio.
“We are delighted to grow and advance STARability and our mission through these expansion efforts,” said Karen Govern, chief executive officer of STARability Foundation. “We will be able to serve more participants and build more awareness for all abilities in our community.”
Expected to open this summer, the STAR Store will relocate to a larger space at 470 9th Street N. in Naples. The new location is about a quarter of a mile away from the existing store, with frontage along U.S. 41 and double the amount of space. The store will carry upscale resale home furnishings, a selection of products made at the STAR Studio and new home decor merchandise that provide customers with an array of interior designer-inspired options to refresh their living spaces, while supporting STARability’s mission to shine a light on ability, not disability.
The STAR Studio will remain at 106 10th Street N., giving the studio the necessary space to expand its program offerings and handmade products, including candles, jewelry, cards, tea towels, ornaments and more. The studio will be closed during the month of June and reopen with a new gift boutique on July 8 as STAR Studio & Artisan Gifts.
STARability opened the STAR Store & Studio to further support its mission as Collier County’s only privately funded nonprofit focused on enhancing the lives of people 14 and older with intellectual and developmental disabilities. In addition to benefiting STARability through the resale of upscale furniture and home décor, the store provides a setting where vocational training can take place.
In the STAR Studio, STARability’s participants of all abilities come together to create beautiful and professional handmade gifts. Through vocational training, internships and paid employment, more than 50 STARs are expressing themselves, learning a special craft and developing valuable skills that translate to their time in the community, at home and in other workplaces. Their products are sold on-site at the Studios’ artisan gift boutique, at the STAR Store, to a growing number of retailers and community partners, and at numerous community events, with 100% of the proceeds benefiting STARability’s life-transforming programs and services. Patrons can also conveniently shop online any time at starability.org/shop.