Longtime AMI boutique brings island vibe to downtown Bradenton with new store
From the moment that Amy Fleece, owner of a women’s boutique on Anna Maria Island, heard that Bradenton’s City Centre parking garage and office building on Old Main Street would be offering retail spaces, she wanted one.
She grew up in Bradenton, graduated from Manatee High School and saw the City Centre building, which opened in 2019, as a key to the revitalization of the city’s downtown area.
Her second boutique, also named Pink & Navy, recently became one of the first business to open in City Centre. The long delay in getting retail businesses into those spaces on the corner of Third Avenue West and 12th Street West had everything to do with the pandemic.
To mark the opening of retail in the City Centre, owners of the first three businesses have organized a grand opening party 5-8 p.m. Friday.
The other businesses taking part in the grand opening are Stoked Flamingo, a men’s store, and the Beach Shop. Not open yet, but with their leases in hand are Millie’s Sweets and Treats and Orange Blossom Coffee.
Pink & Navy offers women’s fashions in small through curvy sizes along with handbags, accessories, gifts and more. Brands include Sanctuary, Gentle Fawn and 4Ocean.
“Check out our brands that are doing good and giving back,” Fleece said.
That message continues with stickers for sale at the store with upbeat messages, such as “radiate positivity,” “be a good human” and “here comes the sun.”
Unique gifts include local jewelry brands, Friendly City candles, the 34205 (downtown ZIP) tumblers and the Real Housewives of Bradenton wine glasses.
Essentially, the inventory includes things made sustainably and responsibly, Fleece said.
The opening of the second Pink & Navy store comes about five years to the day after Fleece bought the original store on 216 Pine Avenue, Anna Maria.
The Anna Maria store will continue to have an island vibe while the downtown store has a city-sophisticated feel, Fleece said.
Fleece met her husband, Jonathan Fleece, now president and CEO of Tidewell Hospice, while they were attending Emory University. They both worked to help put each other through grad school.
She has a doctorate in psychology and has taught at the college level. But after the Fleeces’ three children left home and enrolled in college, Amy looked for a new direction.
“I wanted something new, exciting and challenging,” she said.
That something turned out to be retail.
Pink & Navy is open seven days a week: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday. Staff includes Maria Danby and Susan Robbins. Shoppers don’t have to worry about parking. There is plenty available in the City Centre parking garage.
For more information, visit pinkandnavyami.com or call 941-567-4000.
This story was originally published July 1, 2022 at 5:50 AM.
