CityView Magazine - Fayetteville, NC
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/647274
CityViewNC.com | 27 910.678.WOOD (9663) Solid Wood • Ready to Finish • Fully Assembled Yes! We offer Custom Finishing! 4101 Raeford Road • Fayetteville • www.woodysfurniturestores.com 30"/24" Saddle Stools $ 29 88 each Regular Price $59.99 NOW OPEN! FAYETTEVILLE'S NEW SOURCE FOR WOOD! by Clayton Britt & Sons Bringing families & communities together one pool at a time for over 35 years! 3703 Bragg Blvd. | 910.868.8319 | spaandpoolworld.com | claytonbrittandsonsinc.com 3703 Bragg Blvd. | www.SpaandpoolWorld.com | 910.868.8319 New Garden Leisure Spas in our Showroom which gave the Parfitts an idea—City Center Gallery became City Center Gallery and Books. "I knew art wasn't going to be the main thing to get people through the doors," Diane said. "I love books and had always wanted to own a bookstore." A former English major, Hank was an easy sell on the idea. As he says, man's greatest inventions are books and art. Somewhere around the '30s or '40s, there had been a movement to modern- ize the retail spaces, lowering ceilings and expanding the display areas at the front of the store so that customer had to walk between the encased displays to reach the door. e Parfitts moved the footprint back out so that the door was even with the windows. Photos from 1941 show the original red brick, how- ever, they decided to keep the black- and-white paint scheme. When adding books to the mix, Di- ane dug in and did her research, and she decided to sell mostly used books, specifically those that appealed to col- lectors. She quickly realized customers were interested in the classics. "You know, all those books you rolled your eyes at in high school," Di- ane joked. While the Parfitts were actively run- ning the store, they chose to lease out the residential space with the idea they would someday move in themselves. In late 2005, the Parfitts seriously tossed around the idea of making their move. ere was a renter in the lo, so they met with a realtor about downsizing to a smaller transitional home where they could await their eventual move down- town. Life, as it turned out, had other plans. ings got busy and it looked like the move would have to wait. Making the Move In 2014, the Army doctor renting the residential space above City Center Gal- lery and Books received orders to Iraq. e Parfitts took their cue and decided not to put the space up for lease again. eir children, Matthew and Nicole, were grown and out of the house they'd built back in 1989. It was time for a new adventure. However, downsizing to less than half the square footage presented