CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Lower South End is exploding with new construction. Small businesses are excited to move into the growing neighborhood, but some are faring better than others as they wait for more people to move into the area.
As hundreds of apartments and houses are being built in the neighborhood, several new restaurants and bars are also moving in.
SupperClub, for example, is a restaurant with games and craft cocktails that opened in October 2023.
"There’s residential right behind us; We get a good crowd from that," owner Brad Byrd said. "We’ve got more residential getting ready to open all around us and office buildings."
Byrd told WCNC Charlotte that business at the restaurant has improved each week since opening two months ago.
"We’re slowly building," he added.
However, just around the corner from SupperClub is a brewery claiming to have a different experience. Weathered Souls has been vocal about its struggles to stay open.
"I've taken it as far as I, personally, financially can," Weathered South co-founder Mike Holt told WCNC Charlotte.
The brewery opened about a year ago and had to close its kitchen this month.
"Basically, it was a loss that we couldn't continue to sustain for now," Holt said.
Holt said inflation skyrocketed the brewery's construction budget and on top of that, foot traffic hasn’t been great.
“We arrived a bit early, as did some of our business neighbors, knowing that the neighborhood is growing tremendously," Holt said.
Weathered Souls is trying to weather the storm long enough for more people to move into the area, but it needs help holding on.
"Looking out two or three months, obviously we're going to need some outside investment," Holt said.
Byrd told WCNC Charlotte customers sometimes have a hard time finding SupperClub on Dewitt Lane. However, he thinks the block of surrounding businesses will be its own hot spot very soon.
"We’ve got an apartment building that’s probably a couple of weeks out, but I think as that opens, then the business will increase exponentially," Byrd said.
Contact Julia Kauffman at jkauffman@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.