5 business openings, closings and other updates on Antique Row in Tacoma
This list of stories illustrates recent changes to the businesses on Antique Row in Tacoma.
Sunny's plant and gift shop acted as a launch point for artists until its closure. The new Art Eye Choke thrift store and mending studio repurposes old items and offers ways for artists and shoppers to connect. Café Bostwick, now under new ownership, provides a community coffee spot with local foods. Lumikha Space welcomes beginners and families with low-cost craft workshops. Tacoma Capoeira Center teaches capoeira to all ages for free, promoting community through movement and music.
'This was not an easy choice, but one we know is best for us. To be transparent, we've delayed sharing this news for as long as we could,' the owners said on social media this week. | Published January 31, 2025 | Read Full Story by Becca Most
An artist by trade, the owner of 'Art Eye Choke' has made nearly every item in the store out of repurposed materials. | Published February 9, 2025 | Read Full Story by Becca Most
Capoeira, an art form created by enslaved Africans in colonial Brazil, lives on today in a new studio space downtown. | Published April 28, 2025 | Read Full Story by Isha Trivedi
The owner has sewing machines for rent, acrylic and oil paint, canvases, earring hardware, nice markers and pens, among other things. | Published May 16, 2025 | Read Full Story by Becca Most
It's been a somewhat bumpy ride for the cafe at the historic flatiron building in recent years, but the new owner still sees opportunity in the location. | Published May 23, 2025 | Read Full Story by Kristine Sherred
The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Newsweek
38 minutes ago
- Newsweek
World's Largest Power Station Could Provide Energy for Half of US Homes
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The Grand Inga Hydropower Project is moving forward after years of delays in a bid to solve southern Africa's electricity and water scarcity. Delivery of the project, which would be the largest power station in the world if completed, was accelerated after officials convened in Zimbabwe on July 3. Newsweek contacted the organization responsible for the delivery, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), for more information on the progress via email. Why It Matters The Grand Inga Hydropower Project, with a potential capacity of up to 70 gigawatts, is designed as the centerpiece of Africa's Mission 300 initiative, which seeks to connect 300 million Africans to clean energy by 2030. The average household in the U.S. uses just under 11,000 kilowatt-hours a year, meaning that if Grand Inga reaches its projected scale, it could generate enough electricity to power nearly half of all homes in the U.S., though it will be used solely for homes in Africa. What To Know The Grand Inga Dam in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) would be a series of seven hydroelectric power stations at Inga Falls in the Congo River. SADC ministers responsible for energy and water agreed to push forward with the Grand Inga Hydropower Plan and the Congo River Water Transfer Concept at a meeting in Harare, Zimbabwe, on July 3. On June 3, the World Bank Board of Executive Directors approved a $250 million creditas the first phase of a previously announced $1 billion long-term commitment to support preparation and local development efforts for Inga 3, DRC's largest power project to date. The Inga electricity production site along the Congo River on December 16, 2013. The Inga electricity production site along the Congo River on December 16, 2013. Getty Images Constructed in the 1970s and 1980s, the Inga I and II provided a foundation, yet both function at about 80 percent capacity. Grand Inga, which would be the third structure at the site, has attracted multiple rounds of international interest, but progress has repeatedly stalled because of high costs, governance concerns and the withdrawal of major partners, such as China's state-owned Three Gorges Corporation. The projected $80 billion cost of completing the Grand Inga plan remains a huge barrier for the DRC, which is one of the world's poorest countries. South Africa, Nigeria, Guinea and Angola have expressed formal interest in purchasing power from Grand Inga, tying the project to transnational energy security. The Grand Inga initiative is part of the Mission 300 program, which aims to supply electricity to 300 million Africans by 2030. World Bank President Ajay Banga called the wider project "a crucial component" for economic growth and development across the continent and predicted that it could draw as much as $85 billion in private investment. What People Are Saying Bob Mabiala, head of the ADPI-DRC, told the World Bank on June 3: "The electricity generation potential at the Inga site is one of the largest in the world. The development of Inga 3's hydropower will be transformative for DRC. By increasing access to clean, renewable, and affordable energy for Congolese households and industries, it will serve as a motor for inclusive growth and jobs." Albert Zeufack, World Bank division director, in a press release on June 3: "By supporting DRC's vision for Inga through this program and complementary investments in governance, education, and infrastructure, the World Bank Group, together with partners, can significantly contribute to converting DRC's natural resources into economic growth, jobs, and human development for the Congolese people." What Happens Next SADC ministers are expected to present progress updates on the Grand Inga and Congo River Water Transfer initiatives at the next SADC Council of Ministers meeting in Madagascar, scheduled for August.

Business Insider
6 days ago
- Business Insider
The founder of a luxury hotel chain says today's tourists look nothing like they did 30 years ago
Kwon Ping Ho has come a long way since he opened his first resort in Phuket in 1994. Ho's luxury hotel chain, Banyan Group, now operates over 90 hotels worldwide, including in countries like Cuba and Saudi Arabia. The 72-year-old told Business Insider that it's not just his company that's changed. His customers look much different than they did three decades ago, and they want different things out of travel. "When you talk about the people of my generation, when international travel just started, people were happy to go on group tours. They just go to a hotel and they eat in a hotel," Ho said on the sidelines of the International Conference on Cohesive Societies held in Singapore last month. "But young people today have long become jaded about international travel. They've been traveling with their parents," he added. "Today, when they're traveling on their own, they are looking much more for things that are out of the way." Ho said today's more seasoned travelers are a vastly different breed from yesterday's checklist sightseers. "They are much more into experiences, and not just to see something beautiful because they've probably seen that, done that with their parents already. They are looking at experiences which are deeper and allow them to interact with the local community," he continued. Ho isn't the only one who has noticed the generational shift taking place. Last year, McKinsey surveyed 5,000 travelers from China, Germany, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the US. The consultancy said that 52% of Gen Zers surveyed said they are willing to splurge on travel experiences compared to 29% of baby boomers surveyed. "One-size-fits-all tourism offerings of the past have grown outdated" as travelers seek "creative experiences that are tailored to their priorities and personal narratives," McKinsey wrote. Another change Ho said he noticed was in the countries from which tourists tended to hail and the places that they chose to visit. "When I first started in hospitality 30 years ago, the nature of tourism was one direction and one color," Ho said. "It was basically white people from Europe, traveling in one direction, from west to east." "Over the years, what I call 'rainbow tourism' has come up because of increasing wealth in other developing countries," he added. Ho said this has led to a "multicolored, multifaceted, exciting tourism of people from all over the world traveling to all over the world." "You've got Indians, you've got Africans, you've got Arabs, you've got Chinese, and Japanese, and so on, and then of course you've got young people from within the region," he continued. "That to me has been the biggest change." In January, UN Tourism's World Tourism Barometer said an estimated 1.4 billion tourists traveled internationally in 2024, an 11% increase over 2023. UN Tourism said it expected international tourism arrival numbers to grow by 3% to 5% in 2025.

Business Insider
09-07-2025
- Business Insider
Fintech innovator Chidinma Ndego speaks on financial inclusion, her Nigerian roots, and transformative tools in Africa's digital economy
Chidinma Ndego is a Product Leader and fintech innovator dedicated to advancing inclusive financial solutions across Africa. With a strong focus on human-centered design, she works to address the needs of underserved communities by developing platforms that simplify savings, lending, and payments. Drawing on her Nigerian background and a passion for driving impact, she is helping shape a more accessible digital economy on the continent. Q: You've driven impactful fintech solutions across Africa. Why did you become interested in financial inclusion? Chidinma: It started during my time working on a digital fintech application- that was a digital short-term lending product for one of Africa's largest commercial banks. Through that experience, I saw firsthand how technology could bridge financial gaps, especially for the low-income earners who couldn't access the traditional, collateral-based lending. By simplifying access, the bank increased disbursements by 50%, but more importantly, empowered individuals who had previously been locked out of the financial system. Witnessing the tangible impact on their lives, whether it was covering emergency needs or supporting short term goals, solidified my belief in the power of inclusive fintech to create real, lasting change. Q: You focused on youth saving at MyPennyTree. What was special about your approach? We realized that functionality was not enough to induce behavior change- it has to be engaging. We added group savings and gamified challenges to the app to cater to students and young earners. Think "squads" where peers keep each other accountable. This delivered a 30% increase in retention and 40% additional platform savings in the year. It was all about the combination of financial education and community, proving tech can nurture habits. Q: In what ways does your Nigerian background affect your philosophy on products? Deeply. The dynamism of Nigeria teaches you to plan to survive. I have tailored investment analytics for high-net-worth clients, but the core lesson applies universally: products must respect local context. It can be remittance flow simplification at TransferXO or alternative credit scoring at LedgeFi to serve the unbanked, but in both cases, success depends on understanding nuances—like how trust is built or transactions fail. Q: You're now building MyRateCard in the UK. Why focus on freelancers? During the process of scaling fintech products in Nigeria, I realized that freelance talent, particularly Africans, had a problem with price transparency in the global market. MyRateCard addresses that. It is a tool for professionals to showcase standardized rates depending on the skills promoting reasonable negotiations. It is in early-stage but the vision is simple: democratize opportunity. This is part of my bigger philosophy that inclusive design elevates entire ecosystems. Q: So what is your message to young Nigerian/African product builders? Begin not with solutions but with problems. We talked to over 30 users at MyPennyTree, and realized that visualization of their goals was hugely engaging to them, before we redesigned our onboarding. Also, learn to love limitations. In such markets, such as Nigeria, creativity is tested by infrastructural constraints. Last but not least, create bridges. My work now spans Lagos to Manchester because diverse perspectives fuel innovation. Africa is not only embracing technology, but we are also defining it. Nigeria's 25 million+ unbanked adults? That is not a roadblock, that is an opportunity to leapfrog over legacy systems. The next decade is for the solutions that are both scalable and empathetic, be it AI-based microloans or social savings instruments. And I am here for it--one product at a time. --