Architect B. Kay Van Dyke purchased the T.C. Walker mural building at 6769 Main St. to offer co-working spaces, dedicated desks and small private offices. In the 2,000-square-foot space, members can meet clients and use high-speed Wi-Fi, the printer, coffee station and conference room. The space is conducive to offering classes.

The different levels of membership are open to 40 people, she said.

A basic membership is $95 monthly and offers open work areas with desks, kitchen, meeting space and conference room. An open-area dedicated workspace, with a worktable or desk, lockable storage and access to amenities, costs $200 monthly. Studios and offices are $3.50 a square foot. Facilities, for the conference room or classroom configuration, can also be reserved a la carte.

A successful entrepreneur, Van Dyke hopes to attract startups to create a business incubator atmosphere.

“By working in a co-working space with other entrepreneurs, it makes it easier to support each other and exchange ideas,” she said.

Continuous learning is also on this 85-year-old’s agenda. She said classes set to be offered include welding, taught by a blacksmith, and art classes.

The building, constructed in the 1930s, had been empty for more than 10 years. It stands out because of the murals on each side. This is just one of several endeavors Van Dyke has undertaken for Gloucester’s Main Street since she arrived with her late husband in 1985.

“I think I am still considered new,” she laughed.

In 2010, she purchased and restored an empty building to create Arts on Main. Van Dyke sold it in 2020 and bought another abandoned building for a co-op space called Village Art Colony, where local artists sell their work and teach classes.

When asked about starting another business, Van Dyke simply said, “I get bored easy, so I thought, ‘Why not?’”

Art/Work is expected to open this month. For more information, visit awvillage.com.

The company, known for high-quality burgers, hot dogs and craft beer and wine, acquired Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza & Wings in 2021 but has been signaling possible financial trouble for months as it coped with rising food prices and declining sales.

In May it announced it was undergoing a “strategic review process” and offered no assurance that the process would result in an outcome “favorable to the Company or its shareholders.”

In August, it warned it had just $4.4 million on hand and expected to report a loss of $18.4 million for the second quarter. It also said then that it might have to file for bankruptcy.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the company said the filing in United States Bankruptcy Court in Delaware affected only its 67 corporate-owned locations of both brands and excluded 77 franchisee-owned locations in the United States, Puerto Rico and Saudi Arabia.

In the Hampton Roads region, BurgerFi’s website shows its only local restaurant, in the Williamsburg area at 6610 Mooretown Road, is temporarily closed.

Jimmy Rosenthal, chief restructuring officer of BurgerFi International Inc. was quoted in the statement as saying, “BurgerFi and Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza & Wings are dynamic and beloved brands, and in the face of a drastic decline in post-pandemic consumer spending amidst sustained inflation and increasing food and labor costs, we need to stabilize the business in a structured process.”

Rosenthal added, “We are confident that this process will allow us to protect and grow our brands and to continue the operational turnaround started less than 12 months ago and secure additional capital.”

The brand has been undergoing a top-to-bottom evaluation of its operations as part of turnaround efforts that began in 2023 to address what it called “foundational issues including declining same store sales, high employee turnover and a stale menu.”

The company recently closed 19 underperforming corporate-owned locations. Its statement said its “current platform is primed for success.”

In June, the industry website Restaurant Business Online reported that Jeff Crivello, founder of TREW Capital Management, might be planning to leverage TREW’s purchase of BurgerFi debt into a takeover of the company. TREW and L Catterton, another private equity firm, had each agreed to lend BurgerFi $2 million during the strategic review process.

Crivello is known as a “fixer” who had recently turned around Minneapolis-based barbecue chain Famous Dave’s. On Wednesday, he told the South Florida Sun Sentinel that he planned to make a bid to purchase the chain during a sales process that will take place as the bankruptcy unfolds.

The company grew out of a single location in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea that was founded in 2011 by David Manero, creator of two Vic & Angelo locations. It is headquartered on Cypress Creek Road.

Ron Hurtibise covers business and consumer issues for the South Florida Sun Sentinel. He can be reached by phone at 954-356-4071, on Twitter @ronhurtibise or by email at rhurtibise@sunsentinel.com.

In August, the business opened Baker’s Crust Bagel in Hilltop North Shopping Center in the former Your Pie space. The bagels come partially boiled from New York and are freshly baked by Baker’s Crust Bagel shop. Ess-a-Bagel has operated in Manhattan since 1976.

Baker’s Crust owner John Stein wanted to bring more authentic New York bites to his newest restaurant, so the menu also features Carnegie pastrami, black and white cookies and authentic New York-style cheesecake, a recipe developed in collaboration with Carnegie Deli. Other specialty items include lox, whitefish salad and house-baked chocolate babka.

Eric Williams, a Baker’s Crust consultant, said the menu showcases the best and most authentic versions of items that one would find in a New York City deli.

“We get Gaspe Nova cold-smoked salmon fillet and hand carve it thin to make the lox,” Williams said. “It takes over an hour, and then we use the extra in the smoked salmon cream cheese.”

Customers will find a creative selection of schmear, or cream cheese, to go with the bagels. Spreads include flavors like Oreo cookie, smoked salmon, red velvet, avocado garlic, maple bacon and seasonal varieties.

Adam Cohen, Baker’s Crust marketing director, said the most popular sandwich so far has been the Carnegie Pastrami, which features a half pound of Carnegie pastrami, Boar’s Head Swiss, sauerkraut and Gulden’s spicy mustard. Customers can also substitute coleslaw and Russian dressing.

A unique menu offering called The Wookie is an open-faced bagel dressed with peanut butter and brûléed marshmallow fluff. Breakfast sandwiches, smoothies, acai bowls, grab-and-go salads and a coffee bar featuring regional Three Ships Coffee are also available.

Cohen said Baker’s Crust Bagel is all about New York City cuisine and ambiance. He said the restaurant not only brings the “quintessential New York bagel,” but black and white New York iconography, Ess-a-Bagel artwork and reclaimed historic NYC wood that was crafted into a communal table by Benevolent Design, a Virginia Beach furniture company.

“Baker’s Crust Bagel is a passion project,” Stein said. “It’s a labor of love with the goal of bringing authentic New York excellence to Virginia.”

Rachel Davis, an employee at the bagel shop, said customers frequently ask if their bagels have New York water. The answer is yes.

“You can taste New York in the bagel,” she said.

Lee Belote, jlbelote@verizon.net

___

If you go

What: Baker’s Crust Bagel

Where: Hilltop North Shopping Center, 1624 Laskin Road, Suite 754, Virginia Beach

Info: Bakerscrustbagel.com

Falling Prices opened in the former Burlington Coat Factory space at 14346 Warwick Blvd. in September. It’s the seventh store for the family-owned business that started in Santa Rosa, California, and it’s the first one on the East Coast.

The store’s unique concept is that prices successively get lower every day of the week. Falling Prices opens on Tuesdays, with everything costing $6. Each day, the prices fall — to $4 on Wednesdays, $2 on Thursdays, $1 on Fridays and 25 cents for what’s left on Saturdays.

The store is then restocked for the next week. Customers can come at the end of the week and find jackets, toys, electronics, home goods or boxes of chips for only 25 cents.

“You’ll get amazing deals, but you’ll have to search for them,” owner Ben Cawood said. “It’s like a scavenger hunt for the customer.”

Items are stocked on shelves and in bins, and the categories and types of merchandise are mixed throughout the store. Larger and higher value items are placed on shelves, and the smaller ones are found in bins. The treasure-hunt like experience encourages customers to explore and find the best deals, Cawood said.

The inventory comes from an assortment of retailers such as Amazon, Target, Home Depot, Walmart, Lowe’s and other large retailers. The items are a mix of overstock, box damage or returns. Four to six truck trailers arrive weekly and contain 10,000-80,000 new items. Employees must triage the items as trash or treasures to be sold in the store.

Cawood said Dollar Tree has often had to agree to let Falling Prices come into the same shopping centers as the new concept brings in foot traffic, which can also boost the dollar retailer’s sales.

“While Dollar Tree offers great prices on items you can expect to find every time you visit, our store provides a completely different experience,” he said. “Customers never know what they’ll find, making it exciting.”

Falling Prices offers optional line passes to help manage the order of entry into the store. The line pass system is accessed through the Falling Prices app, which is only used at 10 a.m. when the store opens. Customers can reserve their spot in line ahead of time to avoid standing in long lines before the store opens.

“We’ve seen how this model thrives on the West Coast, and I’m eager to bring the same great value and excitement to new communities,” Cawood said. “With inflation affecting everyone, it’s a way for people to access quality items at a fraction of their retail cost. It’s like Black Friday every day.”

Lee Belote, jlbelote@verizon.net

The hardwood flooring retailer formerly known as Lumber Liquidators signed an agreement with private equity firm F9 Investments for a sale of its business on Friday afternoon. Under terms of the deal, expected to close by the end of September, F9 will acquire 219 stores and a Virginia distribution center — as well as LL Flooring’s intellectual property and other assets.

Another 211 LL Flooring stores are still set to close, however. That includes 117 locations where closings were recently initiated and 94 others that were already in the process when the Virginia company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Aug. 11.

Just weeks after filing for Chapter 11, LL Flooring previously said that it would be “winding down operations” and closing all of its stores after failing to find a buyer in negotiations. The retailer expected the process to take about 12 weeks.

But that changed after a deal was reached with F9 on Friday. In a statement, LL Flooring president and CEO Charles Tyson said that company was “pleased to have reached this agreement” with F9 “following significant efforts by our team and advisors to preserve the business.”

Tyson added that LL Flooring remains “committed to continuing to serve” customers and vendors as the transaction moves through bankruptcy court for approval.

F9, based in Miami, is owned by Tom Sullivan, who founded Lumber Liquidators over 30 years ago. Sullivan told The Associated Press that the 219 stores set to be purchased by F9 will open under the Lumber Liquidators name again.

“We’ll be getting back to basics,” Sullivan said. “Basically, yellow and black is coming back … We know what worked before. It’s not fancy offices in Richmond with 200 people that didn’t know the flooring business. It’s great people in our stores that know flooring (and) customers that want a great deal and know Lumber Liquidators is the place to go.”

Sullivan explained that the company plans to narrow down to a more “manageable” selection of flooring options, and getting rid of material that feels duplicative or doesn’t sell well, so customers will likely see big discounts on much of the inventory left behind from LL Flooring’s bankruptcy process. He added that the company will be closely aligned with Cabinets To Go, another F-9 owned brand that he founded, to help with shipping efficiency.

Lumber Liquidators got its start in 1993, as a modest operation in Massachusetts, and later expanded operations nationwide. The brick-and-mortar retailer officially changed its name to LL Flooring at the start of 2022.

The company previously faced turmoil after a 2015 segment of “60 Minutes” reported that laminate flooring it was selling had illegal and dangerous levels of formaldehyde. Lumber Liquidators later said it would stop selling the product and agreed to pay $36 million to settle two class-action lawsuits in 2017.

LL Flooring has had difficulty turning a profit in recent years. Net sales fell 18.5% in 2023, according to a recent earnings report, amid declines in foot traffic and weak demand with mortgage rates and housing prices high. In its Chapter 11 filing, LL Flooring disclosed that total debts amounted to more than $416 million as of July 31, compared with assets of just over $501 million.

Ahead of filing for bankruptcy, LL Flooring also entered a proxy battle over the summer — centered on attempts to keep Sullivan, who had tried to acquire the business before, off the board. In June, company leadership wrote a letter urging shareholders to vote for other nominees, accusing Sullivan of “pushing a personal agenda.” But LL Flooring later confirmed that the founder and F9’s other nominees were elected at its annual shareholder meeting in July.

Ehmer joined Waffle House in 1992 and quickly rose to senior leadership, becoming president of the company in 2002, and later adding the titles of CEO and chairman, according to information from Georgia Tech, his alma mater.

“His leadership, dedication and warmth touched the lives of many, both within the Waffle House family and beyond. He leaves behind a remarkable legacy,” Mayor Andre Dickens said in a news release.

The board of directors for Waffle House issued a statement Sunday afternoon saying Ehmer died after a long illness. “He will be greatly missed by his entire Waffle House family,” the statement said.

Ehmer was chair of the Georgia Tech Alumni Association Board of Trustees from 2012 to 2013 and served numerous organizations, including the Georgia Tech Foundation Board and the Georgia Tech Advisory Board.

The Waffle House chain of around-the-clock diners opened in 1955 and now boasts more than 1,900 locations in 25 states.

Ehmer is survived by three children, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

___

This story was first published on Sept. 8, 2024. It was updated on Sept. 9, 2024, to correct the name of Waffle House CEO Walt Ehmer’s alma mater. It is Georgia Tech, not Georgia Tech University.

The black and white murals in the monochrome restaurant evoke the look of a coloring book in need of crayons. Everything at 2D Cafe & Eatery is outlined in black, including the wall design, ceiling tiles, sofas, stools and floors, to create cartoon vibes.

In June, Monica Kiraly and her husband, Ali Abay, opened the Instagrammable cafe on 11th Street and Atlantic Avenue. The couple owns three other Oceanfront businesses: Basil Pizza, 204 Pizza and La Dulce Vida.

Kiraly said she loves coffee shops and thought the Oceanfront needed more. So, when her husband went to a 2D cafe in Turkey and brought the creative idea back, Kiraly was sold. Her only concern was finding someone to the paint the 2D concept.

The couple hired two J-1 art students from Thailand to paint the design. The students took three weeks to complete the painting and worked on their days off from their housekeeping jobs at an area hotel. The State Department’s J-1 exchange visitor visa program enables international students to work seasonal jobs.

“I was a J-1 student myself seven years ago,” Kiraly said. “I knew the students coming to Virginia Beach had lots of potential and skills.”

Cafe menu items include Turkish dishes, coffee, iced lattes, boba drinks, bagels, salads, wagyu burgers and dumplings. Kiraly said the best sellers are the signature iced lattes such as Dulce de Coco (dulce de leche cream and coconut cold foam), Strawberry Bliss (strawberry puree, vanilla and strawberry cold foam) and Biscoffee (Biscoff cream, vanilla and cold foam).

Cig kofte, or small and spicy bulgur wheat meatballs, is one of the most popular Turkish dishes. Turkish desserts include baklava, custards, “burnt” cheesecake and others.

The cafe is very active on Instagram and gets tagged frequently. Within the first month, a customer asked to have a photo shoot at the location.

“Most of our customers come because of the 2D concept,” Kiraly said. “We want to keep them happy with the good food, not just the cool design.”

Lee Belote, jlbelote@verizon.net

___

If you go

What: 2D Cafe & Eatery

Where: 1102 Atlantic Ave., Virginia Beach

Info: 2dcafe.com

CUPERTINO, Calif. (AP) — Apple on Monday charged into the artificial intelligence craze with a new iPhone lineup that marks the company’s latest attempt to latch onto a technology trend and transform it into a cultural phenomenon.

The four different iPhone 16 models will all come equipped with special chips needed to power a suite if AI tools that Apple hopes will make its marquee product even more indispensable and reverse a recent sales slump.

Apple’s AI features are designed to turn its often-blundering virtual assistant Siri into a smarter and more versatile sidekick, automate a wide range of tedious tasks and pull off other crowd-pleasing tricks such as creating customized emojis within seconds.

After receiving a standing ovation for Monday’s event, Apple CEO Tim Cook promised the AI package will unleash “innovations that will make a true difference in people’s lives.”

But the breakthroughs won’t begin as soon as the new iPhones — ranging in price from $800 to $1,200 — hit the stores on September 20.

Most of Apple’s AI functions will roll out as part of a free software updates to iOS 18, the operating system that will power the iPhone 16 rolling out from October through December. U.S. English will be the featured language at launch but an update enabling other languages will come out next year, according to Apple.

It’s all part of a new approach that Apple previewed at a developers conference three months ago to create more anticipation for a next generation of iPhones amid a rare sales slump for the well-known devices.

Since Apple’s June conference, competitors such as Samsung and Google have made greater strides in AI – a technology widely expected to trigger the most dramatic changes in computing since the first iPhone came out 17 years ago.

Just as Apple elevated fledgling smartphones it into a must-have technology in 21st-century society, the Cupertino, California, company is betting it can do something similar with its tardy arrival to artificial intelligence.

In an attempt to set itself apart from the early leaders in AI, the technology being baked into the iPhone 16 is being promoted as “Apple Intelligence.” Despite the unique branding, Apple’s new approach mimics many of the features already available in the Samsung Galaxy S24 released in January and the Google Pixel 9 that came out last month.

“Apple could have waited another year for further development, but initial take up of AI- powered devices from the likes of Samsung has been encouraging, and Apple is keen to capitalize on this market,” said PP Foresight analyst Paolo Pescatore.

As it treads into new territory, Apple is trying to preserve its long-time commitment to privacy by tailoring its AI so that most of its technological tricks can processed on the device itself instead of relying on giant banks of computers located in remote data centers. When a task needs to connect to a data center, Apple promises it will be done in a tightly-controlled way that ensures that no personal data is stored remotely.

While corralling the personal information shared through Apple’s AI tools inherently reduces the chances that the data will be exploited or misused against a user’s wishes, it doesn’t guarantee iron-clad security. A device could still be stolen, for instance, or hacked through digital chicanery.

For users seeking to access even more AI tools than being offered by the iPhone, Apple is teaming up with OpenAI to give users the option of farming out more complicated tasks to the popular ChatGPT chatbot.

Although Apple is releasing a free version of its operating system to propel its on-device AI features, the chip needed to run the technology is only available on the iPhone 16 lineup and the high-end iPhone 15 models that came out a year ago.

That means most consumers who are interested in taking advantage of Apple’s approach to AI will have to buy one of the iPhone 16 models – a twist that investors are counting on will fuel a surge in demand heading into the holiday season.

The anticipated sales boom is the main reason Apple’s stock price has climbed by more than 10%, including a slight uptick Monday after the shares initially slipped following the showcase for the latest iPhones.

Besides its latest iPhones, Apple also introduced a new version of its smartwatch that will include a feature to help detect sleep apnea as well the next generation of its wireless headphones, the AirPods Pro, that will be able to function as a hearing aid with an upcoming software update.

The Virginia Beach location at 4001 Virginia Beach Blvd. will be the ninth in Virginia, where it started in Richmond in 2011. Customers come to find home decor, antiques, jewelry, food items and other creative treasures.

Heather Reynolds, the first franchisee, said she first discovered Lazy Daisy in Williamsburg and was attracted to the layout and unique items. The regional chain also operates a store in the Tabb area of York County.

“It has an incredibly inspiring and peaceful atmosphere,” Reynolds said. “The open floor concept allows each artisan to fully express their creativity in their own unique space. It blends seamlessly with the rest of the marketplace.”

That marketplace is a lively hub of creativity, she added, and each artisan is carefully selected to reflect the style and decor that Lazy Daisy is known for.

The 11,000-square-foot Virginia Beach store will serve as a venue to more than 50 vendors, including business owner Heather Chirdon.

“This business model is a way to expand your small business without the overhead and other responsibilities of a traditional brick-and-mortar,” she said.

She added you don’t have to worry about utility bills, employees, maintenance, long leases or other owner responsibilities.

Chirdon, who owned Refine on West Great Neck Road, is familiar with the model after adapting her business to sell in the Painted Tree, a chain with a large Laskin Road location that rents space to shop vendors.

When she first opened Refine in August 2019, Chirdon had focused on the aesthetic side and services such as body toning, cryofacials and body slimming. She ran a boutique as a supplement there because she thought the Shore Drive corridor could use more retail options.

“COVID forced us to pivot into more of the boutique side, and it really had a major impact on our revenue,” she said. “We had a lot of momentum despite the pandemic, and local customers loved the ability to shop local during the holidays.”

The expansion of the boutique led her to Painted Tree in 2022, and she has since expanded into six other Painted Tree locations. While adapting to changing retail trends, she closed her own brick-and-mortar boutique in August. She will continue her Refine presence in Painted Tree and focus on online sales.

Chirdon said she’s excited to sell with Lazy Daisy to expand her business to the Town Center area. And by having store staff take care of day-to-day sales, Chirdon said she has more time to focus on other avenues.

Michelle Leshok, owner and founder of Lazy Daisy, said each vendor is special and unique.

“They have so many stories to tell themselves about how the store has changed their lives,” Leshok said.

For more information, visit lazydaisygiftstore.com. Interested vendors can email vendorinfo@lazydaisyvabeach.com.

Lee Belote, jlbelote@verizon.net

All of the staff at Stripers Waterside in Norfolk were abruptly told Sept. 1 by management that they were being let go, she said. This came as a complete shock to Halvorson and her co-workers, who she said are just like family.

Employees were led outside — so as not to disrupt in-house diners — and told the restaurant was closing its doors immediately, shutting down and they were all laid off, Halvorson said.

Known for its fresh-caught seafood, draft beer and water views, Stripers had been operating in a roughly 8,000-square-foot space at Waterside since late 2017. Its initial location in Manteo, North Carolina, is still operating.

WAVY-TV first reported the layoff and shutdown on Wednesday. Around 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Stripers responded to media inquiries in a news release and confirmed the restaurant is closed temporarily and the goal is to reopen as soon as possible.

“While we are unable to provide specific details due to an ongoing investigation by authorities, we want to acknowledge that management issues and possible malfeasance played a role in this decision,” the business said in the release. “The closure of Stripers Waterside was not a decision taken lightly. Unfortunately, damage that occurred necessitated the immediate closure of the restaurant. We are currently undergoing remodeling and renovations to address some of these issues and improve our facilities for our loyal patrons.”

The employees are welcome to return when the restaurant reopens, said Kimberly Wimbish, who represents Stripers through her public relations firms, KMK Productions. Stripers employed 32 workers.

As of Thursday, online reservations through OpenTable were available on the Stripers website again in November.

News of a sudden layoff came as a big surprise to server Pamela Ortiz, who said she was still processing it all.

“It’s been a rough year economically for everybody already and having to take this loss is just horrible,” she said.

Ortiz, of Norfolk, said she heard she was without a job via a group text as she was in the hospital being prepped for kidney surgery. She started as a server in February and management moved her to a host position as she dealt with her health problems.

“I’m very grateful,” she said. “They took good care of me.”

Halvorson, a server, started at Stripers Waterside at the end of March. The Las Vegas native, who was not new to the service industry, was promoted to lead server after two months on the job.

“I really enjoyed being there,” she said.

Halvorson said she saw the owner pull the assistant manager into a boardroom for what seemed like a 20-30 minute meeting.

“He came out and the vibe was definitely different, almost somber,” she said.

Halvorson and Ortiz said they weren’t told the restaurant was remodeling when they were let go.

“Why would you want to get rid of a whole entire staff if you’re just remodeling?” Halvorson said. “I don’t want this to happen to anybody else if Stripers does reopen, and I don’t think there are enough laws to protect service industry workers who have the rug pulled out from underneath them.”

Stripers said in the news release that it understands “concerns raised by our employees regarding the lack of communication and uncertainty surrounding their employment status. We want to assure them and the community that we are working diligently to address these issues and ensure fair treatment for all employees.”

Customers expressed disappointment about the restaurant’s closure on Facebook.

Editor Tara Bozick contributed to this story.

Sandra J. Pennecke, 757-652-5836, sandra.pennecke@pilotonline.com