Renovation work is complete to one downtown Glenwood storefront expected to open in mid-September, while work is just beginning on another storefront that has been vacant for several years.
Downtown Soapery at 223 E. Broadway will be operated by Tasha Harris, who sells artisan soap made with fresh goat milk. She began making the soap 13 years ago for a son who had severe eczema and eventually started giving it to family members, then selling it at events and through an online store.
Harris said she’s excited to now be opening a physical location, particularly in Glenwood’s historic downtown.
“I just feel very honored that I get to do it, I really do. I love history,” Harris said while standing inside the storefront. “The excitement of downtown, people asking me every day, ‘When is it opening?’ The community’s getting me very, very excited.”
Work to renovate the building, which is owned by Ethan Blackmon, began in April when a crew spent several days removing the old interior. Wood paneling, plaster covering brick walls and lowered ceilings were removed to expose the original structure.
Harris said the process has been “nerve-racking” and took longer than expected. One wall had to be rebricked to stabilize it.
“We ended up having to do a lot more work with the building than we thought, making sure that we could keep its character, and keeping the original brick and the original wall structure. That meant that the construction crew had to put a completely new roof on it, which took a long time,” Harris said.
New storefront windows were installed in mid-August, an exciting milestone for Harris after months of plywood covering the openings. For the first time, she could see what her shop would look like with natural light coming through modern windows. The store was then rewired and an HVAC system installed.
For much of its history, the space housed a shoe store that Harris remembers visiting with her mom when she was young. An original sign from that era remains on one wall, reading “self-service” and inviting customers to pick up shoes themselves rather than wait for a salesperson. The sign advertises one pair of shoes for $2.88 or two pairs for $5.
The back portion of the store will be used to make the soap. Harris and her family have 36 Nubian goats on their farm, and the production process uses about 10 gallons of milk a week to make 300 to 400 bars of soap.
Meanwhile, renovation work is just beginning on another storefront a block away at 125 E. Broadway.
The Glenwood Downtown Network announced the project last month as the latest in a series of investments in the downtown area. The nonprofit said seven businesses have opened downtown since 2024, while two others have relocated there from other areas of the city.
“With continued investment like this from local property and business owners, we are BRINGING BACK BROADWAY,” the organization said in a Facebook post.
The property is owned by Morgan Jester, who so far has not publicly said what he plans for the building, prompting curiosity among residents. The storefront is next door to Caddo River Realty.
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