BUSINESS BUZZ

Chic jewelry

Kendra Scott, the Austin-based jewelry designer with a nationwide following, plans to open a boutique at the Plaza at Preston Center , at Preston and Northwest Highway, sometime this winter. Scott (kendrascott.com) leased a space between Lublu and Double R, also recent additions to the center. It will be Kendra Scott’s 18th national store and fourth in the Dallas area. What began as one woman’s mini jewelry collection grew into a multimillion-dollar brand sold at high-end retailers such as Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus. Kendra Scott joins other new(ish) tenants, including RiffRaff, Antek’s Curated and Hanna Isul MedSpa.

From Albertsons to Minyard

Albertsons recently acquired United Supermarkets , known locally for its suburban Market Street concept, and is merging with Safeway, owner of the Tom Thumb brand of stores. Experts guessed that the new conglomerate might sell to San Antonio-based H-E-B or turn some of the existing locations into Market Street stores. But instead, Carrollton-based Minyard bought eight Albertsons and four Tom Thumb stores in Dallas-Fort Worth, including the Albertsons at Northwest Highway and Midway and the Tom Thumb at Forest and Marsh. Minyard (minyards.com), which has been around since 1932, has plans to turn its new acquisitions into its new grocery concept, Sun Fresh Market.

Going Greek

At the southwest corner of Preston and Royal, it didn’t take long for a new restaurant to replace Casita Tex-Mex, which closed in October. Greek Isles softly opened just before Christmas with a traditional menu of gyros, salads, souvlaki and other staples along with a selection of Greek red and white wines. Owner Gus Kostas, a native of Greece, has operated a location in Plano for the past 15 years, employing his sons, John and Chris. Beginning at 6:30 p.m. every Wednesday, local musician Dave Tanner performs swing, big-band and instrumental jazz.

Comfort food

A new restaurant, Dish, was scheduled to open in the former Soleo Mexican Kitchen spot at Hillcrest and Northwest Highway in December but has delayed its opening to “the first half of February,” says the owner, Tim McEneny.