Meche Farah is the owner of Creative Décor and manages Farah’s of Downtown, which re-opened recently near Hemming Plaza.
FARAH’S BACK AT HEMMING PLAZA
Her father, Kamal Farah, decided to move Farah’s of Downtown from Hemming Plaza, where it was located for six years, to Bay Street across from Duval County Courthouse. “Back in August 2001, we decided to sell it because my dad has always had a vision for moving our businesses to where things are going towards, so now he is located across from the courthouse and near Berkman Plaza.” Kamal sold the Hemming Plaza business to Gary Motes, who opened Jason & Paul’s Coffee House. In early February, Motes vacated the building. “We had to take it back because my dad still had a financial interest in it.”
HOW DID SHE START MANAGING FARAH’S OF DOWNTOWN’S HEMMING PLAZA LOCATION?
“We are a really close family and we help each other out when we can. My dad has always been very good to me. I wouldn’t have a shop downtown if it weren’t for him. He basically gave me a place to sell my work, so it’s a time management thing. I’m in the restaurant from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and then I go next door to Creative Décor and do my thing or go see customers.”
IN HER BLOOD
Her father has operated a downtown restaurant for 26 years, so she grew up in the business.
HOW DO YOU LIKE THE RESTAURANT BUSINESS?
“I enjoy it. There has definitely been a lot of lessons learned because I’ve never had to deal with employees before. Everything I do with art, I do on my own or I contract it out. But this is day-to-day managing and making sure the food goes out the way my dad would want it to go out.”
ARE YOU HAPPY YOU TOOK IT BACK?
“Yes. My dad is such a customer service person. He provided really good food for the people of downtown and everybody knows him. They know to come to Farah’s to have a good time during lunch.”
HOW’S BUSINESS?
“People are starting to realize that we are back. I still hear people walking by saying, ‘Oh, Farah’s is back.’ We are getting more and more people. One thing that really hurt the restaurant, our convenience store and my shop was the closing of the [parking] garage on Monroe Street that is attached to the back side of the Roosevelt Hotel.” Her store and her father’s convenience store, Farah’s Food Mart, are both located on Monroe Street near Hemming Plaza and next to the Roosevelt garage. “We lost a lot of foot traffic. People would go by the convenience store on the way to their cars and get what they needed for the ride home and our business has dropped off considerably. We are just trying to hold on until the library is finished.”
HER OWN SHOP
Creative Décor features hand-painted furnishings and housewares. She also offers mural and faux painting services to her customers. “It’s also a place for people to bring their old furniture . . . they want something different or more customized. I then refurbish the furniture or housewares. I call it a recycle transformation approach to designing. People bring me their pieces or I will go junking at thrift stores, flea markets or antique stores. It’s basically my way of recycling and helping out the environment.” She also offers a line of ceramic and maple wood children’s products, including piggy banks, wall plaques, clothing trees and rocking chairs.
WHY OPEN A SHOP DOWNTOWN?
“When it came time for me to decide where to put my store, everything else was no contest. My dad has always been downtown and I grew up near downtown. I like the pace of downtown, too.”
CLOSE PROXIMITY
“The nice thing about having the adjoining space from the convenience store to her shop is that if somebody comes in and has a question, the manager down there will call me to ask a price or send the customer to see me at Farah’s. It’s nice that people can go in and look around my store even though I’m not right there.”
WILL YOU EVER OPEN ON THE WEEKENDS?
“I would like for downtown to be thriving, therefore I would have a need to come downtown and be open on the weekends. I’m there at night, but it’s mostly to work on projects. I don’t have any foot traffic or anything. Many of my customers have asked me if I will be open on the weekends and I hope to.”
BIRTHPLACE
Jacksonville.
COLLEGE
She has a bachelor’s degree in painting and illustration from the Savannah College of Art and Design.
GO WEST YOUNG GIRL
After college, she left Jacksonville for California, where her mother lives. After five years she returned to Jacksonville where she has held a variety of artsy jobs. She has worked in the film industry, at The Custom Kid (a children’s furniture store) and at a design firm.
BEFORE FARAH’S AND HER STORE
The design firm went out of business last May. “I actually had planned to slowly open my shop while I still had a steady income. But all of a sudden they went out of business in May, so my dad told me to go ahead and try it and see what happens.”
RESIDES
Arlington.
HOBBIES
She is involved in her church, St. John The Divine Greek Orthodox Church. She also enjoys sketching and reading. Her home is decor is eclectic and is “constantly changing.”
FAVORITES
Her favorite movie is “Raising Arizona.” An all-time favorite book she enjoys is “A Christmas Carol,” by Charles Dickens. She likes to get in touch with nature by visiting parks. She doesn’t have a favorite television show, but she does enjoy independent films. When dining out, it’s Casbah Cafe in Avondale.
—by Michele Newbern Gillis