Cheryl Kelly, a Jacksonville native, will open LAB (Lifestyle and Beauty) at 45 S. Central Park Plaza this month, bringing a new clean-beauty retailer and community-focused shop to downtown Jacksonville. The store will hold a soft opening on Jan. 23, a public opening on Jan. 24 and a grand opening celebration scheduled for March 28.
Kelly developed a signature oil over five years after shifting to a cleaner, organic lifestyle; LAB will sell that oil alongside multi-use makeup tints and plant-based household items. The shop plans to feature potentially locally made goods, creating shelf space for producers in Morgan County and nearby towns. Kelly’s background in education will shape a lineup of DIY workshops aimed at teaching application techniques and basic formulation skills, part of an effort to make the store more than a point of sale and more of a gathering place.
The lease for the Central Park Plaza location was secured in partnership with local philanthropist Rabbi Rob Thomas, a move Kelly framed as aligned with broader downtown revitalization goals. Small retail additions like LAB can serve as informal anchors in a downtown retail mix, increasing pedestrian traffic during off-peak hours and supporting neighboring coffee shops, restaurants and service businesses. Workshops and weekday events often extend visit duration and spread spending across local merchants, helping stabilize small-business revenues beyond weekend peaks.
LAB taps into sustained consumer interest in cleaner, plant-based personal care and multifunctional cosmetics. For Morgan County shoppers who have increasingly sought transparent ingredient lists and multipurpose products, LAB promises an in-person place to test items and ask questions—an advantage over online-only retailers. The potential inclusion of locally made goods could provide a retail channel for artisans and small manufacturers who struggle to secure downtown shelf space.
Economically, the opening is likely to create a handful of local jobs and supply modest new lease revenue for downtown property owners, reinforcing municipal efforts to rejuvenate the central business district. It also offers programming that can boost weekday visitation, which is a common challenge for many small downtowns trying to move beyond purely evening or weekend economies.
For shoppers, LAB provides new choices in clean-beauty and plant-based household staples locally, plus hands-on workshops that may build consumer confidence and skills. For the wider downtown, the store represents another incremental step in revitalization that could encourage more local retail and maker activity. Residents can expect the soft opening Jan. 23 and the public opening Jan. 24, with a larger community celebration to follow on March 28 as the shop settles into Central Park Plaza.
