Rehoboth Beach Running Company expands

In business for a decade, Rehoboth Beach Running Company is sprinting into the future with a new, expanded store.

The running shoe and apparel store has doubled in size, taking over an adjacent space and giving Rehoboth Beach Running Company more storage and display space.

Owner Mary Beth Evans said the move came about when The Pineapple Princess next door consolidated its space, leaving the store next to Rehoboth Beach Running Company open.

“It’s exciting,” she said. “We can put most of our shoes in the back room. We’ll have more room for more triathlon gear, more bike gear, swimming gear. Sometimes people didn’t even know what we had because we had so much stuff in a little space. It was a win-win for us.”

With 1,400 square feet, Evans said, the store has more room for people to try on shoes. She said employees will also have room to work individually with customers. With the new back room, Evans said, she can now carry more sizes and widths.

“Sometimes we only had one or two of each size. So now we’ll be able to have a few more color choices, more wides and more narrows,” she said.

Rehoboth Beach Running Company moved to the Shops at the Pearl four years ago. The business started almost 11 years ago in the space where Beachside Bar and Grill is now on Rehoboth Avenue. Evans, a runner and triathlete herself, noticed that there was no local store for runners.

“I was teaching at the time and I played around with the idea of, ‘If there’s no running store around here, maybe we should start one?’” she said.

To celebrate its grand reopening, 4 to 8 p.m., Friday, Feb. 16, Rehoboth Beach Running Company will kick off with a live radio broadcast, and all weekend will feature giveaways and raffles, sales and specials, Evans said.

“It’s been great,” she said. “We have so many local customers, people who have been coming since the very beginning. I feel like we get the bulk of our business through word-of-mouth. It’s been great to build our base and grow.”

Rehoboth Beach Running Company is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Thursday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Monday. The store is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. For more information, call 302-227-4848.