Devonport's newest retailer has quietly opened the doors to her colourful clothing and giftware store, Blue Amante, in the Fourways. Julie Holmes is no stranger to business, she has moved Blue Amante to the Coast from its original location in Queenscliff. She said the Tasmanian way of life called to her and she is confident her store would be as well received in Devonport as it was at Queenscliff. "We opened in Queenscliff when COVID-19 hit, which was obviously a very hard time to open a business, but I struggled and somehow survived," she said. "I was getting some traction by the time I decided to move to Devonport that I didn't want to let it go." Ms Holmes moved to Devonport in October and has been hard at work readying her store ever since. "There was a lot of blood, sweat and tears to bring the shop up to the state it's in now... it took about three weeks of hard work to get the carpet off the concrete," she said. "We did a bit of a soft opening on Friday, November 17, we just opened the doors. We're not doing a big opening as such, such opening the doors and seeing what happens." Ms Holmes said she believes the quality and affordability of the "inexpensive and fun" products she stocks will appeal to many customers on the Coast. "On Saturday, a school teacher came in and said these clothes were great for teachers because they're not expensive and they've got pockets, so she's going to spread the word. She said she thinks I'll do well here." Ms Holmes said she expects the shopping habits of the Devonport community will be quite differently than Queenscliff tourists so her opening hours will be determined through some trial and error. She said the Instagram and Facebook pages of Blue Amante would be the best way for customers to keep up-to-date with the store's opening hours.
