BLOOMINGTON, Ill. (WMBD) — Business is booming in Bloomington.
“I have a love for downtown Bloomington,” said co-owner of Under the Ground Blono, Jackie Gunderson.
More than 10 businesses opened their doors within the past two years.
“Downtown Bloomington is gritty, and I love to see it kind of clawing its way back and getting busy again,” said Gunderson.
One of those businesses is Under the Ground Blono. Jackie and Cecil Gunderson opened the doors in June.
“We are a fast-casual vegan and vegetarian restaurant, we have grab-and-go items, and we have made-to-order items, we have breakfast lunch, and dinner,” said Gunderson.
The Gundersons said there are few vegan options in the area and that’s a void they were looking to fill
but why downtown?
“In this particular building, when it was a Flingers, I spent a lot of time here and one of our first dates was here actually, so it’s cool to be back,” said Cecil Gunderson.
It’s a similar story for Kimberly Mattson who opened the Middle Sister in July. The Middle Sister is a plus-size boutique that is located in Two Frugals Thrift.
“Probably just a win-win situation, for her and for I. she would bring her customer base, and our customer base is always looking for additional plus size. We have been swamped today,” said the owner of Two Frugals Thrift, Carol Wilson.
Mattson said her old location wasn’t gaining too much traffic.
“My door faced veteran’s parkway, it was hard to find, and this location is perfect, perfect, it’s easier for people to find us,” said Mattson.
They both say they’re excited for this next chapter in the downtown area.
In the past five years, it has really evolved because so many businesses have moved in,” said Wilson.
