business improvement district

Press release:

Join in the holiday spirit at the Annual Christmas in City Centre from 5 to 9 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 30, and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 1, in the Downtown Batavia City Centre.

On Friday, activities include entertainment by the Batavia Concert Band and a visit with Santa Claus.

On Saturday, visit with Santa Claus, be entertained by Center Stage and see the various animals at the Zoo Mobile.

The Batavia Business Improvement District wants to remind you to "Shop Small and Local" for the holidays. Remember, this Saturday, Nov. 24, is Small Business Saturday.

For more information call 585-344-2518 or visit www.downtownbataviany.com

Tickets are on sale for Downtown's third annual "Taste of Fall Wine Walk," which will be held from 5 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 15. The event includes 21 tastings, a commemorative wine glass, and a discount card for dinner and shopping.

Tickets cost $20 and are going fast. Designated drivers pay $5. Twenty-one stores and businesses are on the itinerary.

Only 500 tickets will be sold and last year they were gone two weeks prior to the event.

You can buy them at:

• Coffee Culture, 6 Court St.
• T-Shirts Etc., 111 Main St.
• Valle Jewelers, 21 Jackson St.

All participants must be age at least 21 years old.

On the night of the event, registration is at the Genesee Orleans Art Council, 201 E. Main St.

The host and major sponsor is the Batavia Business Improvement District, the Genesee Valley Pennysaver and T-Shirts Etc.

Visit www.downtownbataviany.com or Facebook: Downtown Batavia Improvement District for more information about this and other events. To phone the BID, call 344-0900.

Vintage Reserve partners Tim Walton (left) and Rob Credi (right) are pictured with Elefunk Clothing founder Jeff Birge.

Rob Credi is not shy to owning and managing businesses in downtown Batavia and he is at it again. Credi recently teamed up with Tim Walton, to open Vintage Reserve retail clothing at 214 East Main Street, inside the building that houses TopLine Shirt Company, a screen printing and embroidery company that Walton owns.

Credi, who was the owner and founder of Main Street Coffee, and most recently the manager of The Daily Grind coffee shop owned by Ken Mistler, said "The timing worked out perfectly. Tim approached me and told me that he had space that he needed to fill and I always wanted to get into the screen printing and clothing business so it was perfect".

Vintage Reserve currently offers three full clothing lines and has styles for both men and women. The store's self named brand, Vintage Reserve, a line developed by Credi is a line that offers retro styled clothing that is themed on music and the rebirth of our culture. Walton developed Narrabeen Surf Co., a beach styled lined that represents the surfer and beach theme. The last line is an urban styled line, Elefunk Clothing Co., that was originally established in 2002, by founder Jeff Birge and Tim Torrey.

"We want to be the clothing store where you want to go when it's time for clothes shopping. We hope people give us a look before traveling to the mall to buy their outfits." Walton said. "Our prices are competitive and our styles are ones that people want to wear".

Currently the store offers a variety of shirts and has plans to expand to pants, hoodies, bags and other clothing accessories.

Credi and Walton celebrated their official grand opening of Vintage Reserve on April 10 and have had an overwhelming response from the local community. They recently launched their online webstore, www.vintagereserveonline.com, and have been able to expand their customer base to as far as California and Montreal.

Photo courtesy of Nate Oaksford/ NMO Photography