Destiny Ellis opened Asch Building on Studewood Street in April 2021. (Courtesy Destiny Ellis)
BUSINESS FEATURE
The home area has an abundance of options for customers in the Heights. (So a Gonzalez/Community Impact Newspaper)
Asch Building ‘Zero-waste’ store celebrates 1 year in the Heights A t age 28, native Houstonian Destiny Ellis’ stepdad asked her, “If you could do any- thing with your life, what would it be?” BY SOFIA GONZALEZ
Atelier, Asch Building’s clothing store, has items from businesses in South Africa. (So a Gonzalez/ Community Impact Newspaper) ASCH SUNDAY Once a month, Asch Building hosts Asch Sunday, when local vendors set up shop in the parking lot. Other recent event examples include: Free outdoor pure barre yoga classes Ceramics classes at Four Circle Studio Mending classes with an in-house tailor Workshop crafting series
that is used to highlight Indigenous cultures of colonized countries. Vendors range from local to global, each uphold- ing one of the store’s ve standards: environ- mental consciousness, economic empowerment, diverse ownership, local production or charitable organization. “We have a wide range,” Ellis said. “We did that on purpose to try to accommodate every type of person in every type of income bracket.” Ellis also debuted her clothing line, 146, on March 25. The name commemorates the 146 lives lost in a clothing factory re that took place in Manhattan’s Asch Building in 1911. The items are “classic, timeless” pieces that have been modernized, such as jeans, shirtwaist blouses, World War II naval trousers and skirts, Ellis said. All pieces are designed and manufactured in house. Ellis said the rst year exceeded expectations, and she hopes the future includes global expansion. “If you create something beautiful, you can get people to come,” Ellis said. “And then if you can make it attainable to the everyday person, you can sustain it.”
She told him she wanted to open her own shop. With a background of working with small busi- nesses, help from her family and inspiration from her time in South Africa, Ellis brought her dream to life in April 2021 with the opening of Asch Building. “The whole mission of this whole place—the common denominator for the entire building—is that it’s ethical and sustainable, but it’s meant to be attainable,” Ellis said. Ellis describes Asch Building as a “modern-day department store.” It has a co ee shop; a Europe- an-style market; a clothing store with pieces from South Africa; and a home goods shop. The South African in uence can also be seen in the store’s zero-waste policy, and sustainable, eco-friendly products are common throughout the shop. In the back of the building is a greenhouse; an apiary—a place where bees are kept; a ceramic studio run by Ellis’ younger sister called Four Circle Studio; and Afuera, a mainly nonalcoholic microbar
AschBuilding 825 Studewood St., Houston 713-505-1447
www.aschbuilding.com Hours: Mon.-Wed. 7 a.m.- 7 p.m., Thu.-Fri. 7 a.m.- 8 p.m., Sat. 8 a.m.-8 p.m., Sun. 8 a.m.-6 p.m.
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HEIGHTS RIVER OAKS MONTROSE EDITION • APRIL 2022
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