When Bob Kocher wanted to open a wine and beer store in Richmond’s Bellevue neighborhood, he decided to do some market research.

“For four weeks I would walk 10 blocks around the neighborhood [on recycling day],”

Kocher said. “The first week I walked 10 blocks north, going up and down all the side streets. Then south, east and west each week, looking at recycling bins to see what wine and beer people had bought.”

After four weeks of pounding the pavement and peering into recycling bins, Kocher felt he had a pretty good handle on what the neighborhood wanted. That research and support from the local neighborhood association helped him open his store, Once Upon a Vine, on MacArthur Avenue in May 2004. He had previously owned a wine and beer store for 20 years on Strawberry Street in the Fan District.

Kocher said more than half of his Strawberry Street customers followed him north. Some make the drive up, but plenty of others moved to Northside when they started buying houses. So Kocher is still their neighborhood vendor, albeit in a different spot.

The store now serves as a sort of anchor for the neighborhood’s small commercial district, which hosts a blend of newcomers and longtime businesses. The business district is clustered just south of Bellevue Avenue and about three blocks north of West Laburnum Avenue.

One of the block’s longtime businesses is Rich’s Stitches, owned by twin sisters Cecilia and Chris Rich. Nearly 25 years ago, they started their embroidery and screen-printing business a few blocks away, in their brother’s basement.

When the basement grew a bit cramped, the sisters leased space on MacArthur. At the time the block was emptier, though Dot’s Back Inn, a legendary diner, and two other restaurants were already in place.

Cecilia said they picked the space because rent was cheaper than in malls or other big retail destinations. Since the shop didn’t do much walk-in business, staying in the neighborhood was preferable to landing a marquee location.

“This spot made us easy to get to from around the city, but we didn’t have to pay a premium price on retail space,” she said. “We wanted to focus on business associations, churches and other big groups. The central location has really helped us.”

MacArthur Avenue has seen an influx of businesses, primarily dining-related, in recent years. The block also boasts five restaurants, one food truck, a coffee shop and a yoga studio. That’s meant more foot traffic and walk-in business for Rich’s Stitches, something the sisters never expected 20 years ago.

“There’s a loyalty with people in this neighborhood,” Cecilia said. “They want to keep business local, and people try to support the local business even if it’s not always the cheapest.”

The newest business on the block is The Mill on MacArthur, a home-style restaurant that opened in March and focuses on using local ingredients. The restaurant is doing a bustling dinner trade as well as a large takeout and delivery business that covers most of the city’s Northside.

The Mill on MacArthur is the block's newest restaurant and business.

Amy Foxworthy, one of The Mill’s owners, said partner Josh Carlton had lived nearby for years and had kids who attended the local elementary school. She said the neighborhood’s design and demographics made it an attractive site to open a new restaurant.

“So many people live within a mile, and it was designed as a walking neighborhood originally,” Foxworthy said. “People care a lot and will come out and support you. They like not having to come into the Fan for dinner or entertainment.”

Though the block already had several restaurants, Foxworthy said the other merchants on the street were supportive and encouraging during the permit and remodeling process. She also said the local Bellevue Merchant Association helps draw the businesses together, organizing a recent drive to plant new trees and flowers along the block and developing plans for the National Night Out, which was held Aug. 2.

Kocher, the Once Upon a Vine owner, recently matched money raised by local Girl Scouts, who used the funds to buy three bike racks that have been placed on MacArthur and on Bellevue Avenue.

Despite the array of businesses, the block largely remains a well-kept secret in Richmond.

“Unless you live over here, people don’t tend to know about it,” Foxworthy said.

Bob Kocher, owner of Once Upon a Vine, helped bring the bicycle racks to the street, including one outside Rich's Stitches.