Shara Clark
Dinstuhl’s new Downtown location at 147 S. Main
Dinstuhl’s, Memphis’ oldest candy shop, opened a new location in Downtown Memphis on February 6th. The 1,600-square-foot space is at 147 S. Main, next door to The Majestic Grille, near the corner of Peabody Place and S. Main.
Today, the shop is stocked for Valentine’s Day, with heart-shaped boxes of Dinstuhl’s famous handmade chocolates, chocolate heart lollipops, and more. Some of the store’s most popular candies, including Cashew Crunch, pecan brittle, and divinity, are also available. 
Dinstuhl’s original location, opened in 1902, was located on Main Street — 197 ½ Main, according to Dinstuhl’s president Rebecca Dinstuhl: “It was not named North or South [Main] at the time … In today’s world it would be Main and Adams. Those [original] buildings are no longer there.”
Per the return to Downtown, Dinstuhl says, “The Downtown Memphis Commission [DMC] approached us to see if we would have an interest in opening a store on Main Street through their incentive program called Open on Main. It assists retailers who want to test the water, to get into the Downtown area, and bring retail back to Main Street.
“The more we investigated it, we realized this was a golden opportunity for Dinstuhl’s to see if Downtown’s a viable retail market for us today. We’ve been away from Downtown for about 40 years from our last storefront there. We then were at Second and Madison, and we closed that store in 1974.”
Working with the DMC and Belz Enterprises, Dinstuhl’s secured the space on S. Main. “We feel like it is the right location for our products, and we’re very excited to return. We’ve already been welcomed with open arms by the local community and the business community, and we’re just so thrilled to be back.”
Through the Open on Main program, Dinstuhl’s has signed a one-year lease to “test the waters,” says Dinstuhl. “We believe very strongly that it is going to be successful, so we do have a five-year option through Belz Enterprises to continue that location.
“We’re celebrating our 118th year, so we thought this was a great time to come back.”
The shop will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday. 
