Broward Meat & Fish, flashy boxing and designer handbags all opening new South Florida locations

Construction issues have been delaying opening of Broward Meat & Fish’s newest location at the old Penn Dutch Plaza on State Road 7 in Margate.

Athalia Lujo, daughter of owners Ruben and Denise Lujo, says an exact opening date has not yet been set, but right now it’s looking like doors will open to shoppers in early August.

The family announced in January 2021 its $11.9 million purchase of the plaza that housed its former competitor, Penn Dutch Meat and Seafood, and its plans to build a flagship store in the 70,000square foot retail space.

The new store will be larger than Broward Meat & Fish’s existing operations in Pembroke Pines, Lauderdale Lakes and North Lauderdale and will offer expanded choices of packaged groceries, beverages, prepared foods, deli and bakery options.

Demolition and reconstruction of the building’s interior took longer than expected, said Athalia Lujo, who is also the company’s general counsel. “There were a lot of back order issues, supply chain issues,” she said.

An opening date likely won’t be announced until mid-July, she said. Hiring has already begun for the 100 or so employees the store will need.

Penn Dutch permanently closed its Margate and Hollywood stores in September 2019 after state food inspectors found listeria contamination in and around meat processing areas.

Boxing studio chain takes aim at

South Florida

Several new branches of Rumble Boxing Gym, a boutique chain founded in New York City in 2017 that combines the group workout concept with nightclub-style lighting, hip-hop music and beating up a heavy bag are headed to South Florida.

“It’s group fitness for the individual,” the company’s website says. The site calls Rumble “a collection of the most inspired and inspiring fitness instructors on the planet.” They step onto a podium “as part D.J., part motivational speaker and complete Master of Ceremony,” the site says.

Forty-five minute workouts are engineered to the beat of custom hip-hop and house mashups. “The music, the lights, the program and the collective heartbeat of the room all come together as if it was a collaboration from the beginning — as if Cardi B wrote this song, for this moment, for you.”

The website shows 23 open location and 36 “coming soon,” including 327 Plaza Real in eastern Boca Raton; 408 NE 3rd St. in Fort Lauderdale; 14585 Biscayne Blvd. in North Miami; and 1220 17th St. in South Beach.

Puppy and lighting stores open in Pembroke Pines

Elegant Puppies and Lighting Depot are two of the newest stores to open at The Shops at Pembroke Gardens in Pembroke Pines, according to a news release.

Elegant Puppies, which opened in March between Sid and Fontan Jewelers and Ann Taylor, features “teacup” puppies and an assortment of luxury puppy clothing, accessories, and specialty baked goods.

Lighting Depot, at the north end of the plaza, opened in January with an assortment of “traditional, transitional and contemporary” indoor and outdoor lighting and ceiling fans for residential and commercial properties “that promote beauty, utility and affordability,” the release states.

Stores coming later this year to the outdoor shopping center include:

Altar’d State, a women’s clothing store with existing locations at the Galleria Mall in Fort Lauderdale and the Town Center At Boca.

Arula, a clothing store for mid- and plus-sized women owned by the same company as Altar’d State.

David’s Bridal, a company founded in Fort Lauderdale in 1950 that bills itself as the nation’s largest bridal store chain

Carrot Express, a health-oriented fast casual restaurant.

F45 Fitness, a group fitness boutique gym offering seven-day schedules of 45-minute workouts alternating between cardio and resistance training, with a hybrid workout on Saturdays.

Designer handbag store comes to Sawgrass Mills

Best known for its artisanal handbags, United Kingdom-based Radley London opened its newest South Florida location June 10 at the Sawgrass Mills outlet center in Sunrise.

The Sunrise store was just the fourth outlet for the chain, which also sells handbags, wallets, footwear and other accessories. Handbag prices range from $120 to $300, while most footwear is priced under $100.

New Wawa store coming to Plantation

A partnership headed by longtime South Florida shopping center owner and developer Beth Azor secured approval from the city of Plantation last month to build a new Wawa convenience store at 100 Pine Island Road, on the southeast corner of the street’s intersection with Broward Boulevard.

The store will complete redevelopment of a three-acre site that is also home to a drive-through Starbucks, Chim Authentic Thai and Sushi and Smoosh Cookies.

When complete, the new Wawa will be Plantation’s only gas station on the south side of Broward Boulevard, according to the city’s website.

Since opening its first three South Florida stores on a single day in March 2017, the popular Philadelphia-based chain has opened 31 more stores in Broward, Palm Beach, and Miami-Dade counties.