A second business is going to open with Accent Lighting at its new Waterfront space

As brothers Pat and Paul Graf inch closer to opening their new Accent Lighting store at the Waterfront, another business is now working to move with them.

Jan Bishop is moving her Diva Furniture, which she’s rebranding as Diva Design & Furniture Gallery, to Accent’s 25,000-square-foot building at 10322 E. Stonegate Lane. That’s east of Bonefish Grill and behind Dillehay Orthodontics.

“I’m kind of off the beaten path,” Bishop said of her current space at 1719 N. Rock Road, which is behind Havertys.

In some ways, Bishop said it’s been a good space.

“I think people love coming back here. . . . It’s kind of like the hidden jewel.”

However, Bishop said she’s struggled over the last couple of years to get better signage. When the Accent opportunity came up, Bishop said she decided to take it. Not that moving was an easy decision.

“You get real comfortable in your space.”

Bishop said the two businesses can share a lot of the same customers.

“It’s going to be great for both of us.”

Diva currently is in 6,200 square feet of warehouse space. The new space is 4,800 square feet.

“I’m excited about creating my own space,” Bishop said.

When she opened the store in 2007, Bishop sold imported containers of furniture.

“Each year, I’ve kind of added on.”

The business grew into a furniture store and design center.

Other than the name, Bishop isn’t planning changes with the move.

“I wanted to keep that same eclecticness that I’ve always had.”

Bishop said she doesn’t want the business to be a stuffy furniture store.

“We’re just very laid back, relaxed.”

She said she hopes to start construction in the next couple of weeks and be open by sometime in July.

Diva has five designers who offer all levels of service, including window treatments, rugs and residential and commercial design from the ground up for new construction.

The Rock Road store is fully open now and has been operating by appointment over the last couple of months. Bishop said there have been a lot of people stuck home because of the coronavirus and wanting to make changes to their houses.

“That’s been a good thing.”

Pat Graf said Accent will move from Brittany Center to the Waterfront around the beginning of July, give or take a week, “as long as there aren’t any more hiccups than a virus would do.”

While the building is on schedule, Graf said he had hoped to have a sale to get rid of inventory starting April 1, but that didn’t work out because of the state’s stay-home order.

“So that’s slowed us down.”

Now, he said a sale will start Monday.

The store has already added new hardware items, such as door pulls and knobs, and the hardware section will have a larger display in the new store.

There also will be a new display with LED mirrors, including LED medicine cabinets, which Graf said are growing in popularity.

Look for a tour of the new spaces closer to their openings.

This story was originally published May 13, 2020 at 2:03 PM.