Shoppes at Vanderbilt: New Stores and Experiences in North Naples

"We're trying to curate an eclectic mix of tenants there," PJ Hill, leasing manager for the Shoppes at Vanderbilt, told columnist Tim Aten in a piece Gulfshore Business ran on September 18, 2026. He added that the center has grown to the point where "it gets tricky to find good complementary concepts."

The concepts he has signed for this fall have a lot in common. Most of them are built around an activity: a tasting, a lesson, a league, a group event, a second-floor bar. For anyone in Talis Park, which sits west of I-75 and east of Livingston Road, the plaza at Vanderbilt Beach Road and Airport-Pulling Road is turning into a place to spend an evening.

The New Building on Airport-Pulling Sets the Tone

The Good Pour opened in early September in a new 7,200-square-foot building facing Airport-Pulling Road. Hill called it "a fun kind of twist on your traditional spirits retailer."

General manager and managing partner Ivo Atanasov described the setup. There are 16 wines by the glass, eight whites and eight reds, poured in 1-, 3- or 6-ounce tastes. A separate machine pours seven spirits by the glass, including what he called "very allocated bourbons and tequilas." The store also has a Tasting Bar for rare whisky and wine, a Reserve Room for private functions, and a calendar of live music, winemaker and distiller visits, and cocktail classes. Jeff Nichols, director of beverage and retail strategy, called the gift bar, where shoppers build their own baskets and boxes, "a Build-A-Bear for adults."

The giving model is also unusual. The Good Pour works with more than 300 nonprofits and donates part of its profits to a charity each shopper picks. Ray and Giuliana Horal founded the brand in Winter Park, and the North Naples store is their fifth location and the first outside Central Florida. Two Naples residents, Atanasov and Nichols, own and run it. Asked why he chose Naples, Horal said, "To me, it's the most dynamic wine market in the country."

The store is at 2373 Vanderbilt Beach Road. Hours are 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday. The grand opening runs October 16 to 18 with live music, light bites and free tastings.

The Old Axe Lodge Space Becomes a Mahjong Room

The Good Pour's model of shopping plus an event shows up again a few doors down. The Axe Lodge's large former space facing Airport-Pulling has been divided into three units. Serenity Medical Spa and TG Hair Salon took two of them, and Paradise Coast Mahjong took Suite 705.

Paradise Coast Mahjong plans to open this month. It will have a boutique for mahjong gear, plus lessons, leagues, open play, memberships and special events. "It will be a fun place for people to come play, hang out and purchase anything and everything related to mahjong," Hill said. Leagues and memberships are the kind of business that brings the same people back every week, which is a different thing for a strip center to anchor around.

Art of Fudge is taking over the former Kitchen Social space with the same approach. Hill said it will do more than sell fudge: "also as an experience where they are going to be offering some interactive experiences, group events and things of that nature."

Which Storefronts Are Changing Hands

Most of the fall changes are new tenants moving into existing suites. Here is the full list from the September reporting, in the order they are expected to happen.

Some restaurants on the list are still built for a quick stop. Big Daddy Smash Burger will serve made-to-order smashburgers and hand-cut fries, and this will be the brand's first location. "The people behind this business are experienced in the restaurant/hospitality industry but they want to launch this as a new brand," Hill said. The old Crazy King Burrito unit is going to another new brand, which Hill couldn't name yet. He said "the space is set up in a quick-service manner." Both restaurants are filling spaces left by quick-service places that closed in February. Most of the activity-based concepts are going into space that is new or was just divided.

One familiar spot has quietly changed. Mystic Lobster Roll Co. is now Magic Lobster Roll Co. after an ownership change in the past few weeks, and the menu still leads with classic and specialty lobster rolls.

Building 1100 and the Rusty's Move

The biggest bet on people staying longer is the new two-story Building 1100. Three tenants have signed there so far. Corvé Fine Cabinetry & Millwork is putting its second showroom on the first floor. The local custom cabinetry company's other location is on Old 41 Road. The Center for Custom Prosthetics plans an office upstairs at Suite 1216.

The tenant people will notice is Rusty's Raw Bar & Grill. It is moving from Uptown Center on Immokalee Road to the Vanderbilt Beach Road side of Building 1100 and will reopen as Rusty's Rooftop Raw Bar & Grill. The new space is expected to have a bar on both floors, with indoor and outdoor bar seating upstairs. Hill said the plan is "a twist on their original formula," one that "caters a little more to this market."

Rusty's explained the move on its own website:

"After 23 wonderful years in our current location, we were unable to reach a lease renewal agreement that made financial sense for the long-term future of the business. Rather than compromise the quality of the Rusty's experience, we chose to invest in our future and move forward with Rusty's Rooftop."

The restaurant says it will keep serving at 2700 Immokalee Road through January 2027, and it describes the switch simply: "We'll close one day here and open there the next." Rusty's hasn't announced a specific last day or opening day, so plan on the old dining room through the end of the year and a move sometime in early 2027.

The Saturday Market Keeps a Familiar Face

One departure this fall is a longtime tenant leaving on its own terms. Neighborhood Organics Market & Cafe has been at the center since 2014 and will close in November, when its lease ends. Until then it is still selling house-made soups, baked goods and prepared meals. The owners announced over the summer that "we feel it is the right time to focus on our family." Lola Moda, a women's clothing shop, is opening next door in Suite 130.

The owners aren't leaving the center entirely, though. "They'll still be involved in the center," Hill said. "They're still going to be involved in the farmers market." The Vanderbilt Farmers Market started its 2026–27 fall season yesterday, October 3, and runs through May 22, 2027. It runs on Saturdays, rain or shine, and the market says it operates year-round. The center lists it at 2355 Vanderbilt Beach Road, Suite 178. The two published schedules disagree on closing time: the market's site says 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., and the Shoppes' events page says 8 a.m. to noon. If you want the last vendors, aim for late morning.

How October and November Line Up

Here are the dates side by side, with one evening inside Talis Park added between the center's openings.

1. Saturdays starting October 3: the Vanderbilt Farmers Market fall season is underway.
2. October, date to be announced: Paradise Coast Mahjong's target opening in Suite 705.
3. October 16 to 18: The Good Pour's grand opening with live music, light bites and free tastings.
4. Wednesday, October 21, 5 to 8 p.m.: Talis Park's "Meet your Neighbor with Live Music at Casa," with light bites, on the club calendar.
5. This fall: Corvé Fine Cabinetry & Millwork's showroom opening in Building 1100.
6. November: Big Daddy Smash Burger's target opening, and Neighborhood Organics' last month in its storefront.
7. Through January 2027: Rusty's stays open on Immokalee Road.
8. Early 2027: Rusty's Rooftop opens in Building 1100.

The opening months above are targets the businesses and the leasing office gave in September, not confirmed dates. The Good Pour, the market and the Talis Park evening at Casa are the only firm dates on the list. By early 2027, a typical Saturday at the center could include the market in the morning, a tasting or a mahjong session in the afternoon, and dinner at the rooftop bar, all within one plaza.

The Westerlund Team keeps track of the businesses opening along the Vanderbilt Beach Road and Airport-Pulling corridor, because those changes affect daily life for our Talis Park neighbors. If you want to talk about what this mix of new tenants means for your own plans, Jay Westerlund and our team would be glad to set up a personalized consultation.