Calabar Imports: Slowly Rebuilding

Although badly damaged ’ store at 820 Washington Avenue, there was no doubt in owner Atim Annette Oton’s mind that she would rebuild and stay in Prospect Heights.

“We’re invested in the neighborhood,” said Oton. “That wasn’t even an option for us. This is a community we’ve spent seven years in. It’s kind of a second home.” 

Calabar Imports, opened in 2004 by Oton and her mother Heloise Annette Oton, sells handmade items, clothing and art objects from over 40 African, Asian and South American countries. The store is named after the town in Nigeria where Heloise Oton lived, and where Atim Oton was born.

When looking for a space to open their first store, the younger Oton remembered her years spent in Prospect Heights in the mid-90s and saw the revitalization efforts that were currently taking place on Washington Avenue.

“[My mother and I] ended up at a street festival on Washington Avenue, saw a storefront for rent, and took a look,” Oton said.

For years they enjoyed a successful business and support from the community. Then, on June 4, Oton received a 5:00am call from another business owner about the fire.

“I called my brother and he picked me up, but you couldn’t go on Washington Avenue, so we ended up on St. Johns Place,” remembered Oton. “But we couldn’t see whether anything had happened to the store, so we just waited around.”

The fire started on a Saturday, and it wasn’t until Monday that Oton could return to her store and begin to assess the destruction.

Besides heavy damage to the right side of the building, which was adjacent to the building that had originally caught on fire, there was also water damage from the fire department’s efforts and many structural problems on the building’s fourth floor. All of the windows needed to be replaced, as well as the plumbing and electricity.

Currently, the building’s landlord is renovating the entire structure, which means that Calabar Imports still does not have a Prospect Heights home – yet. In the meantime, Oton and her mother have opened up a second location for Calabar, on Front Street in DUMBO.

“We didn’t want to go into the neighborhood and six months later, leave,” said Oton. “We wanted to find another location and keep it. Some people think [the new store] is temporary, but why would I invest in a neighborhood and leave after six months?" 

Oton is also thinking about expanding into Williamsburg and Manhattan, too.

In the meantime, re-opening the Prospect Heights store is still at the forefront of the agenda. She hopes for construction to be done by December, and for Calabar’s doors to open once more in January. But, she knows that city inspections and permits can take time and that those things will be out of her hands.

When the store opens it’s doors again, Oton plans to feature a curated art exhibit titled “Phoenix Rising,” with pieces that represent rebirth.

“The irony is that we were going to renovate next year,” she said.

Calabar Imports, 820 Washington Avenue; www.​calabarimports.​com.