Nick Tillinghast, the owner of cocktail bars like Hello, Marjorie and Secret Admirer, is expanding his footprint at downtown Des Moines’ Equitable Building.
Why it matters: Downtown’s business district has struggled with foot traffic since COVID, but Tillinghast, a decade-long resident of the Equitable Building himself, wants to help spur a neighborhood revival.
- “We’re very, very close to this neighborhood having some identity,” he tells Axios.
State of play: Tillinghast plans to move Good News, Darling — a speakeasy behind Hello, Marjorie — and rebrand it into Nothing Major, a new cocktail bar and ice cream parlor.
- The new bar will open near his current sports bar, Des Moines Athletic Club.
- He’s also taking over the former Eggroll Lady location as his company’s headquarters, Des Moines Does Things.
What they’re saying: “We’re doing a little bit of a disservice by having one of our projects be hidden when there’s obviously storefronts that could be occupied,” he says…