Imported from Vermont, A Glittering Jewel Opens On Massachusetts Ave.

It’s hard to miss the glittery shine of Zinnia, Mass Ave.’s newest jewelry store.

At the storefront that used to house the clothing store Serendipity, the two-location chain now sells low-priced accessories, ranging from earrings to bracelets and necklaces, with a focus on costume jewelry.

The Zinnia name has existed for less than a year and a half, when the first store opened in Burlington, Vt.

Zinnia Owner Jen Kurani, 25, said she is constantly adding new items to the store’s selection so that inventory remains fresh.

After her first store in Vermont proved successful, Kurani opened the Harvard Square location early this July.

“It’s a really lively community with a great focus on small business,” she said standing in her store on Friday.

Although the store only opened this summer, Kurani said she already has formed a loyal customer base and she sees the same customers coming back every day.

“We’ve had a really nice response from the local community,” she said.

Stuck In The Kitchen

Stomachs are anxiously growling for the taste of International House of Pancakes (IHOP) breakfast foods, but students and Cambridge locals will have to wait till late October in order to satisfy their hunger.

Because of construction and equipment delays, the IHOP that was scheduled to open this June at 16-18 Eliot St. will not be serving its pancakes until late October, said a spokesperson for the IHOP company.

The franchise’s attorney, Vincent J. Panico, said the delay was caused by a kitchen-equipment supplier who declared bankruptcy in the midst of construction.

American Apparel Brings West-Coast Hip—and High Prices—to Harvard

American Apparel also opened in the Square this summer, but the reaction hasn’t been as nice.

On Aug. 18, the store opened at 47 Brattle St., the former location of Harnett’s Homeopathy and Body Care that closed last spring.

Store manager Emily Twombly, 22, said she feels some antagonism from Cambridge residents, mostly those who are older or middle aged, about the opening of the store.

“Harnett’s had a strong following of people,” Twombly said in a phone interview yesterday.

“We had nothing to do with their closing. She [the owner] got sick and chose to close it, but a lot of people assume that we bought it.”

She added that the stores are also very different from one another.

“The clientele is kind of opposite,” she said. “So people are kind of shocked when they come in.”

Although Twombly said she understood that people aren’t happy when a big chain, with more than 130 locations across the world, replaces a local business, she says her store is different from others in the Square, such as Urban Outfitters, which doesn’t boast sweatshop-free values.

“The ethics are a lot different,” she said.

At the company’s Los Angeles, Calif. factory, Twombly said workers are paid high salaries, are offered free massages, free bikes, and an extensive healthcare program.

To Avoid Traffic Tangles, the Quad Shuttle Is Transplanted

The Quad shuttle bus stop was moved this summer from Johnston Gate to a new temporary location, between the Boylston and Widener gates, which is farther away from central Harvard Square traffic.

The switch was part of the ongoing Harvard Square Improvement Project, a multi-million dollar effort by the City of Cambridge and the University to improve the Square and make it more pedestrian-friendly.

Street work has already begun in front of the Hillel Building on Mount Auburn Street.

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e-mail staff writer Shifra B. Mincer at smincer@fas.harvard.edu.