West Hartford Business Buzz June 30: Openings, Closings and Other News

People in West Hartford love to be "in the know" about happenings in town, especially the openings — and closings — of local businesses. We hear things all the time, and some of them turn into big stories. But sometimes we don't have enough news to write an entire story, even though the information is definitely newsworthy. For a while we ran a "Visions for Vacancies" feature on Sundays, but it was getting to be difficult to find vacancies every week.

Every Sunday we'll highlight the business stories you may have missed during the past week, and give you the scoop on the other news you may not have heard about. And if you have tips about businesses opening or closing, please include them in the comments or send an email to ronni.newton@patch.com.

• Poppy's Italian Kitchen is now open for business at 280 Park Rd. The restaurant specializes in homemade pasta, as well as other Italian specialties such as Chicken Parmesan and Veal Piccatta. There is also a children's menu and outdoor seating is available. Poppy's has a BYOB policy.
• Lux Boutique had its grand opening on Saturday. The women's boutique, at 968 Farmington Ave. sells moderately-priced women's closthing and offers "something for everyone." This is the second location for Lux Boutique which also has an East Longmeadow, MA store. 
• The Bose Showcase Store at 66 Memorial Rd. in Blue Back Square closed up shop on Wednesday. According to Blue Back Square Marketing Director Barbara Lerner, the company decided not to renew its lease. The only other Bose store in Connecticut is in Clinton.
• The Greater Hartford YMCA just held a graduation from its Livestrong program, a 12-week program for individuals undergoing cancer treatment. Several West Hartford businesses, including The Playground, West Hartford Yoga, and Fleet Feet, have stepped up to work with the participants on the next stage of their "health and wellness journey." The YMCA is also very thankful to trainers Laurie Venora and Emily Callison for the outstanding job they did on this inaugural program.
• Perfect Promotion donated more than 200 bags to foster children this year  in honor of National Foster Care Month. The West Hartford advertising specialty and marketing company collected new duffel bags, backpacks, and luggage so that children in foster care have "a bag to call their own, and a dignified means to move their possessions," according to Perfect Promotion owner Jody Ferrer, who launched the Fostering Hope Program in 2010.