Thelma Carol Closed After Car Hits Store
Driver smashed through Walker's Point wine shop's front window Saturday, causing thousands of dollars damage.
Site of Thelma Carol Wine Merchants, 605 W. Virginia St. Photo taken Oct. 23, 2023 by Sophie Bolich.
A Walker’s Point wine, spirit and tobacco shop is closed “until further notice” after a car smashed through the north wall of the store early Saturday morning.
The driver fled the scene, leaving the vehicle — and thousands of dollars worth of damage, behind.
Owners Jerel Hall and Rebecca Button shared the news on social media over the weekend, calling the incident “a heartbreaking, infuriating, absolutely unbelievable nightmare.”
Upon their arrival to the store, 605 W. Virginia St., the couple was met with piles of shattered glass, splintered wood and a pool of deep, burgundy wine spreading across the floor. That included nearly all of the store’s “irreplaceable, high-end Italian wines.” Though the owners later found two intact bottles.
Aside from thousands of dollars worth of lost inventory, the crash destroyed a number of antiques — carefully selected to fit the store’s elegant feel. That’s not to mention losses with no real price tag — including time and energy put into the small business.
“We are completely in shock and don’t have words to express our anger and grief,” the couple wrote.
Hall and Button opened Thelma Carol Wine Merchants in July 2022, aiming to provide a relaxing and approachable wine experience. The store operated as both a retail and bottle shop and a site for guided tastings.
Hall, a certified sommelier, has more than 15 years of experience in the beverage industry, while Button has worked in some of the most popular and highly regarded bars and restaurants in Milwaukee, including Odd Duck, Bavette La Boucherie and At Random.
The couple named the store for their grandmothers: Thelma June and Carol. The women, both career librarians, also inspired the store’s decor and ambience, which Hall said is meant to emulate a cozy bookstore.
In the aftermath of the crash, Hall and Button are working to clean up the damage and salvage what they can. The couple has indicated plans to reopen, though they have no idea at this point when that might be.
Meanwhile, individual community members and fellow business owners have rallied around the couple and the store, offering support in the form of kind words, monetary donations and more.
Hall and Button told supporters that more information will be available in the coming days. To stay up-to-date on the store’s status, follow Thelma Carol Wine on instagram.
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