LaserAway opening at Bethesda Row

LaserAway is opening soon at 4930 Elm Street at Bethesda Row. The company says it expects to open on July 22, 2026. It's taking over the recently-vacated Ideal Image space. You may recall that Ideal Image has essentially been liquidated as a company, but was trying to sell its clinics around the country to other similar businesses where possible. The quick turnaround suggests they may have been successful here.

There is an existing LaserAway location at Pike & Rose, which - like Bethesda Row - is also owned by Federal Realty. LaserAway offers a wide variety of skincare treatments and services. These include laser hair removal, tattoo removal, microneedling, CoolSculpting (freezing of "fat cells" that are then naturally discarded by the body, a non-surgical fat removal alternative), laser facials, thermage, and dermal fillers.

Moleskine opens at Bethesda Row

Moleskine has opened at 4808 Bethesda Avenue at Bethesda Row. The boutique is a new destination for those who prefer writing the old-fashioned way. Would I read a newspaper or book on a screen? Not unless it was free and I had to! So, while I'm not so retro when it comes to writing, I can certainly understand the appeal. Moleskine carries the premium notebooks the brand is best known for, journals, planners, pens, writing tools and accessories, and travel bags. Operating hours are 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM Monday through Saturday, and noon to 5:00 PM on Sundays.

Ideal Image closes at Bethesda Row

Ideal Image has closed at 4930 Elm Street at Bethesda Row. The medspa is the first of a wave of similar businesses along Elm Street to fail. Heyday, OVME Medical Spa, and Prime IV Hydration Wellness are still going strong. Ideal Image started the trend when it signed a lease for the former Boloco space in December 2019, and Heyday and OVME followed in early 2020. All four businesses remained surprisingly resilient in opening and thriving amid the pandemic. Ideal Image has ceased to exist as a corporation, but it has tried to sell its individual clinics to new operators where possible, and that apparently wasn't in the cards here.

Cryptic Woodmont Avenue closure message puzzles Bethesda residents

A digital sign board placed on Woodmont Avenue between Elm Street and Bethesda Avenue has been displaying a message for several days. "Woodmont to be closed on or about 6/1/26." It doesn't specify why, for how long, or which segment of Woodmont it applies to. Over the last few days, I have combed through the Montgomery County Department of Transportation website news releases and projects page, and find no information about this closure. I've also reviewed the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center newsletters going back several weeks, and have found no mention of this. I asked MCDOT on X about the closure two days ago, and have not received a response as of this writing.

This will potentially be a major disruption to traffic in the Bethesda Row area and beyond. It will impact residents and businesses alike. And it is only a few days away. The public really needs to be informed by Montgomery County of the specifics of this closure.

Collars & Co. to open flagship store at Bethesda Row

Collars & Co., the innovative menswear company whose investors include Mark Cuban, is opening its first flagship store very soon at 7126 Bethesda Lane at Bethesda Row. It will replace its original Montgomery County location, a successful pop-up shop in Rockville, the company announced in a press release yesterday. But as a 2000-square-foot flagship store, the Bethesda location will provide a fuller brand experience than has been possible at the label's initial bricks-and-mortar outposts. 

The company is best known for its patent-pending Dress Collar Polo shirts. A "buttery-soft" polo with a true English spread collar, the shirt was designed to provide a replacement for stuffier dress shirts worn under sweaters and jackets in the stifling heat of New York City summers. They are also simpler to clean and maintain than the typical expensive dress shirt. Of course, you can also find button-down shirts at Collars & Co., as well as trousers, shorts, outerwear, sweaters, blazers, and shoes.

Collars & Co. generated buzz at its Rockville pop-up by including an actual Porsche and an Instagram-ready private jet interior replica backdrop for selfies in the store. Expect such flourishes on a larger scale at the new Bethesda flagship location. "Opening our flagship store in Bethesda is a defining moment for Collars & Co. and a true homecoming for our brand," founder & CEO Justin Baer said in a statement yesterday. "As we continue to expand our retail footprint in the DC-region, we’re excited to create spaces where longtime customers and new shoppers can fully experience Collars & Co."

Alo offering early access Thursday night ahead of Friday opening in Bethesda

If you just can't wait for the grand opening of Alo at 7236 Woodmont Avenue at Bethesda Row this Friday, they have a solution for you. The yoga and wellness apparel boutique will be hosting an early access shopping event this Thursday evening, May 21, 2026, from 5:00 to 8:00 PM. Can't make it Thursday? The shop will be holding a grand opening celebration from opening day Friday through this coming Sunday.

Alo sets opening date at Bethesda Row

Alo has scheduled an opening date for its eagerly-awaited boutique at 7236 Woodmont Avenue at Bethesda Row. Its doors are now set to open on Friday, May 22, 2026. Alongside Beyond Yoga's recent arrival at Westfield Montgomery Mall, Alo has generated a lot of excitement about its impending arrival among readers in its target audience.

Los Angeles-based Alo sells "high-performance, fashion-forward clothing" for movement, recovery, and the wellness-focused lifestyle. The company has anchored its business model and mission on a dual foundation of yoga and mindfulness. In Bethesda, that will extend beyond apparel and accessories to include free online classes, community events, and wellness-fostering products. Underscoring the company's wellness aesthetic, its bricks-and-mortar locations are referred to not as "stores," but as Sanctuaries.

Johnnie-O opens at Bethesda Row (Photos)

Johnnie-O is now open at 7243 Woodmont Avenue at Bethesda Row. The "West Coast Prep" apparel boutique carries the label's signature golf shirts, and casual performance wear for men, women, and children. This is the first Johnnie-O location in the state of Maryland. Operating hours are 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM Monday through Saturday, and 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM on Sundays.

Pickpocket strikes at Bethesda restaurant

Watch your wallet when dining out during these desperate times. A pickpocket allegedly helped themselves to a billfold belonging to a restaurant patron at Bethesda Row on Sunday morning, April 12, 2026. The theft was reported to Montgomery County police at 11:45 AM at a restaurant in the 7100 block of Bethesda Lane. Remember to carry your wallet in a front pocket if possible, and beware of accomplices who may try to distract you by engaging you in conversation or pretending to bump into you.

Indigo Octopus closes at Bethesda Row

Indigo Octopus has closed at 7126 Bethesda Lane at Bethesda Row. The women's boutique, which opened this location about a year ago, carries a curated collection of designer women's clothing, denim, jewelry, accessories, and swimwear. While they have closed here, the good news for those who travel to Ocean City and the Delaware coast is that their Fenwick Island shop opens for the season tomorrow, April 4, 2026. You can also continue to shop from home on their website at indigooctopus.com.

Prato Italian restaurant "coming soon" to Bethesda Row

Prato, a newly-expanding Florida-based Italian dining concept, has posted coming-soon signage in the windows of its future space at 7278 Woodmont Avenue at Bethesda Row. It replaces Matchbox on the prominent corner at the Federal Realty development. The signage promises a late fall 2026 opening date, indicative of the major remodeling planned for the interior. After 14 successful years in Winter Park, Florida, Prato calls its impending arrival in Maryland "our biggest milestone yet."

Marine Layer closes for "refresh" at Bethesda Row

Marine Layer has temporarily closed at 4803 Bethesda Avenue at Bethesda Row. The beechwood pulp apparel boutique is beginning a "refresh" of the store's interior. A reopening date has not yet been announced. Customers are being directed to email ohhey@marinelayer.com for inquiries about orders, exchanges, returns, "or anything else." Marine Layer opened here in 2019.

Signage installed at Johnnie-O at Bethesda Row

The sign is up at Johnnie-O, opening this spring at 7243 Woodmont Avenue at Bethesda Row. Construction seems to be proceeding quickly toward that end, as it was only about 10 days earlier that coming-soon signage was posted in the storefront windows. The trend of California-inspired businesses popping up at the Row in recent years continues with Johnnie-O, which property owner Federal Realty describes as "a Southern California lifestyle brand for men, women and boys that combines 'East Coast preppy' with 'West Coast dude' to a create a lifestyle brand referred to as West Coast preppy." 

Assault at Bethesda Row

Montgomery County police responded to a report of a 2nd-degree assault at Bethesda Row Tuesday night, March 17, 2026. The assault was reported at 10:36 PM Tuesday. It took place on Bethesda Lane, a pedestrian-only street lined with shops and restaurants. 

Prato Italian restaurant to replace Matchbox at Bethesda Row

Prato, an Italian restaurant concept with one existing Florida location, is gearing up to expand across the country. The first place parent company Park Lights Hospitality looked to was Maryland, where Prato will replace Matchbox at 7278 Woodmont Avenue at Bethesda Row this fall, property owner Federal Realty announced in a press release on Tuesday. Nashville will follow next year. Despite the disparate markets, Park Lights will try to import the interior design elements that worked in Winter Park - "rich textures, brick, and warm wood - highlighted by that thoughtful, perfect lighting," to Bethesda and Music City.

The press announcement focused more on the hospitality, "energy," and welcoming atmosphere of the restaurant than the menu. But with Prato having achieved Michelin-recognized status in the Sunshine State, the cuisine is unlikely to be a mere afterthought. For now, they're promising dishes from multiple regions of Italy, a fusion of "Italian classics with modern techniques and seasonal ingredients."

"We’re a very busy restaurant, and that long-term success has allowed us to explore expansion opportunities in multiple markets," Park Lights CEO Scott Bowman said in a statement Tuesday. "We couldn’t think of a better or more vibrant community than Bethesda to open our second Prato." While the prominent corner Prato has leased has been home to three different restaurants over the years, each one has lasted long enough to be considered successful by the standards of the volatile dining industry, in a town where some eateries have shuttered after only a few months in recent years. Montgomery County elected officials are much more hostile to business than those in Florida, and MoCo's high taxes and wages and government monopoly on liquor sales mean thinner profit margins, so Prato will have to bring its A-game to Bethesda Row this fall.

Top photos courtesy Prato; bottom photo by Robert Dyer 

MacBook Neo sells out at Bethesda Row Apple Store (Photos)

The MacBook Neo has arrived at the Apple Store at 4860 Bethesda Avenue at Bethesda Row, and quickly sold out. Initially listed as available for pickup purchase at the store, by last evening, in-store availability was updated to "April 6." Designed to be more competitive with the Google Chromebook, the $600 fanless laptop appears to have met a strong demand in a downtown Bethesda where average incomes have dropped in recent years. Renters being placed into vacant luxury apartments at contract rates below the advertised market rate may be enjoying a subsidized upscale pad, but still can't afford the top-of-the-line MacBooks, not a rare circumstance in a nation gripped by an affordability crisis. Enter the Neo, which employs an iPhone chip instead of the M chips that power its high-end brethren. 

Johnnie-O "coming soon" to Bethesda Row

Johnnie-O has just posted coming-soon signage in the windows of its future storefront at 7243 Woodmont Avenue at Bethesda Row. The Southern California firm targets a preppy demographic and offers a signature line of golfwear. Headquartered in the Golden State for over 20 years, Johnnie-O carries premium apparel, footwear, and accessories for men, women and boys. Collections include polos, button-downs featuring their patented “Tweener Button,” bottoms, swim, outerwear, performance activewear, and licensed gear from the NFL, NHL, MLB, and the NCAA. Johnnie-O fills the space just vacated by Anine Bing.

Renovations ahead for Equinox at Bethesda Row

A makeover is in the works for Equinox at 4905 Elm Street at Bethesda Row. This phase of the project will be limited to the ground level of the upscale fitness facility. The existing reception area will be replaced with a lounge. Work is anticipated to begin before summer.

Anine Bing closes at Bethesda Row

Anine Bing has closed at 7243 Woodmont Avenue at Bethesda Row. The windows have been covered with brown paper. Anine Bing is the latest victim of the moribund Montgomery County economy, the flight of the rich from MoCo, and the anti-business policies of the Montgomery County Council. This is the only Anine Bing boutique closing in America. In fact, the brand is currently expanding, with new locations opening soon on Long Island and at the Ala Moana Center in Hawaii, as well as two boutiques in China.

The Bethesda location was already showing some signs of struggling by 2023. That July, the boutique reduced its operating hours. It had only been open for a few months at that point.

Federal Realty already has a solid replacement lined up for Anine Bing's space, however. Southern California lifestyle brand Johnnie-O will open there this spring. Johnnie-O is considered a premium apparel brand, but its prices are typically half or a third of Anine Bing's, and therefore may be a better fit for the changing demographics of Montgomery County. 

Alo "coming soon" to Bethesda Row (Photos)

We knew Alo was coming to Bethesda Row this spring, and now we know where. It will be in the space just vacated by Room & Board at 7236 Woodmont Avenue. Last evening, workers were busy inside completing demolition of the interior. Alo sells "high-performance, fashion-forward clothing" for yoga, movement, recovery, and the wellness-focused lifestyle.