Make It Wayne
In chic Wayne, residents and visitors alike find sophistication, connection, and a whole lot more.
Eight years ago, when Cathy Fiebach had the opportunity to relocate her bookstore from Bryn Mawr to Wayne, she did not hesitate.
“When I was originally looking to open my store, Wayne was firmly on my radar,” says Fiebach, proprietor of Main Point Books, which is coming up on its 12th year in business. “When my lease was up [in Bryn Mawr], the other bookstore in Wayne had gone out of business. It was too good an opportunity to pass up.”
Fiebach, a native New Yorker who now lives in the Wynnewood area, cherishes the opportunity to be part of the fabric of Wayne. The Delaware County suburb is known for its vibrant downtown, high quality of life, and close-knit community. Fiebach wanted Main Point Books to contributes to all three, and has worked hard to make her store a third-space gathering point where neighbors meet.
“Wayne is its own town,” Fiebach says. “It doesn’t think of itself as a suburb of Philadelphia. People support the businesses and restaurants here. It used to be that [downtown Wayne] was busy on Friday and Saturday nights, but now it’s busy every night.
“The town has a very nice vibe to it,” she continues. “When we moved to the Wynnewood area, our kids would take the train to Wayne. It feels like a safe destination.”
Served by the Radnor Township School District, the families of Wayne have many exceptional options in terms of public and private schools nearby—namely, Academy of Notre Dame de Namur, The Agnes Irwin School, and The Baldwin School, among others. It’s also close to some of Philadelphia’s premier institutions of higher learning, such as Villanova University. Other high points include a fantastic public library, festivals and events aplenty, and Chanticleer, the sprawling botanical garden on the grounds of the Rosengarten estate.
“You can also find some of the best sandwiches and chocolate pastries anywhere,” Fiebach adds.
Wayne is not perfect, of course. Several businesses shuttered in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, and some storefronts have yet to find new tenants. Fiebach says the town could always use more high-quality clothing stores and other retail shops.
Like all locales with a thriving town center, Wayne is in a state of constant renewal, including along the artery of Lancaster Avenue. Fiebach has been encouraged by efforts to breathe new life into the iconic Anthony Wayne theater, as well as forthcoming projects by the likes of Fearless Restaurants and URBN, plus the construction of some new mixed-use buildings.
Eight years after moving her business to Wayne, Fiebach is thrilled about the way in which Wayne has evolved, and her store along with it.
“Publishers are realizing that we’re here to stay,” she says. “We’re starting to have bigger-named authors sent our way [for in-store events], like Marie Benedict in February and Admiral [William] McRaven in March. We’ve also expanded in a way that gives us a bigger event space. Wayne has a lot of things people can do in terms of activities locally, and I wanted the bookstore to be that way, too.”
Photo by Jeff Anderson
Published (and copyrighted) in Suburban Life magazine, December 2024
