![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/gussied-up-1-1024x585.jpg\")
Kim Lipsett, owner of Gussied Up Dog Boutique, said the shop is closing after 21 years. Photo by B. Sakura Cannestra.<\/p>\nWillow Glen\u2019s main drag is about to lose its bark, and dog lovers are devastated.<\/p>\n
Gussied Up Dog Boutique, at 1310 Lincoln Ave., will be closing once the store\u2019s inventory is gone. The store\u2019s landlord declined to renew the lease, citing major plumbing repairs.<\/p>\n
\u201cHearing all the stories, how much this store means to people, that\u2019s the hardest part of closing,\u201d owner Kim Lipsett told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight.<\/p>\n
Kim Lipsett, owner of Gussied Up Dog Boutique, said the shop is closing after 21 years. Photo by B. Sakura Cannestra.<\/p>\n
Lipsett said a main water pipe runs beneath the store and plumbing issues have been ongoing. The landlord tried to make repairs last year, opening part of the floor and sectioning off part of the store for use. Now, the space needs to be vacant for more extensive work.<\/p>\n
For 21 years the store has offered a wide variety of specialty pet goodies, with many of its treats, toys and trinkets geared toward dogs and a handful for cats. It\u2019s well known for its selection of baked treats, which come from a variety of the store\u2019s favorite dog bakeries.<\/p>\n
Customers shuffled in and out the shop lamenting about the approaching closure. Some were accompanied by their canine companions, who sniffed out their favorite toys and treats from the pastry case.<\/p>\n
Willow Glen resident Amaya Ayon-Zarate held their 2-year-old dog Xochitl while their mother picked out different outfits for the dog. Ayon-Zarate said they\u2019ve been bringing Xochitl to the store since she was a puppy, and they always appreciated the store\u2019s welcoming atmosphere and its central location in the community.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can go to PetSmart or Petco or whatnot, and that\u2019s fine, but \u2026 it\u2019s so niche in this specific store, it\u2019s so homey as far as pet stores go,\u201d Ayon-Zarate told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight.<\/p>\n
Lipsett worked in the tech industry before opening the boutique. She was inspired by her chihuahua\/miniature pinscher Gus to open the store so she could spend more time with him.<\/p>\n
Lipsett said the boutique\u2019s community of customers kept the store growing and successful amid rising workforce expenses.<\/p>\n
![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/xochitl-1-1024x596.jpg\")
Customers Amaya and Ramona Ayon-Zarate trying an outfit on their two-year-old dog Xochitl. Amaya said they\u2019ll miss the boutique\u2019s \u201chomey\u201d atmosphere. Photo by B. Sakura Cannestra.<\/p>\n
Jane Curry has been coming to Gussied Up Dog Boutique since Lipsett opened. A longtime Willow Glen resident, she\u2019s seen businesses open and close along Lincoln Avenue for years, and said the boutique was one of the neighborhood\u2019s first \u201cfun\u201d stores.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a really different atmosphere from going to some pet store in the mall, which makes it fun and interesting and a charming little place,\u201d Curry told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight. \u201cThis store fits this neighborhood.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s unclear what\u2019ll happen to Gussied Up Dog Boutique once the store closes.<\/p>\n
Lipsett said she plans to take a break and is considering opening an online store, but hasn\u2019t made a final decision. She\u2019s also gotten offers from other small businesses around Willow Glen to host a pop-up for the boutique. He said one of the challenges for businesses along Lincoln Avenue is the aging infrastructure. Many of the buildings are decades old and require maintenance upkeep.<\/p>\n \u201cI would hope that this is an opportunity to again express to the community how important they are to the livelihood of these businesses,\u201d Mulcahy told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight. \u201cA lot of people flock to Valley Fair or Santana Row, it\u2019s a one stop shop for everything you need (and) it\u2019s pretty well managed, but small businesses are the strength of our city.\u201d<\/p>\n B. Sakura Cannestra is a freelance reporter who previously worked at San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight through the California Local News Fellowship. Contact her at\u00a0[email\u00a0protected]<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0@SakuCannestra<\/a>\u00a0on X.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Willow Glen\u2019s main drag is about to lose its bark, and dog lovers are devastated. Gussied Up Dog…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":105278,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[712,1969,88,90,89,12465],"class_list":{"0":"post-105277","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-jose","8":"tag-centerpiece","9":"tag-retail","10":"tag-san-jose","11":"tag-san-jose-headlines","12":"tag-san-jose-news","13":"tag-willow-glen"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105277","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=105277"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105277\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/105278"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=105277"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=105277"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=105277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"NewsMatch](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1766434929_378_interactive-255337946814.png\")
<\/a>San Jose District 6 Councilmember Michael Mulcahy, who represents Willow Glen, said the boutique was a great spot for the neighborhood\u2019s many furry residents and will be missed.<\/p>\n