Audible Opens A New Hub
Audible’s “The Pillars” is a 15,000-square-foot wellness-focused retail hub in Newark’s Arts and Education District, created not just as a store but as a community “heartbeat” centered on beauty, rest, and care for Black women. The space is designed to celebrate small business ownership, creativity, and collective care, positioning wellness as both cultural practice and community infrastructure in the city.
The Pillars houses three distinct Black- and woman-owned businesses—Tansy, HealHaus, and Pooka Pure & Simple—reflecting Newark’s entrepreneurial spirit and a commitment to diverse, experience-driven retail. Their presence turns the hub into a destination where visitors can shop, gather, and participate in wellness and creative activities rather than simply transact.
For Pooka founder and Newark native Dawn Fitch, joining The Pillars marks a full-circle moment, returning her clean-beauty brand to its roots after 25 years. She frames the move as both a business milestone and a personal homecoming that deepens Pooka’s connection to the local community.
Inside The Pillars, Fitch debuts The Bloom Bar, an interactive perfume-blending experience where visitors can create custom scents, unwind, and connect with others. The concept turns fragrance-making into a tactile, communal ritual that encourages slowing down and enjoying sensory pleasure.
Fitch emphasizes that this reopening is not just an expansion but an emotional restoration supported by Audible’s Business Attraction Grant. She describes Audible’s investment as helping position Pooka within a larger ecosystem of health, wellness, and beauty centered in Newark.
Central to her vision is the idea of “Black girl softness,” a response to the hardness and lack of care Black women often face. She wants the space to be an environment where Black women feel loved, seen, and gently held through small acts of joy and rest.
Fitch explains that fragrance can be a portal to memory—evoking everything from a grandmother’s coat to childhood treats—and that those scent-triggered emotions are part of the joy she wants people to find at Pooka. In this way, perfume becomes a tool for reconnecting with comforting, affirming moments from the past.
She also stresses that the shop is as much about presence as product, inviting people to sit, relax, or simply exist in the space without pressure to buy. Rest itself is treated as a form of activism and a crucial component of Black girl softness in Newark.
For Audible, The Pillars is a landmark step in community-centered corporate investment, representing the first time the company has signed a lease for a purpose beyond its core business. Audible’s VP of Urban Innovation, Aisha Browne Glover, frames the project as a major commitment to the building and neighborhood directly across from the company’s headquarters.
Glover explains that The Pillars grows out of Audible’s Business Attraction Program, which offers funding, mentorship, and subsidized rent to help underrepresented local founders thrive. The team specifically sought out diverse, non-chain retailers that could provide meaningful experiences rather than just goods.
Tenant selection involved reviewing ownership, sustainability, track records, and social media presence to ensure alignment with community needs. The goal was to create “community gravity”—a place people feel drawn to for connection, team-building, and joy.
This emphasis on experience reflects a broader shift Glover and Fitch both name: people increasingly want community, creativity, and rest, not just products. By curating businesses that encourage hands-on making, conversation, and wellness, The Pillars aims to become a regular gathering space for Newark residents.
Fitch sees that desire for connection as the core magic of The Pillars and of Pooka’s role within it. She envisions the hub as a sanctuary where visitors can craft something with their hands, talk to each other, and find restoration—embodying Audible’s experiment in wellness-driven, community-centered retail.
