First of Ongoing Series — What's New in Oxford

In the last year, Oxford and Ole Miss have grown at a dizzying pace.
New businesses, real estate developments and city and county upgrades make Oxford one of the fastest growing communities in the south and a premier retirement spot according to multiple sources.
Our new recurring feature, What’s New in Oxford, will offer you a quick recap and handy reference of new places to shop, learn, eat, exercise, play, explore, park and live. We’ll share some initiatives at the University of Mississippi that go hand-in-hand with Oxford’s growth and directly make this community a thriving, dynamic destination point for students, residents and visitors.

1. The new cycling and Pilates studio PureRyde is impressive inside with a tasteful lobby and work-out rooms full of state-of-the-art equipment.

“We wanted to bring the very best in cycling and Pilates technology to the Oxford Square,” said Blake Tartt, co-owner of PureRyde,  an Ole Miss grad and entrepreneur who lives in Houston when he is not visiting his adopted hometown. “I wanted to bring something to Oxford that would bring people to the Square but not compete with the fine dining and shopping establishments run by my good friends,” he said.
Nestled in between Pita Pit and Lindsey’s Chevron gas station, Pure Ryde features indoor cycling and Pilates with an innovative twist. Founded by Kelle Ilitch and Laura Cronberger, who are self-proclaimed cycling and Pilates lovers, the Oxford franchise is owned by Blake Tartt and Greg Stackhouse. Unlike other cycling studios, PureRyde doesn’t use stationery spin bikes. Instead the studio is equipped with Real Ryder bikes, which move left and right in sync with the rider’s body lean. 
The studio’s Pilates classes are also unique. PureRyde offers Reformer Pilates classes, which don’t require a mat, but instead use a machine, called the Reformer. The machine offers a total-body workout and more resistance per workout than a traditional mat class.
For more information, or to book a class, go to www.pureryde.com and click on the Oxford facility. Or call 662-638-3244.

2. If you love hunting, you won’t believe what they’ve done with Hunter’s Hollow. Until this summer, the only thing missing at the outdoorsman store, which has been in business in Oxford for 26 years, was a larger space to compete with the larger hunting box stores. The father-and-son duo of Donny and Luke Guest have addressed that need by opening a 35,000-square-foot uber hunting and outdoor store location on Highway 6.
The new facility includes a state-of-the-art, 10-lane indoor shooting range called Thunder Hollow. The range is open year-round and shooters can rent shotguns, rifles and pistols before purchasing them. There’s also a separate 35-yard indoor archery range, Whisper Hollow.

3. No doubt they have great seafood in Grand Isle, La. — but now you can taste it here in Oxford without leaving town. without That’s where most of the seafood sold at Indianola Fresh Market comes from, and there’s plenty of it — as well as cuts of steaks and more — for grills and skillets at the new 2000 West Jackson Avenue store (in the former AT&T space). Oh, and there’s craft beer to wash it all down..
Avid Rebel fan Will Adams recently brought his Indianola Fresh Market to its second location here in Oxford, the first being in, you guessed it, Indianola. This selection, especially the seafood, is something Oxford hasn’t seen since the closing of Market Rhes.
From the saltwater to the shop comes an array of redfish, shrimp, oysters, flounder, speckled trout, grouper, tuna and more.
Indianola Fresh Market posts weekly specials on Facebook. For more information call (662) 887-5444.

4. Ann Taylor’s LOFT opened April 4 in Oxford and customers packed the new store.
The location is next to Belk Department Store in the Galleria Shopping Center on West Jackson.
Store developers in Oxford say the LOFT introduces a new shopping experience for women and children. The Galleria Shopping Center was developed by John Trezevant, co-owner of Trezevant and Davis Family Trust.
In describing Ann Taylor Loft’s niche, Trezevant said, “LOFT is an outstanding merchandiser of better women’s clothing, gifts, and accessories and we are honored to have them join Oxford Galleria’s lineup of national and local shops and feel sure Oxford and our surrounding trade areas will enjoy visiting and shopping one of this country’s premium ladies stores.”

5. Through its early embrace of social media, as both a branding tool and commerce platform, the women’s boutique Swag Society has found its niche.
Swag Society began utilizing Instagram, Facebook and Twitter to reach a broad audience and attract new customers, according to manager Charlotte Winthrow.
Just one month after launching Swag Society’s Instagram account, the store had more than 11,000 followers.
Winthrow posts between one to 10 images of new merchandise each day.
Be sure to follow Swag Society across the web:
Website: https://shopswagsociety.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SwagSocietyOxford
Twitter: @ShopSwagSociety
Instagram: @SwagSocietyOxford
Look for more of What’s New In Oxford and Ole Miss tomorrow on HottyToddy.com
Andy Knef is editor of HottyToddy.com. You can contact Andy about this story at Andy.Knef@HottyToddy.com.