On Cloud 9, a rite-of-passage shopping destination for tweens from Potomac and beyond, will close its doors this summer after more than two decades. “I know it’s the right thing, but I’m grieving because it is just so sad,” says owner Carol Gowling, who opened the store at Potomac Woods Plaza in 2004. On Cloud 9 quickly earned a reputation as the trendiest local shop for elementary schoolers and young teens. In recent years, as its original customers grew up and started families of their own, it expanded into baby and toddler items. Gowling, who also owns Normandy Carpet, says she’s been longing to spend more time with her 11 grandchildren and didn’t want to continue running two businesses. Since announcing the closing on social media this week, she’s been overwhelmed by all the messages from longtime customers and former employees. Some trace their careers in fashion and retail to their early years at the store. “People are just coming out of the woodwork in a way that I never imagined,” Gowling says. “The amount of love and support has brought me to tears. It’s humbling. It’s amazing. I feel everybody’s love.”
