Over the Moon Boutique expands on Bath’s Centre Street, adds fitting rooms

Over the Moon Boutique’s move to 47 Centre St. gives Bath a new specialty shop and a sharper test of whether downtown demand can keep turning vacant space into active retail.

Owner Bette Spettel moved the business on Feb. 4 from 96 Front St., where the boutique had operated since 2017, into a former dry-cleaning site that had sat empty for five years. The larger space gives the shop room to stock more women’s lingerie, loungewear and sleepwear, while also improving the in-store fitting experience that has become central to the business.

The new storefront has three fitting rooms, up from two. That matters for a shop built around one-on-one bra fittings, where comfort and privacy can shape whether a customer finds the right size and style. Spettel has made the case that many women are wearing the wrong bra size, a problem that can contribute to shoulder and back pain.

The expansion also shows how Bath’s downtown business incentives are being used in practice. The city’s Fit Up Grant Program offers matching grants of up to $12,500, with a 1-to-1 cash match required. Eligible projects include fit-up, interior improvements, expansions and other work meant to activate underused commercial spaces. Bath launched the program in October 2025, as city leaders looked for ways to reduce the number of empty storefronts downtown.

For Bath, the move is more than a new address. Centre Street and Front Street are part of a compact downtown that Main Street Bath promotes as a year-round, pedestrian-friendly district with shops, restaurants and museums. A business like Over the Moon Boutique, with its narrow niche and hands-on service model, offers a useful signal about what kind of brick-and-mortar retail can still work here: small enough to fit downtown, specialized enough to draw repeat customers and durable enough to justify a larger storefront.

Spettel has also said she wants the shop to serve as more than a clothing counter. She hopes to host bridal showers, wellness workshops and monthly get-togethers for female business owners, giving the new space a role as both a retail stop and a gathering place. In a downtown where every occupied storefront changes the feel of the street, the move is a sign that some businesses still see value in investing in face-to-face service and in the daily foot traffic that keeps Bath’s commercial core alive.