This Toronto Shop Brings 'everything Under One Roof' With Its Multi-purpose Concept

If the thought of Toronto rent makes you wince, imagine trying to run a business downtown. Commercial rent can be even steeper, making it tough for entrepreneurs to find an affordable space to set up shop.

Walk along high-traffic streets like Queen West and Bathurst, and you'll see the usual pattern: cafes just for coffee, studios just for fitness. But a new wave of multi-purpose spaces is starting to change that, blending work, play, and community under one roof.

Take Rhythm, for example. Brainchild of 30-year-old Toronto resident Chloe Janicki, it's part record shop, part recording studio with a cafe and event space inside. 

Before opening the store, Janicki spent nearly a decade as an artist manager, working with electronic heavyweights like Deadmau5 and James Hype. But after years of pandemic-era remote work, she was done being cooped up at home and ready for something different.

"I noticed that all along Queen West there were tons of brick-and-mortars that were either up for lease, up for rent, or up for purchase," Janicki tells blogTO of her search for a storefront that began in late 2023. "Maybe I don't have to work from home. Maybe I can have a head office in a cool location, and a combined workspace or record store with that."

Owner Chloe Janicki at Rhythm in Toronto.

After three months and dozens of viewings across the city, Janicki stumbled upon the space that would quickly feel like a second home.

"I walked in, and immediately I knew that was going to be it." The store officially opened in November 2024 at 141 Bathurst St., just south of Queen.

Her vision for Rhythm quickly took shape: the record shop would occupy the bright, open space at the front, welcoming shoppers off the street. Behind that, a smaller area would fit the recording studio, while a coffee shop and event space would sit in between.

While there are close to 50 vinyl stores scattered around the city, this one – one of the few women-run spots – isn't trying to cater to the masses like the others. Don't expect the latest mainstream chart-toppers like Sabrina Carpenter lining the shelves, Janicki says.

"We do have a bin we call 'everything else' — jazz, loose indie stuff — but our focus is electronic," she explains. "We're all DJs here, and we love the scene. Our goal is to support the underground."

While digging through vinyl, you can grab a latte, sink into one of the comfy armchairs, and let the music play. Think Central Perk, but with a cooler, hipster twist.

It's the combo of coffee, tunes and chill vibes that shows exactly what Janicki was going for.

"With creative fields, there's so much opportunity to kind of cross-pollinate between different types of businesses, and it kind of all makes sense to have it all be under one roof," she says. 

But the self-starter recognizes that turning a vision into reality isn't cheap.

"I have much that I could say about the cost of living in Toronto, but the cost of operating a business feels equally as bad," she says. 

Come to think of it, there aren't too many retail shops in Toronto that function as multiple spaces, but Janicki believes this model could be the start of a new trend.

It was important for the young founder to create a space where artists can come in, spend time together comfortably and connect, whether through conversation or collaborating on a workshop.

Rhythm also provides up-and-coming DJs with a dedicated mix room where they can practice their sets on a high-end system in a private setting before hitting the clubs. Janicki adds that a production studio, which creatives will be able to rent, will soon be available to book online.

"The cost of being able to do something like this is exorbitant, and I do think that having a diversified business is the way of the future, unfortunately," she says. "I say unfortunately because it's a lot to manage, but it is also fortunate because it makes things very exciting, how  you can kind of have everything under one roof."

One other unconventional way the business generates revenue is through weddings.

"We have these beautiful, massive windows, so we get so much natural light, and obviously, with the brick and the beam, it just feels really nice and homey," she says, adding that the idea came after enough people kept asking about it. Now, Rhythm can be used for ceremonies, receptions, and afterparties.

Rhythm is located at 141 Bathurst St.