A South Carolina gardening business has opened a location in Wilmington.

Ross Atkins, owner of GreenSpirit Hydrogardens in Charleston, South Carolina, leased a 3,500-square-foot building at 3114 Market St. in Wilmington, opening the second location of his business last week. Before that, he spent a couple of months working on renovations to convert the former seafood store into GreenSpirit.

Atkins’ stores specialize in hydroponic and organic gardening, both indoor and outdoor. The decision to expand to Wilmington came about because Atkins had heard about the June closure of Progessive Gardens, formerly on Oleander Drive in Wilmington.

“We thought there was a huge void for people interested in hydroponic and sustainable gardens with no place to buy high-quality supplies and more importantly, get the knowledge they need,” Atkins said Tuesday. “At the end of the day, people can buy the stuff on Amazon, so what we really provide people is knowledge and customer service.”

Atkins opened his store in Charleston about 15 years ago. He leased the Wilmington location, which is managed by Matt Woisin, for an undisclosed amount from Matt Scharf of Real Properties LLC.

“We’re already seeing an influx of people coming in, and what they’re saying is, ‘We just didn’t really have a place to get this stuff and ask questions on how to implement the garden we’re envisioning,'” Atkins said.