She's bringing the goods back home

Jill Goldberg, on a jared teak side table by Oly, in her new home furnishings store in Wellesley. (Josh Reynolds for the Boston Globe)

The second child changes everything. Just ask Jill Goldberg, owner of chic South End home store Hudson, who recently unveiled a second location in her hometown of Wellesley.

"I didn't realize how good I had it with just the one store," exclaims the exhausted 32-year-old. "I'm killing myself!" Goldberg says this with determined good cheer: she is, after all, a woman who's found her raison d'etre.

After eight years in Los Angeles pursuing acting and studying at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, Goldberg migrated back to the roost, working for South End architect and interior designer Daniel Reynolds for two years before succumbing to the pull of retail.

"I always knew I was going to have a business," says Goldberg, who lives in the South End. "It was just how I was going to do it." She opened Hudson in the South End in 2006. The store quickly caught on with locals enamored by the country-vintage-meets-modern aesthetic of the store's offerings.

"It was a great chance to showcase how I like items and design," she says.

The young entrepreneur didn't plan on expanding her business so quickly, but kismet overruled. A camera shop located in the heart of downtown Wellesley closed its doors after 30-plus years in business, and Goldberg pounced.

"This just seemed like the right place and the right time to come into Wellesley," she explains. "There's nothing like this in the town yet, so why not be the person to jump in and do it?"

Hudson Wellesley opened March 1, and is an airier answer to the South End original, with a near-identical display of goods and accessories from small purveyors like BoBo Intriguing Objects, Worlds Away, and Verellen.

The response, Goldberg says, has been "fabulous." "Old faces and friends from the South End who have moved out here are just so happy to see us," she says. "And people who don't know us who come in, it's so nice to see their eyes open up."

Setting up shop in her old stomping grounds has also resulted in some unanticipated customers. "I've had a few old teachers come in," Goldberg said. "You start to feel like you're in eighth grade again."

With success coming so fast, the inevitable question has to be asked: are there any plans to add to the Hudson brood? "Don't go there," groans Goldberg. "I don't think I could handle a third."

As she gears up for her official Hudson Wellesley launch party next week, Goldberg took a time out to share her favorite haunts and activities - most of which cater to the wants of her 9 1/2-year-old chocolate lab mix, Love.

What piece of furniture in your house can you not live without?
It would definitely be my white twill club chair from Mitchell Gold, because I have nowhere else to sit. I fight over it with my dog. It's actually her chair. As soon as I get up to do something, she jumps up. It's not white anymore.

Favorite morning coffee spot:
I love South End Buttery. I'm an iced-coffee person now that it's getting more into spring. It gives you that high that you really regret later. Also Flour Bakery - good iced-coffee, and an amazing choice of products. When I'm not in a coffee mood, I don't mind going to that teahouse, Tealuxe, on Clarendon and Newbury. It's a great place to go.

Favorite interior designer:
Somebody I always watch for is Ruthie Sommers in Los Angeles. I think there's a similar aesthetic - although she's definitely much more high end. She likes to find interesting antiques and bring them to life again. I think there's a mix that she pulls together that I hope I bring together, too.

Favorite Boston-based movie:
"Starting Over" with Burt Reynolds and Jill Clayburgh. I remember it from growing up. I remember the Bloomingdale's the way it was.

Favorite dog-friendly spot in the city:
I would say it's the South End. I can take her into almost every store. Otherwise, I take her down to the drag on Commonwealth Avenue. She just loves to chase the squirrels and sniff and smell. Then we'll walk up Newbury and go into Banana Republic, because they allow dogs.

Favorite winter respite:
It's always nice to find a new place to eat that's kind of welcoming, but kind of dark. You can be inside with a glass of wine and something chocolatey. It's nice to be in Aquitaine and have that, or to go over to Sibling Rivalry. It's important to go out and be somewhere where there's other people, because otherwise you start to feel isolated in the winter.

Interior design fantasy:
I'm dying to see where Ben [Affleck] and Jen [Garner] live - they must have a house in Cambridge. I'd like to see how they brought LA to their home. And I know John Malkovich lives around here. We're friends with a gentleman who has a townhouse a few doors down from the South End store, and his daughter goes to private school with his son. You get the parent gossip. It's hilarious.

Favorite summertime activity:
My mother has a house down in Provincetown, so I really enjoy being down there. Early in the morning, on the bay side, we take the dog down there. There's a place down there called Relish, and we go and get breakfast sandwiches, sit on a bench, eat our sandwiches, and then the water's out, so the dog can run for miles. That is probably my most favorite thing, watching her run around in the saltwater, chase the birds, and just have that smile on her face.