Tucked away at 140 Kelly Alley, Charmaine's French Bakery and Cafe has depended mostly on word of mouth and people stumbling upon it by accident. So when a site became available underneath the Mid-State Bank branch at 234 E. College Ave, the owner decided to open a second location there.

"It's so much more visible,"said owner Margaret Kowalski.

At least four area stores are defying the nationwide trend of businesses leaving urban areas by opening second locations in downtown State College. In some cases, the new locations are only a few blocks from the original stores.

Irving's Bagels will soon open a new location at 131 W. Beaver Ave., said owner Jack Schoenholtz. The new location is intended to draw more local residents who find the original store's location at 418 E. College Ave. too far away, he said.

The parking lot across the street from the new store, as well as more space, influenced his decision to lease the site, he added.

Some businesses are expanding their original locations.

Opened last fall, National Record Mart Annex, 232 E. College Ave., is meant to be an addition to National Record Mart rather than a separate location, said Nina Klein, National Record Mart manager. The annex offers music and merchandise not sold at the original store, Klein added.

Neither Schoenholtz or Kowalski think their new locations will take business away from the old stores in the long run. Kowalski said her business already has an established customer base made up of professors, families with children, and "yuppies" who will continue to patronize the original store.

Schoenholtz said that although his new store might initially lure some customers away from the old location, he isn't worried.

"The original store's location right across from campus will always guarantee it plenty of customers," Schoenholtz said.

Most of the business owners felt the advantages offered by downtown,particularly the access to students, justified opening a second location there, rather than in a nearby shopping center.

"A shopping center location would not work for my business," Kowalski said, adding that the downtown has more pedestrian traffic than shopping centers.

Schoenholtz said the need for more customer parking made him consider opening a second store on North Atherton Street, but he ultimately decided against it.

"I didn't want to cut students out of the picture," he said, adding that most of the customers at the original store are students.

Students are a main reason why Procopy Inc., a local copy center, is opening a second location at 224 W.College Ave., in addition to its original shopping center location at 279 Northland Center.

"Our current location doesn't attract much student business," co-owner Matt Vidic said.