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Waiting For Godot...er, Downtown Retail

spenser1058

By spenser1058
in Orlando Coffee House

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spenser1058
spenser1058

Winter Garden (which is where my father and his parents are from) would definitely be my next choice if I left Thornton Park. It's still a tad too Republican for my very political soul, and being out

John Hargrove
John Hargrove

Yeah. As a liberal, and a very political one at that, living in a GOP stronghold is definitely a down side. We saw more than a few high flying confederate flags and Trump signs. So I totally get that

alex
alex

Two tenets of retail that I've always heard are 1) you have to have a critical mass made up of destination-type major retailers + small indie shops and 2) retail should face retail. I think everyone h

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spenser1058 Gigalopolis

spenser1058

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Well, if you’ve been hoping for a CVS downtown the next time you need to scoot in and pick up a pair of panty hose.

The giant drugstore will be deemhasizing it’s retail footprint at its stores to focus on health services (obviously merging with insurance company Aetna probably had something to do with that.)

Of course, there’s always 7-Eleven. Oh Thank Heaven!

https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2019/06/04/cvs-to-add-healthhub-stores-drugstore-announces-ahead-of-investor-day.html

From CNBC

 

 

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spenser1058 Gigalopolis

spenser1058

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Not to jinx it (although Dale promises us there will be no recession so I guess we’re safe), but as I was looking at a rendering of The Summit on Mark’s Daily City, it occurred to me the retail cluster we’ve so wanted downtown is in the works, albeit in fits and starts. 

• The South Eola quadrant has all but exploded with pedestrian activity of late, thanks to the new apartments, being contiguous to OC workers in the Brick Bunker (and even in the ops center on South St), the existing retirement towers and nearby access to Eola Park;

• Retail has been growing sprouts in the area with Publix, a performance space at the Sanctuary and the adjoining bars, the Post block on Central and most recently 420’s quite unexpected commitment to fill up its retail spaces on the ground floor.

• With retail space available at Citi, the revolving door restaurants at the Sanctuary and the proposed retail at the Summit, this is an amazingly dense walkable cluster that should be perfect for retail to blossom (as usual, the problem of ridiculous rents could know lol it, but let’s pass that up for a moment).

As Brandon has noted before, the trick now will be to ensure a decent mix of retail instead of 15 new salons. Now is the time for Thomas Chatmon and the DDB to use the city’s bully pulpit to suggest a range of possibilities for retail and to actively work toward convincing retailers we have our requisite 10000+ downtown residents and to get Orlando’s core being talked about in the right circles.

Frankly, I don’t think Mr. Chatmon has demonstrated that competence but since Orlando has decided Buddy can do no wrong and should be mayor for life, we have to attempt to get him moving after UCF/VD settles in.

Mr. Chatmon should also talk to successful local businesses like the ACE Hardware franchiser, Track Shack’s Jon Hughes and the folks at Orange Cycle/David’s World Cycle for quick turnaround possibilities on two of our most pressing retail needs downtown.

Now is the time to make this begin to happen. It will only occur if we make some noise so send those emails to the Dome or make it known at any downtown gatherings.

(Yes, I’m taking back my trophy for longest post from dcluley - yay, me!)

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spenser1058 Gigalopolis

spenser1058

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5 hours ago, AmIReal said:

What type of retail would you like to see downtown that you feel would be successful?

I still want to cover the basics first - a hardware store geared to apartment/condo dwellers as well as small home owners (Miller’s in WP is the perfect model of this with ACE the second choice), a bike store and something like a Track Shack for all the walking/running events at Eola.

I had wanted a real drug store with more selection and better hours than Publix has but given the downsizing of the CVS and Walgreen store fleets, that’s not likely happening unless some brave local pharmacist wants to go it on his/her/their own. Also, a liquor store (ABC or Public are both chain options that are not horribly overpriced like Mucho was).

If those work out, we can set our sights a bit higher. It will also depend on what happens over by UCF/VD. The first wave of retail announced is singularly unimpressive. I assume they’ll at least have a college bookstore. I don’t know if UCF and VC are collaborating and whether that affects who owns and runs it or not.

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smileguy Burg

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On 8/18/2019 at 3:12 PM, spenser1058 said:

If those work out, we can set our sights a bit higher. It will also depend on what happens over by UCF/VD. The first wave of retail announced is singularly unimpressive. I assume they’ll at least have a college bookstore. I don’t know if UCF and VC are collaborating and whether that affects who owns and runs it or not.

There will be a college bookstore in the  new parking garage.

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orlandoguy Hamlet

orlandoguy

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13 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

Just4Dogs Pet Salon is coming to E. Robinson St.

https://www.thedailycity.com/post/just-4-dogs-pet-salon

From The Daily City 

Did the kombucha place ever actually open in this space? I walk by this area often and remember seeing work being done on the premises, but don't remember Farm Boy opening to retail customers.

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AmIReal Burg

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Everyone has heard of the demise of brick and mortar retail, but it seems some are doing just fine. MSN Money names the top 15 retail and restaurant chains for growth. I think these 10 would work in the CBD or the edges of the CBD;

Chipotle, lululemon, 5 below, Chick-fil-a, Madewell (J Crew for the hip), Sweetgreen (I'd gnaw your arm off for one of these), Old Navy, Popeyes and American Eagle.

Also high on the growth list is Target which I can't picture in the core, but maybe very nearby (like CV).

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/these-15-retail-and-restaurant-chains-are-growing/ss-AAIgSVt?ocid=spartanntp#image=1

I still stand behind my previous assertion that there is not a good CBD location for these retail chains, but if you really want chain retail these are the top options.

OTOH, any of these restaurant chains could do well even without drive thru options.

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AmIReal Burg

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Who would've thought it. Someone says Orlando core is prime for retail. 

"Downtown Orlando is about to experience one of the most significant events in its modern development as The University of Central Florida and Valencia College are opening a joint campus just west of Interstate 4, near the Florida A&M University College of Law, as part of Creative Village."

From REbusiness- http://rebusinessonline.com/orlandos-retail-market-is-thriving-both-in-the-core-and-suburban-submarkets/

 

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AmIReal Burg

AmIReal

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2 hours ago, Jernigan said:

I think we are a few years away.  Those 7-10k bodies are mostly there just during classes.   We will get more dining options but I don’t think we will see a ton of services until more of the residential comes online.   Could be wrong!

I generally agree with the caveat that we need to think of retail in the sense the real estate and city code thinks of retail. So retail is not just Gap and Target and CVS, but also donut shops, brew pubs, beauty shops, nails shops and lash extensions. When you look at the OBJ list of things people living downtown want it is not places to buy stuff it is places to spend money- entertainment (food and booze) and services.

I think we will start seeing more of those things downtown and may never see "traditional" retail.

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popsiclebrandon Burg

popsiclebrandon

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36 minutes ago, orlandoguy said:

The Healthy Buddha appears to be on the verge of opening their fourth location in the old Cookies by Design space in the 300 block of North Orange. Signage has gone up in the windows although I can’t tell if they’re actually open for business yet or not.

https://www.healthybuddah.com

A bit scary this concept is growing. Kratom is not very safe and is basically an opioid.  DEA wants to schedule 1 it, people die from it.

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AndyPok1 Burg

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Wasn't sure where to post this, but a single stat spoke out to me in this article about Downtown Cleveland's rejuvenation.

"Today, downtown has 473 retail businesses, with more than half restaurants—263—“Today, restaurants serve as retail anchors in downtown Cleveland in the same way department stores once did,”"

https://www.freshwatercleveland.com/breaking-ground/DowntownGrowth021820.aspx

 

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smileguy Burg

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1 hour ago, popsiclebrandon said:

Sounds like it will have a great record collection so that is cool. The family behind it is extremely wealthy so should look great.

They'll have a VW Bus for events too. Just unvieled it at an event last weekend. https://www.facebook.com/events/barley-and-vine-biergarten/bynx-brand-launch/672484133577336/

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