Jump to content

ROSES DISCOUNT STORE - Where and When?


mediamongrel

Recommended Posts

I remember their Boone store vaguely. It closed down in '95...I guess the whole chain went out at that time? The building was converted to an office complex.

Like said, the Boone Roses closed around 2000 when Wal-Mart opened. In 2004 Big Lots moved into it's former location.

Not to nit-pick, but the Boone Brendles was open at least through '96. I bought a watch there that year, my first at ASU.

Also not to nit-pick, the Boone Roses was open until at least 98 maybe early 99. I worked at the Lowes Foods in the shopping center at that time. Also, Lowes Foods actually took over the Roses space to open a larger FreshSmart format store. Big Lots moved into the old Lowes Foods space.

I don't see many Roses stores open anymore, I know the one in Hickory is still open.

Link to comment
Share on other sites


  • Replies 128
  • Created
  • Last Reply

I've been researching Roses this morning.

They were based in Henderson, NC.

I know they filed for bankruptcy in 1993 with over 200 stores. After coming out of bankruptcy in 1994 they had 105 or so stores.

In 1996 there was an attepted merger with Freds Stores Inc.

Freds backed out and in 1997 and Roses was then bought out by Variety Wholesalers Inc. (Who have bought alot of stores over the years)

According to www.vwstores.com there are 87 Roses stores left. They do not have a store directory listing locations.

I can personally think of 6 locations all in NC. Fuquay-Varina, Chapel Hill, Durham, Siler City (This one recently opened/reopened), Greensboro, Forest City.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That's amazing. I did not realize this chain was even still around.

In the 1970s & early 80s there was a Roses in almost every Carolina's city. They were killed by Walmart.

Yup I remember Roses when I was younger. Also remember the merchandise stores Brendles and Best?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I dont think dollar general or family dollar has their own credit card...what they have though is their own niche...and following which has allowed them to continue to do well. We have two simi near us...one of which is about 5 minutes from a walmart.

There have always been different discount /five and dime kind of stores...all with their own appeal. Roses is just one of many...and it has it's own charm. It is facinating to just take time to browse and see what kind of treasures are there. And that might just be part of the whole essence at times of a store that is able to have staying power. People dont "shop" as they used to. They go in, buy and go out...they do not browse or window shop because time is so divided anymore.

I grew up in Tennessee just south of the Kentucky Border (Macon County). Dollar General was headquartered in Scottsville, Kentucky and they had store number 1. We had store number 2 or 3. That store prospers because the owners know what niche they are filling. And ironically, I see more American made stuff there for just a couple dollars than I see at Walmart.

I now live close to Athens, Georgia, between Athens and Atlanta. We had a Roses, Sky City, and a Woolworth. All three closed within five years of each other. Why? Walmart and the fickle shopper. Now Big Lots and Dollar General both share part of the space of the old Roses store. CVS pharmacy is where Woolworth was, and Sky City is some sort of thrift store like Goodwill.

I miss Woolworth the most. My wife and I used to take our daughter (we only had one kid at the time) to Woolworths to eat lunch on Saturdays and to pick up household things. They also had unique toys that we would get our kids for Christmas.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm kinda suprised Durham still has two Roses, I know the one at North Duke seems to do fairly good business, not sure about the one in southern Durham, but at least they seem to be in decent shopping centers, the North Duke Roses sharing a center with Staples and the southern Durham location has a Harris Teeter beside it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm not as shocked about Durham having two Roses, as I am that Chapel Hill has even one. I think it has to do with the fact that the type of people that live in CH would rather give their money to a place like Roses than a big box retailer like Wal Mart. Still very interesting. I don't think Roses intentionally did this in CH, just kind of ended up that way.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wow, I had no idea Roses was this big of a chain. There is one in Hickory as well. It is not a pleasant place to go if you are looking for a modern store. It is in an old shopping center and it is very dusty and the merchandise is not up to date and the store hasn't been remodeled since the late seventies it looks like. In a way I enjoy it. It is like stepping back in time. We also had Roses back in Virginia where I used to live. There was at least one in West Virginia that I went to once.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

I know of two Roses stores; Belmont, NC & Wilmington, NC

anyone know of others? I remember this chain was big in Winston in the 90's

There are currently two Roses Department Store units open in Macon, GA. We always stop by when we are travelling through on I-75. The buildings are pretty run-down but air conditioned and stuffed to the gills with great stuff. They are both about the size of a K-Mart and seem to do well in spite of the fact that there is a Macy's/Dillard's mall, a super Wal-Mart, and a K-Mart in town.

Disney Store linens & irregulars, a good drugstore closeout selection, a seasonal area which alternates between summer and Christmas merchandise, a small selection of flat-pack furniture and lamps, an As Seen On TV aisle recent of wonders (George Foreman grills, hot water in clear tube cooks pasta, etc.), fully half of the floorspace is devoted to clothing! including plus sizes and a big and tall, and a shoe department. These stores have a definite urban slant to address the local population; so there are areas devoted to african-american-centric haircare and clothes (Sean Paul, african/natural textures & colors etc.) some of which is right cool. Cheap cheap Fruit of the Loom prices.

The of course there is the 'action alley' of bargains down the center of the store where towels are $2 and Gevalier 12 cup coffemakers (forest green?) with carafe rather than coffeepot for $15.

But "where all toys go to die" is the BEST department of all. I could not believe my eyes this past weekend when I thumbed though what should be an eBay collector's paradise. Toys that were marked down for the 3rd and 4th time, often one-off...and there was a toy spaceship that could have been fifty years old on the shelf. As a sample, I offer this: Disney's Alladin figures, four-inch, mint in box original run; Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer figures, four-inch scale for Rudolph, I had to pick up Moonracer who is almost as big as my 12-inch Abominable Snowbeast; collectibles from several Charlie Brown specials including "It's the Great Pumpkin"; and for the hard-core there are tour collectibles of Nsync, end-of-run boardgames from when the Milton Bradley name was consumed by Hasbro (that was 1984 people) & Barbie...and not your run of the mill stuff either...odd stuff.

Went hunting for a Roses website so we could figure out if there is a location closer to us but alas...what?...no website? Holy frijoles! Roses is like a time warp back 20 years in almost every way.

Is there a comprehensive list of locations anywhere?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Interesting site selection criteria, from the website:

Site Criteria

We look primarily for locations in second and third generation shopping centers. In addition, we will consider free-standing sites, and store front locations in large urban cities. Site criteria include:

Grocery anchored shopping center preferred.

Minimum population of 2,500 within 1 mile of the site.

Minimum 25% African-American population within 5 miles.

Median household income of $40,000 or less.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Theres still one in Morganton I believe.

There is still one in Morganton. For a while I heard it was there most profitable store. I'm not sure what that says about Morganton. There was also a Sky City in town too. It's been closed for years. I still remember the jingle; "get more for less at Sky City"...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Interesting site selection criteria, from the website:

Site Criteria

We look primarily for locations in second and third generation shopping centers. In addition, we will consider free-standing sites, and store front locations in large urban cities. Site criteria include:

Grocery anchored shopping center preferred.

Minimum population of 2,500 within 1 mile of the site.

Minimum 25% African-American population within 5 miles.

Median household income of $40,000 or less.

I know that Roses et al tends to be popular in African-American communities, but I didn't know their business was actively sought by the company.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

What cracked me up about the site selection criteria is that the company seeks locations in "second or third generation" (e.g., old and dated) malls with a customer base earning "$40,000 or less" (e.g., in non-upscale areas). I remember shopping at the Rose's in Cornelius, NC about 15 years ago and it was fine- the chain must have decided to go downscale since then.

Perhaps the Rose's owners could use deadmalls.com as a good guide to appropriate malls for their stores?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There is I believe a Roses distribution center on US 1 in Henderson, NC; incidentally, there is a Wal-Mart distribution center very close and on the other side of US 1.

I remember shopping at the Rose's in Cornelius, NC about 15 years ago and it was fine- the chain must have decided to go downscale since then.
I (well, my parents and I) shopped at the Roses on Merrimon Ave in Asheville, NC frequently until it closed perhaps 10 or 12 years ago. This store used to be where Stein Mart is now. Or, rather, was... before the Sears merger.

I recall the store being just fine, but not quite as nice as K-Mart or Wal-Mart (which had just come to town a few years before.) I would say that, 15 years ago, Roses was right about where K-Mart is now.

But "where all toys go to die" is the BEST department of all. I could not believe my eyes this past weekend when I thumbed though what should be an eBay collector's paradise.

:rofl: That's the funniest thing I've read in a while. I literally spit out the mouthful of water I was drinking when I read that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, maybe I'm too easily amused...

Patricia Overton

Corporate HR Rep

Telephone: (252) 430-2492

Email: poverton@vwstores.com

I have this thing about finding people whose names (or in this case e-mail address) seem to have something to do with what they do (ex. Sherriff Garrison)

Go figure this Patricia person would get an e-mail address of Poverton (poverty+town) and work for a deep discount chain. It looks like they just always take the first letter of the first name and combine it with the surname to get the e-mail address.

Now that I've had to explain myself, it doesn't seem as funny.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.