Belk coming to Mall Of Georgia

[DigitalSky]

http://atlanta.bizjournals.com/atlanta/sto...tml?jst=b_ln_hl

I think it's a good thing for Mall of Georgia and Belk

[teshadoh]

It's about time Belks takes a serious attempt at hitting the Atlanta market,rather than those low end Marshalls type stores. Belks is a pretty decent department store in their home base in the Carolinas, I imagine they will put in a decent store there.

Of course I'll never see it - since my last fluke trip was 5 years ago & it's a billion miles away from Atlanta.

[StevenRocks]

It finally gives Belk some presence in the Atlanta market. A lot of Belk stores already look like Lord & Taylor anyway, so the transition will be seamless.

[DigitalSky]

It finally gives Belk some presence in the Atlanta market. A lot of Belk stores already look like Lord & Taylor anyway, so the transition will be seamless.

Yeah I can't wait to see how it'll look and what they'll change and what will be kept

[teshadoh]

It finally gives Belk some presence in the Atlanta market. A lot of Belk stores already look like Lord & Taylor anyway, so the transition will be seamless.

In the suburbs, they are relatively common - but are not regional mall tenants. They are in select secondary shopping centers in exurban areas such as Lawrenceville. They aren't anything special, yet they do remind me of the old Belks that were common in most towns in South Carolina, such as York & Rock Hill.

[Andrea]

We used to go to the one in downtown Decatur when I was a little kid, and later on there was one at Suburban Plaza. But I don't recall running across one in a good while.

[StevenRocks]

In the suburbs, they are relatively common - but are not regional mall tenants. They are in select secondary shopping centers in exurban areas such as Lawrenceville. They aren't anything special, yet they do remind me of the old Belks that were common in most towns in South Carolina, such as York & Rock Hill.

My mom used to work for Belk and I'm a retail nut, so I know of the types of "Baby Belks" you speak of. I like the bigger Belks a lot better, though the small stores are decent overall.

[Martinman]

I think they're pretty common in malls in other parts of GA but they've been shut out of Atlanta malls unitl now.

[StevenRocks]

I know Belk has larger stores in Savannah, Athens and Macon, and I believe they're in Columbus as well.

[Lady Celeste]

Honestly I would much rather have the Lord and Taylor as opposed to a Belk. As many have said, Belk hasn't had much of a presence here in the Atlanta market. The stores that are here tend to be as Teshadoh said in suburbs that are sort of far out and in strip malls. This in my mind cheapened Belk's image...and I'm only speaking of my own feeling. When I went to UGA, I was surprised when I saw that their mall (Georgia Square Mall) had a Belk as an anchor. I almost never stepped foot in the mall because I thought that any mall that had a Belk had to be of a lower grade than what I was used to in the Atlanta market. My parents are both northerners so travel around the south was not something that I did....other than Florida. Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised with the Belk at the Georgia Square Mall but once I came home, the only Belks I could find reminded me of TJ Maxx or Marshalls....better yet Kohls or Ross.

I hope the execution of the Belks at the Mall of Georgia is done properly. I really like that mall and although I'm not too terribly far away from it. I tend to prefer Perimeter and Lenox/Phipps to the Mall of Georgia but I will be willing to look at this Belk at least once. I just wonder will it have the cachet of a say Macys, Parisians or Dilliads or will it be relegated to a Sears or JC Penney level. Oh well, I'm rambling along.....I just hope it's done right because there are many Atlantans in my age group who did not grow up with Belks in a favorable light. Will they be able to win us over......then again, who in Atlanta has lived here more than 20 years anymore? Andrea and I may be a dwindling lot, lol.

Perhaps the Mall of Georgia's demographics is perfect for Belks to move into...this may be a most advantageous move for Belks....if done properly.

[atlrvr]

It is odd the differences in Belks, because I've been in some in more rural NC, and its like you enter a fashion time warp.....though their flagship store at SouthPark carries, Hugo Boss, Burberry, Kate Spade, Lacoste, Armani Collectzione, Origins (cosmetics), etc....

I would assume that this would be one-step below their flagship level, which at their other Charlotte and Raleigh area malls is really comparable to a Dillards.

[Lady Celeste]

I would assume that this would be one-step below their flagship level, which at their other Charlotte and Raleigh area malls is really comparable to a Dillards.

If this is the case then they will do well. If I was on the board of directors, I would make this the Georgia flagship. I would move it up above a Dillards and Parisians....or at least make it comparable to Parisians at Phipps. Lord & Taylor was the Mall of Georgia's grand store so I hope Belk's even do something to be just as grand. Like I said earlier, the demographics can definitely handle it.....Lake Lanier, Suwanee, Buford and Duluth have some very large pockets of wealth and I know people living in Sugarloaf CC are not going to Gwinnett Place Mall.....and this I'm not guessing, I know they are not. Belk could esssentially elevate itself in the Atlanta market thereby not having to fight with the already crowded midmarket stores like Macy's, Dillards, Parisians, JC Penney and Sears.

I would make thier store at the Mall of Georgia comparable with the one at SouthPark, which, if one looks at their market region, probably mirrors SouthPark's demographics in many ways.

[StevenRocks]

Belk will not disappoint at Mall of Georgia. I imagine they'll pull out all the stops and make it at least as good as the Charlotte stores.

[DigitalSky]

Belk will not disappoint at Mall of Georgia. I imagine they'll pull out all the stops and make it at least as good as the Charlotte stores.

No doubt. I see them going pretty SouthPark with this store

[ryanmckibben]

Oh goodie, another store I will never set foot in, in a mall a million miles away from anything. Sounds like a plan to me.

[StevenRocks]

No doubt. I see them going pretty SouthPark with this store

The Friendly Center store in Greesnboro is good example of what Belk can do in small spces. That store's only a little bigger than the new Mall of Georgia store, but features a well-edited selection of merchandise that rivals Belk's largest stores.

[DigitalSky]

What's the sqfootage on Lord & Taylor?

[StevenRocks]

What's the sqfootage on Lord & Taylor?

120,000 square feet on two levels.

[Lady Celeste]

Steven perhaps you can show some pictures of nicer Belks in the greater North Carolina area.

I'm telling you, Belk does not have the best image here in the metro Atlanta market and I'm having a hard time understanding why the Mall of Georgia even recruited them to fill the Lord & Taylor space. After over 20 years of being in lesser stripmalls in small exurbs...because I personally don't ever remember Belk being more than on the level of a Goody's or Kohls...Belks reenters in earnest the Atlanta market at a really nice mall. Can it really change it's image after so much damage has been done. Not only that, Atlanta's shopping market is probably one of the most competitive in the country. From high end to low end, Atlanta has just about everything.....what is Belk going to do differently that the plethora of other stores have not already done. They don't even advertise here.

[memphian]

This is the same type of dialogue we have in TN when discussing Belk. We have the smaller stores that just don't seem competitive in a major market, but the smaller stores serve their prospective markets well. Belk is about to make a big leap into TN and MS with their purchase of Proffitt's and McRae's so I guess we'll see what they do. I have much higher hopes for the Mall of GA store than any of the TN/MS stores though. (I'm a retail nut too - I've been following the consolidation of the Department Store Industry for about 8 years now so eventhough I may not have ever worked in one, I do know whats going on and like any other educated consumer... I can see where these stores totally miss the mark with services and selection)

North Carolinians love their Belk the way old Georgians and Tennesseans loved their Rich's and Castner Knott/Proffitt's. Lets hope they create some magic instead of boredom in their new stores. it's obvious they have an uphill battle in front of them.

[Martinman]

^^^And I think you partially answered Lady Celeste's question about Mall of Ga recruiting Belk. There simply aren't that many independent department stores options left out there to fill the space.

[StevenRocks]

Steven perhaps you can show some pictures of nicer Belks in the greater North Carolina area.

Certainly!

Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina:

http://livemalls.blogspot.com/2005/01/huds...alley-mall.html

Hudson Belk, The Streets at Southpoint, Durham, North Carolina:

http://livemalls.blogspot.com/2005/01/huds...southpoint.html

Belk, Hanes Mall, Winston Salem, North Carolina:

http://livemalls.blogspot.com/2005/05/belk...alem-north.html

Belk, Four Seasons Town Centre, Greensboro, North Carolina:

http://livemalls.blogspot.com/2005/07/belk...own-centre.html

Belk, Northlake Mall, Charlotte, North Carolina:

http://livemalls.blogspot.com/2005/09/belk...otte-north.html

[Andrea]

I shouldn't say this, and I absolutely mean no offense to anyone, but I hate malls so bad.

[ironchapman]

Why is it that people hate malls SO much in a city or just anywhere, for that matter? I've never really had a problem with them and I am thankful we have such presitioug ones as Lenox and Phipps. Arbor Place Mall has done nothing but good in bringing business to my town.

That said, mall in every little nook and cranny of the state is overkill, IMO.

Or perhaps is it the crazy spurt of development that is often unplanned that peple hate so much? (In that case, Arbor Place has really caused my town to fall victim to it on a greater scale than before.)

[Andrea]

Why is it that people hate malls SO much in a city or just anywhere, for that matter?

IC, I don't mean to sound like a snob or anything like that. When Lenox Square first opened I was totally in awe, as I had never seen anything like it.

What I don't like about malls is basically this:

(1) They are all about cars -- they are usually inward focused and turn their backs on pedestrians. You basically have to drive there and park.

(2) They are typically surrounded by acres of asphalt parking lots, or in the case of some of the more mature malls, concrete parking decks. I think this is forbidding to foot traffic and not so good for the environment.

(3) They usually destroy streetscapes and leave you looking at nothing but parking lots.

(4) To me, they tend to be bland, generic and overwhelming -- I prefer smaller, eclectic, individualized shops run by local merchants, but I know that's just a matter of individual taste.

(5) I think they're harder to get into and out of than local shops and that they complicate traffic patterns.

If Lenox and Phipps, for instance, were carved up into about 15 city blocks of street-facing shops with sidewalks, I'd like them a lot more. In fact, now that I think about it, the original Lenox Square was more like that -- it was not enclosed, and it felt a lot more like you were walking down main street.