Mark Shale in CLT?

[Miesian Corners]

I have no idea if this is true, but I hear that Mark Shale is looking at opening a store in Charlotte. From what I was told, they are looking at SouthPark and Elizabeth. To me, that has Grubb written all over it. Any one else heard this? If true, we'd be following Chicago (multiple stores), Atlanta, and Dallas.

[StevenRocks]

That would make my day if it turns out to be true. Mark Shale is an awesome specialty department store. I've been to their Chicago store on North Michigan Avenue a few times.

[DigitalSky]

I'm so dyslexic. I read "Malt shake" isntead of "Mark Shale"

[StevenRocks]

Too funny. Mark Shale's just a little different than that.

[appatone]

I know it was mentioned as a Dept. Store but how large are these stores typically? Would a Charlotte store be large enough to officially count as an anchor? I checked out the website and it appears Kansas City and St. Louis also have stores, the prices were average Dept. Store prices so I assume it would do really well here. I would love to see them move onto Elizabeth Ave.

[DigitalSky]

I would say junior-anchor wise 40,000 square feet + would count.

[StevenRocks]

Their stores are pretty much junior-anchor size: 20,000-40,000 square feet or so

[mallguy]

why wouldn't Mark Shale come uptown? Maybe in the old Montaldo's building, where the Mint museum branch is?

[Miesian Corners]

The rumour has it that Craft+Design is supposed to be Saks. I'm not holding my breath on that one, but that's what's been floated. I agree, though. Would be a great place for MS, although the building is a little too big.

[StevenRocks]

Mark Shale would work best in combination with other stores, possibly as part of a planned development. The brand recognition is not strong eough to go it alone.

Maybe if Saks takes Craft+Design, Mark Shale can locate nearby.

[mallguy]

Mark Shale would work best in combination with other stores, possibly as part of a planned development. The brand recognition is not strong eough to go it alone.

Maybe if Saks takes Craft+Design, Mark Shale can locate nearby.

I hope Saks comes but don't have my fingers crossed; I live and work uptown and uptown stores seem absolutely dead except during lunchtime; I'd still think that Saks would rather go to SouthPark. Definitely a strong customer base uptown but people shop where they live, not where they work.

[StevenRocks]

I hope Saks comes but don't have my fingers crossed; I live and work uptown and uptown stores seem absolutely dead except during lunchtime; I'd still think that Saks would rather go to SouthPark. Definitely a strong customer base uptown but people shop where they live, not where they work.

You're right, mallguy.

Still, SouthPark's pretty complicated right now. For Saks to come in, ther would have to be some shifting no matter where they put it in the neighborhood. The best spot is on the Dick's site at SouthPark mall, but if you've been keeping up with the retail threads here, it's frought with issues.

Elizabeth is another possibility for Saks and Mark Shale. It's sufficiently in town and upmarket enough to handle stores like those without depending solely on office traffic.

I'd venture to say Ballantyne wouldn't be a bad spot either, but it's not quite "there" yet.

[mallguy]

I hope that Saks comes uptown but uptown just isn't really designed for retail the way Greenville, SC's downtown and other traditional downtowns are.

Uptown Charlotte is a bunch of skyscrapers that people work in. There are very few storefronts along Tryon and Trade Streets, where people go. Office workers walk through the skywalks between buildings during lunchtime and shop then for small things. People who don't work in big buildings uptown, and people who come uptown apart from during working hours, don't really have easy access to those buildings and skywalks. So when they come uptown and walk around they don't see stores and don't really have easy ways of getting to them. A few days ago I was walking to work, right in front of a few skywalks and less than a block from Founders Hall, when a tourist stopped me and asked where to find stores and a mall; he seemed completely confused.

So for retail to succeed uptown a retail-friendly part, with lots of storefronts, would have to be built. Apart from the area around Hearst Tower and the Mint Museum, which could be converted into retail space since there are storefronts there (just used by restaurants and the Mint), a retailer would pretty much have to start from scratch to get retail space on a street. But that would mean building new buildings far away from the main areas of activity uptown (The Square and along Tryon Street). So people who work uptown wouldn't go to any new retail development because it'd be too far away from where they work, if they have to walk there or take the Gold Rush trolleys.

So basically retail won't/can't go where the people uptown are, and the people uptown won't go to where retail could be. So it won't work. People will stop off at places in the suburbs as they are driving home from work.

[StevenRocks]

It should be noted that before the skyscrapers came, there were many storefronts. Retail buildings were all over Uptown.

Makes you wonder if it would be possible to carve exterior-facing stores back into the mix affordably...

[dubone]

Luckily, most new buildings get street level store fronts uptown, and a few buildings from the previous generation of buildings are now opening up some of their internal retail to the street. Independence Center is the best example, but there are a few others. There are even examples, such as The Attic club and that Hoop Dreams (or whatever) in Ivey's that are opening up new entrances to the street to service retail on the second floor.

Basically, every building renovation seems to be adding retail to the street level.

That said, there are a lot of factors that make it a complicated subject. I would love a department store like Saks and/or Belk to open uptown. I think now that the market is changing uptown, with higher numbers of residents, higher disposable income of those residents, more jobs, and now with the Arena and eventually the Nascar Hall of Fame, could change it all.

[StevenRocks]

That would be an awesome retail district: Saks, Belk, Mark Shale, maybe even Barneys New York.

[CarolinaDaydreamin]

That would be an awesome retail district: Saks, Belk, Mark Shale, maybe even Barneys New York.

I would think that even after DeeDee Harris's project fell through, a Saks would pop up in some other SouthCharlotte plans. I could even see a mini project built up only around the saks. Do yall ever think maybe something will transform the Village Shops or whatever they are called across the street from SP (near CocaCola Consolidated). I think those could be totally torn down and replaced with a multi story complex with a Saks in it. What do yall think?

[mallguy]

I would think that even after DeeDee Harris's project fell through, a Saks would pop up in some other SouthCharlotte plans. I could even see a mini project built up only around the saks. Do yall ever think maybe something will transform the Village Shops or whatever they are called across the street from SP (near CocaCola Consolidated). I think those could be totally torn down and replaced with a multi story complex with a Saks in it. What do yall think?

I think that would be a good plan. That shopping center (with the Harold's?) apparently does very well, and it has some nice stores in it, but it could be a lot larger and fancier-looking, to keep up with the area's upscale growth recently.

[Miesian Corners]

I would think that even after DeeDee Harris's project fell through, a Saks would pop up in some other SouthCharlotte plans. I could even see a mini project built up only around the saks. Do yall ever think maybe something will transform the Village Shops or whatever they are called across the street from SP (near CocaCola Consolidated). I think those could be totally torn down and replaced with a multi story complex with a Saks in it. What do yall think?

Specialty Shops on The Park at SouthPark was sold last year for $24.2 million, the higest amount ever paid per square foot for a retail center in Charlotte. The 65K square feet of gross leasable area (GLA) breaks down to $374 per square foot.

[StevenRocks]

I would love to see something cooler happen with Specialty Shops on The Park, definately. That place is underutilized.

[CarolinaDaydreamin]

Also the apartments behind the Park should be torn down and a huge multistory retail/apartment project should be built. The homeowners who benefit from all the expansion would claim it would cause too much traffic. I believe there is a large tract of land undeveloped behind that block.