Mall St. Matthews

[zt456]

What's the deal with the old Lord & Taylor spot at the mall? The mall is probably the best one in Louisville so I don't understand why they haven't found a replacement or converted into more shops. It would be really nice to have a Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, or Bloomingdale's since there isn't any other in the area but if it is replaced it will most likely be a Macy's.

[StevenRocks]

I guess they're still negotiating with new tenants. Macy's is across the street, so it might not be them.

[PghUSA]

Does Kentucky have any homegrown retailers? I know in Pennsylvania the SE based (York or Lancaster etc.) Boscov's is taking over a lot of the May/Federated duplications in local malls. I always like to see a local retailer get a shot at the big time from the big boys consolidating.

[StevenRocks]

Kentucky has Dawahare's, but they're not quite large enough to take on a Lord & Taylor-sized space.

[PghUSA]

True but if their hometown support is stronger I would think they would start expanding! Those hometown stores tend to be more attunded to the styles and needs of their communities!

[georgeglass]

True but if their hometown support is stronger I would think they would start expanding! Those hometown stores tend to be more attunded to the styles and needs of their communities!

That may be true, but Dawahares is not big enough to take over something that large. They would have to alter themselves greatly. Personally, I think they are not as good as they once were. They do have a new concept called Rue de Bac in the Fayette Mall in Lexington. While it may be a good addition to Louisville, I could not see Dawahares bringing a Nordstrom type product to Louisville.

[PghUSA]

Well Nordstrom is the gold standard, doubt any chain including the new Federated-May would try to surmont that customer base. Just would like to see some of the smaller local operations get some success, there is too much "corporate" in a lot of the major retailers nowadays.

[georgeglass]

Well Nordstrom is the gold standard, doubt any chain including the new Federated-May would try to surmont that customer base. Just would like to see some of the smaller local operations get some success, there is too much "corporate" in a lot of the major retailers nowadays.

I would agree with you. I would love someone to put together a high end department store on a local level. Lexington did have Wolf Wiles for a long time. It was downtown, but closed in the early 90's I believe. The building has been wonderfully renovated though.

[memphian]

Well then someone needs to rescue MM Cohn from the Dunlap Company. MM Cohn is based in Little Rock but used to have stores all over Arkansas and in Memphis. MM Cohn was a phenomenal store back in the day - very much the Nordstrom of its own area. I believe that Dunlaps has been in control of the store since the early 1990's and they have absolutely killed it. This is one store that could truly be revived and spread across the South (albeit with some reserve such as only 1 store per city so that it becomes a destination versus becoming another Macy's).

I kid you not - MM Cohn is a diamond in the ruff. The logo is pretty swank too.

[StevenRocks]

I'll agree on the swanky logo, memphian.