The State of Downtown Retail

[gman430]

Husk reopens December 8th: 

https://upstatebusinessjournal.com/eat-drink/husk-barbecue-to-open-tuesday-dec-8-as-dining-group-president-considers-the-state-of-the-restaurant-industry/

Edited December 4, 2020 by gman430

[Galley]

Didn't know where else to put this, but O'Haira Salon on E. Washington near the Spinx station has been demolished.

[gman430]

Brooks Brothers and Port City Java have permanently shut down. Ouch.

A new clothing store (couldn’t read the name) has opened in the old Eric Brown Designs space.

Viva Villa is now open in old Compadres space. 

Sacha’s Cafe has opened at Main and Pendleton Streets in the old Mexican restaurant spot. 

Edited January 4, 2021 by gman430

[vicupstate]

That really sucks about Brooks Brothers. Hopefully the space finds a new tenant once Covid is in the rearview mirror.  

[Cityplanner]

4 hours ago, vicupstate said:

That really sucks about Brooks Brothers. Hopefully the space finds a new tenant once Covid is in the rearview mirror.  

Agreed.  I hope that it doesn't reflect on downtown overall.  It's a prime location and hopefully someone new will come there.  It's such a beautiful space.

For what it's worth, even the flagship in midtown Manhattan closed, as did plenty of locations in high-end areas. 

If you see me posting about liking a store, rest assured that it will close.  Parisian, Harold's at Greenville Mall, Lord & Taylor and now Brooks Brothers--if I like, it goes out of business.

Edited January 4, 2021 by Cityplanner

[gman430]

Four popular downtown Greenville restaurants are closing their doors for a week or more in an effort to help stop the spread, according to a spokesperson.

The spokesperson said Tuesday that Passarelle, Soby's, The Lazy Goat, and Nose Dive - all are Table 301 brands - are closed as part of the effort.

Passarelle closed on January 1 and will reopen on Jan. 11.

Soby's and Nose Dive closed on Jan. 4 and will reopen on Jan.11.

Lazy Goat also closed on Jan. 4 and will reopen on Jan. 12.

[gman430]

It appeared the once-mighty Brooks Brothers clothing brand might emerge from its summertime pandemic and bankruptcy struggles and maintain a brick-and-mortar presence in the heart of downtown Greenville.

But, after a fall season reopening, the doors to a signature retailer of the ONE building appear to be shut again, this time permanently.

The store remained open through the holiday shopping season but the space was cleared by the first weekend of the new year and a partition placed inside the entrance to the store. There was no signage to share why or indicate what is next. The Brooks Brothers website shows the store as “permanently closed,” unlike locations in Charleston, Myrtle Beach, Charlotte and Gaffney that reopened after temporary COVID-related shutdowns.

In August there was renewed hope for the brand — which began in 1818 in Manhattan — when the company was bought for $325 million by the SPARC Group after entering Chapter 11 bankruptcy the previous month.

In 2013, the Greenville store was heralded as a sign of downtown’s arrival as a retail district when it opened in the ONE building. The Post and Courier has reached out for more information and will report any new developments, including what might be next for the prominent retail space.

Edited January 6, 2021 by gman430

[Cityplanner]

Thanks for the article.

Other Brooks Brothers locations in the Carolinas DID close, such as at least one in Charlotte,  at Northlake.

[gman430]

Brooks Brothers wasn’t the only store on downtown’s Main Street to greet the new year with doors closed.

A half-block away, the Port City Java coffee shop in the Wells Fargo building remains shuttered since just before New Year’s Day, with a sign on its doors indicating that a COVID-19 infection forced closure “until further notice.”

The shop’s future isn’t certain.

With or without COVID infections, the nearly 2,000-square-foot space the Port City inhabits has been actively marketed for a replacement restaurant. If an offer is accepted, Port City has agreed to vacate the spot within 60 days, said Geoff Beans, a broker with NAI Earle Furman.

 

Source: https://www.postandcourier.com/greenville/business/port-city-java-in-greenville-closed-until-further-notice-with-long-term-future-unclear/article_861987b4-512c-11eb-903e-635d1b7f1fe9.html

Edited January 10, 2021 by gman430

[Cityplanner]

Sad to see businesses closing.  Port City Java is still listed on the chain's website.  I've read numerous stories of other Brooks Brothers locations closing and being vacated, but then reopening.  So these seem like situations in which the locations could spring back to life.

In any event, I hope that the owners of the ONE building are actively marketing the space (perhaps to one of the other higher-end clothing chains, since it's a beautiful store that could easily be turned into another higher-end store).  I also hope that the powers that be are working to lure additional destination retail to downtown; as long as the Brooks Brothers closing is an isolated one, not tied to the performance of downtown overall, I guess I can deal with it, although I really liked it.

I wonder what other chains could be prospects for downtown.  Urban Outfitters?  Macy's new small-format chain? H&M?

Edited January 10, 2021 by Cityplanner

[gman430]

White called the closings "a big loss." 

While the city is "aggressively moving" to bolster offices with new economic development initiatives, and residential is solid, retail once again must be a focus, he added. 
 

"We will be back in the business of active recruitment of great retail — all to keep our vibrancy," he said in a text. 
 

And the city is courting several new retail prospects, White said, though he declined to give more detail. 

"Many possible sites to choose," he said. 

More info: https://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/news/local/greenville/downtown/2021/01/13/downtown-greenville-main-street-gets-new-business-despite-covid-19/6565074002/

 

 

-The Greenville Triumph Soccer Club is opening a team store at 22 S. Main St. after using the space as a holiday pop-up shop. The store will also serve as new office headquarters housing club leadership, ticketing, sponsorship, marketing and community relations. Staff are planning a COVID-compliant grand opening later this winter. 

-Looks like the old Funnelicious has been leased. 
 

-Southernside Brewing now open:  https://upstatebusinessjournal.com/business-news/southernside-brewing-co-brings-craft-beer-southern-food-and-a-neighborhood-atmosphere-to-the-swamp-rabbit-trail/

 

-Lemongrass closed sometime a few months ago. Who knew???

-Lynn Strong has moved to their new location 

 

Edited January 13, 2021 by gman430

[GvilleSC]

1 hour ago, gman430 said:

-The Greenville Triumph Soccer Club is opening a team store at 22 S. Main St. after using the space as a holiday pop-up shop. The store will also serve as new office headquarters housing club leadership, ticketing, sponsorship, marketing and community relations. Staff are planning a COVID-compliant grand opening later this winter. 

-Southernside Brewing now open:  https://upstatebusinessjournal.com/business-news/southernside-brewing-co-brings-craft-beer-southern-food-and-a-neighborhood-atmosphere-to-the-swamp-rabbit-trail/

 

I'm quite excited about these two! I'm glad the Triumph is opening this point of contact for the public. It should prove to be a great marketing initiative. 

[Cityplanner]

I Googled Brooks Brothers and see that originally the Gaffney outlet store was going to close and the Greenville store was to remain open.  (The Asheville store also closed.)

But then once Simon (which owns the Gaffney outlets) bought Brooks Brothers, the Gaffney outlet remained open and the Greenville store closed.

I'm thinking that Simon closed a decently-performing store (in Greenville) in order to keep a space filled at its Gaffney outlet.

Not cool.

[greenvilleguy]

I was in Gaffney the same weekend the Asheville store closed and oulet location was also closed and all merchandise and tables removed.  I looked in the window and the only thing remaining was the cashwrap in the center of the store.  

[Cityplanner]

38 minutes ago, greenvilleguy said:

I was in Gaffney the same weekend the Asheville store closed and oulet location was also closed and all merchandise and tables removed.  I looked in the window and the only thing remaining was the cashwrap in the center of the store.  

Interesting- so the Gaffney location closed, and then re-opened?

I guess if Simon views Brooks Brothers as simply a space-filler, but running a business with locations that aren't profitable enough to remain open on normal terms doesn't seem like a great move over the long run.  I looked at the Gaffney outlet mall map and it looks to be about 40% vacant. 

Maybe someone should build an outlet mall in Greenville County and put the Gaffney outlets out of their misery.

[vistatiger]

1 hour ago, Cityplanner said:

Interesting- so the Gaffney location closed, and then re-opened?

I guess if Simon views Brooks Brothers as simply a space-filler, but running a business with locations that aren't profitable enough to remain open on normal terms doesn't seem like a great move over the long run.  I looked at the Gaffney outlet mall map and it looks to be about 40% vacant. 

Maybe someone should build an outlet mall in Greenville County and put the Gaffney outlets out of their misery.

 

I believe the Asheville and Gaffney locations were on the closing list just before going into bankruptcy. Would have been under previous management. 

I look for BB to reopen at Haywood in the future.  Pottery Barn has survived all this time at both upstate Simon locations.

An employee of PB Outlet in Gaffney told us last year TJMaxx/Marshall's was going to fill much of the first section in front of them as an anchor. Not sure where  that stands now. 

 

Edited January 13, 2021 by vistatiger

[Cityplanner]

Thanks, good to know.

I wonder if downtown could court brick-and-mortar locations that online companies are starting to set up--e.g., an Amazon 4-Star store, a Warby Parker, a Bonobos, etc.  That would certainly differentiate it from Haywood.

I also wonder who's in charge of leasing in these spaces downtown, and who got these nice stores to come downtown in the first place.  Whoever that was did a good job the first time and hopefully can work those connections again.

[gvegascple]

3 hours ago, Cityplanner said:

Thanks, good to know.

I wonder if downtown could court brick-and-mortar locations that online companies are starting to set up--e.g., an Amazon 4-Star store, a Warby Parker, a Bonobos, etc.  That would certainly differentiate it from Haywood.

I also wonder who's in charge of leasing in these spaces downtown, and who got these nice stores to come downtown in the first place.  Whoever that was did a good job the first time and hopefully can work those connections again.

There isnt really a decent retail anchor downtown.  I used to hate the idea of a national chain store or stores taking some of the local flavor out of downtown but theres very little retail left at this point.  Maybe a national chain store or two as anchors might help reseed retail some.

Edited January 14, 2021 by gvegascple

[GvilleSC]

Southern Tide and Mast are two of my favorites to go into when I'm in town. Coast is good, though I tend to find less items to purchase there. I'd love to see a unique retailer of things (along the lines of the former Map Shop, which was really interesting). I second someone else's suggestion of a Warby Parker. 

[vistatiger]

Yes to Warby Parker. Been saying that since I visited  one in Lexington Ky. two years ago. Just noticed on their locations page they have a Charleston location now  first in state .My guess is they will end up at either Magnolia Park, The Point or Greenridge eventually. They are in a similar shopping complex in Lexington.

[Cityplanner]

Who's in charge of retail leasing downtown- presumably brokers for each building individually?  

Whoever it is, downtown has certainly landed some high-profile stores; Anthropologie and Lululemon and some others are certainly in-demand, and they likely require good demographics.

If downtown got those stores, it can certainly get other high-profile ones.

[gvegascple]

15 hours ago, GvilleSC said:

Southern Tide and Mast are two of my favorites to go into when I'm in town. Coast is good, though I tend to find less items to purchase there. I'd love to see a unique retailer of things (along the lines of the former Map Shop, which was really interesting). I second someone else's suggestion of a Warby Parker. 

I forgot about Mast and Southern Tide, good points.  Mast continues to draw people downtown.  I think we need a few more stores like that to help get retail back.  Kind of hard to check out multiple places downtown when most places are either a restaurant or bar (without getting hammered or putting on weight )

 

[greenvilleguy]

There are several good mainstream retailers that could be good for downtown without compromising its charm.  Warby Parker is definitely one.  Also, West Elm would be a good choice given the amount of available space in Camperdown.  Although they are part of the Williams-Sonoma family, they don't seem to be tied to Simon.  Their location at Ponce City Market comes to mind.  Chubbies would be another.  I don't know if they are currently expanding but the 15K sqft  available under the apartment building would be a great location for Urban Outfitters.  A Onward Reserve, which has a location in Clemson, would be awesome as well.  

https://www.chubbiesshorts.com/

https://onwardreserve.com/

[Cityplanner]

21 minutes ago, greenvilleguy said:

There are several good mainstream retailers that could be good for downtown without compromising its charm.  Warby Parker is definitely one.  Also, West Elm would be a good choice given the amount of available space in Camperdown.  Although they are part of the Williams-Sonoma family, they don't seem to be tied to Simon.  Their location at Ponce City Market comes to mind.  Chubbies would be another.  I don't know if they are currently expanding but the 15K sqft  available under the apartment building would be a great location for Urban Outfitters.  A Onward Reserve, which has a location in Clemson, would be awesome as well.  

https://www.chubbiesshorts.com/

https://onwardreserve.com/

Great suggestions.

I'd say that downtown Greenville has a pretty good amount of retail, and particularly for a city of this size, and the stores are all pretty nice, too. 

[GvilleSC]

3 hours ago, greenvilleguy said:

There are several good mainstream retailers that could be good for downtown without compromising its charm.  Warby Parker is definitely one.  Also, West Elm would be a good choice given the amount of available space in Camperdown.  Although they are part of the Williams-Sonoma family, they don't seem to be tied to Simon.  Their location at Ponce City Market comes to mind.  Chubbies would be another.  I don't know if they are currently expanding but the 15K sqft  available under the apartment building would be a great location for Urban Outfitters.  A Onward Reserve, which has a location in Clemson, would be awesome as well.  

https://www.chubbiesshorts.com/

https://onwardreserve.com/

Onward reserve would be a great addition -- especially if they can get a liquor license. I often shopped at the one in Georgetown (DC) prior to them shuttering during the pandemic. It was always nice to get a bourbon while you shopped, and encouraged the spending of money...