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Founders Hall Renovations/Expansion


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Don't wish to start any buzz, but I recieved this from a friend who works as a PR/promotions director in Atlanta and does some work for H&M. Its a low res scan but it contains something interesting in it. He received it for a possible future press release, so lets hope something comes of it.

ritz-carlton.jpg

edit: My friend did some asking around, and found out that H&M is looking at Belgate, Concord Mills, and FoundersHall/Winter Garden for possible locations.

That would be something, wouldn't it. I know H&M is on a lot of Charlotteans' wish lists.

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edit: My friend did some asking around, and found out that H&M is looking at Belgate, Concord Mills, and FoundersHall/Winter Garden for possible locations.

Surely H&M could open more than one store in Charlotte- there is one every few blocks in midtown Manhattan.

What are the demographics of shoppers uptown? Disproportionately young-ish and upper-income?

I'd do a mall + uptown or the Midtown development since it seems as if uptown stores are jammed at lunchtime and at some points during the day while malls are busier in afternoons/evenings and weekends.

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If this is true, then this could be the catalyst to attracting further retail to the area and could serve as a capstone to the planned Brevard Retail District.

I think B&O is the true catalyst. And if you want to go back further Target and West Elm helped out too.

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To be honest, I don't think this is anything more than a business 'idea'. The market Uptown for high-end retail is just not there right now. Much like Revolution is now, this would be a clothing retail destination, which to me does not seem feasible A) in this area of downtown Charlotte, and B) in this economic climate. The vast majority of people that would be seen as clientele would go to Southpark and do one-stop shopping as opposed to seeking out a singular high end retailer in the middle of an urban business core. Again, I look to Revolution as a litmus test for shops like this, and there just isn't the market for this product in this locale.

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To be honest, I don't think this is anything more than a business 'idea'. The market Uptown for high-end retail is just not there right now. Much like Revolution is now, this would be a clothing retail destination, which to me does not seem feasible A) in this area of downtown Charlotte, and B) in this economic climate. The vast majority of people that would be seen as clientele would go to Southpark and do one-stop shopping as opposed to seeking out a singular high end retailer in the middle of an urban business core. Again, I look to Revolution as a litmus test for shops like this, and there just isn't the market for this product in this locale.

H&M isn't a high-end retail store. It's "trendy" but at the same time it's actually pretty cheap and affordable. H&M would be a destination store, which is what is needed in Uptown in order to kick-start more retail. It's a store that will bring people into the city to shop which will hopefully help places like Revolution and attract other stores (high end or not).

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I'd like to think that BoA and/or Ritz would be enough to entice H&M onto College. I mean, from Ritz perspective, I doubt they would have built a new hotel in uptown if it weren't for BoA facilitating it to be in their new building complex. Maybe the same could be same about H&M. I can say for sure that BoA is in the mindset to turn College into a destination street (leaving Tryon as "the address" street).

H&M would help Revolution a lot. Right now, a "trip" from your suburban home in Pineville to Uptown Charlotte for shopping is a waste of time... someone would need 3 or 4 stores to make it worth their while. It'll get there. Let's just hope that they aren't stores that you can find anywhere else (H&M is a great start, IKEA would be been ideal... but a sunglasses hut and AT&T store...? really???)

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I agree that Revolution isn't a great litmus test, and certainly will fail unless complimentary stores open as well (as will O1NE). They are too expensive and specilized to survive with the existing residential and worker base. You need cheaper options (such as H&M) to act as a draw to get a critical mass of shoppers. H&M would go a long way in "liegitimizing" the downtown retail scene and in theory would attract other retailers that had been considering opening downtown.

Other retailers that I think could follow are Banana Republic and Aldo (shoe store).

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BofA owns the uptown Ritz-Carlton- maybe a partial stake, but that's what got the Ritz uptown- a place to stay for BofA employees and others coming to town.

From a news article:

http://feuring.typepad.com/feuring/2009/07...-charlotte.html

The Charlotte bank will own the hotel, but Ritz will manage it. The bank has told regulators that it will use half of the rooms or more for employees, vendors and other bank-related guests.

When it was first announced, the hotel was to be called the "Ritz-Carlton, Charlotte at Bank of America Corporate Center," referring to the bank's headquarters across College Street. Now it's just being called the "Ritz-Carlton, Charlotte."

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  • 5 months later...

Just took a walk through the new section of Founders Hall. You can go all the way up on the escalators. I have to say, it looks like a nice building lobby, but there is way too much wasted space in there. Each floor has a massive expanse of NOTHING. To me, it seems like an extension of the Overstreet Mall and most of the retail spots are not even close to the street side of the building. Aria is set to open soon, this place will be pretty nice and at least they have an entrance on Trade St. Not sure where Bang & Olufsen is going, but I met a guy back in May that is supposedly going to be the manager. At that point, the store was a GO.

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Just took a walk through the new section of Founders Hall. You can go all the way up on the escalators. I have to say, it looks like a nice building lobby, but there is way too much wasted space in there. Each floor has a massive expanse of NOTHING. To me, it seems like an extension of the Overstreet Mall and most of the retail spots are not even close to the street side of the building.

I would have to agree. I was there the other day. They still had the "curtain" up preventing you from getting to the escalators, but you could easily get to a spot where you could peer around the curtain and there is tremendous wasted space. This isn't what I envisioned at all for this project. I'll hold final judgement until the new retail spaces open, but this really just looks like a large atrium with escalators replacing the old stairs. You still have to get upstairs to the same old Founder's Hall to get to any cluster of retail (and I've never found anything there of interest to me personally).

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Out of curiosity, is the overall appearance (with the marble floors) still similar, or is the whole thing gutted and redone?

I always thought that Founders Hall is Charlotte's most elegant-looking mall, but some of the stores just stink, basically (surely some upscale chains could go into it- wasn't there a Brooks Brothers there at some point)?

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Out of curiosity, is the overall appearance (with the marble floors) still similar, or is the whole thing gutted and redone?

I always thought that Founders Hall is Charlotte's most elegant-looking mall, but some of the stores just stink, basically (surely some upscale chains could go into it- wasn't there a Brooks Brothers there at some point)?

I remember a small Jos A Bank (not a standard size store), but not a Brooks Bros.

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Out of curiosity, is the overall appearance (with the marble floors) still similar, or is the whole thing gutted and redone?

I always thought that Founders Hall is Charlotte's most elegant-looking mall, but some of the stores just stink, basically (surely some upscale chains could go into it- wasn't there a Brooks Brothers there at some point)?

The new space facing College (formerly behind the curtain) is very different from the "old" Founders Hall. The "old" Founders Hall looks the same. The new portion has dark grey slate/marble tile. There is a lot of glass - not just the curtain, but the revolving doors and the frames are all glass. I think there's some more work that will take place before we see the final product. That's just a hunch though.

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while i do take issue with the lack of enough direct street-facing retail (i think there are 2 spaces on college and the Aria spot on trade), the strength of the new entrance/atrium is that its so transparent, so that even though the retail inside isn't street-facing, people will know its there and feel more welcome to enter. i can imagine this block looking much more alive at night when it is easier to see inside. i will be relatively happy if the founders hall businesses just make an effort to stay open on the weekends.

i also saw a small banner labeled "Taste" near the entrance. it seemed to me this is just a branding of the collection of inside-facing restaurants/cafes that will be there but i'm not sure.

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i also saw a small banner labeled "Taste" near the entrance. it seemed to me this is just a branding of the collection of inside-facing restaurants/cafes that will be there but i'm not sure.

Taste is actually going to be a Johnson and Wales University store/cafe. Here's a blurb that was in today's Charlotte Observer:

This collaboration between the Compass Group, Johnson & Wales and Bank of America, slated to open Feb. 1, features stations at which diners can get customized dishes and see J&W students working through part of their co-op experience. Expect lots of Asian flavors, flatbread sandwiches, seasonal soups, a salad station, baked goods, grab-and-go sandwiches and more, plus a coffee bar. Getting students even more prominently into Charlotte dining will be fun.
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I also love the J&W store/cafe. I honestly would love to see the city offer more incentives for them to have incubator restaurants throughout the city (though "incubator restaurants" as a title doesn't sound too appetizing huh.gif)

Back to Founder's Hall - I'm thrilled with the renovation's so far only because I knew no matter what they did - it was still meant to be Founder's Hall. That said I would like to see more College Street retail (particularly opposite the Ritz Carlton) and am going to withhold final judgement until it's completed as well as the new BoA building. I know it;s two different projects but the feel of the BoA from street level may/may not affect my feelings of the whole block regardless of one project.

On a related note - maybe we need a College Street Thread?

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On a related note - maybe we need a College Street Thread?

I think the final vote on whether College has "arrived" as an urban street will be the presence of street corner vendors. But it's certainly become a lot more interesting than it was six years ago.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I was hoping I'd have a different opinion but after seeing it in person I am amazingly underwhelmed. The whole block is a trip back to the 70's and 80's. How could they get the Hearst tower so right at street level and then do this?

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