SouthPark Mall

[LKN704]

I have fond memories of eating frozen yogurt with my grandmother when I was really young at the restaurant of their stand-alone Long Island store (I'm not sure where...Manhasset?). 

My mom really liked to shop there. When I moved to DC I visited a couple of their locations (they had several in the region up until a couple of years back) and it was fine. I honestly didn't think they had a different selection than say Macys personally. I was able to buy however some Chanel cologne for about $30 at their liquidation sale last January. 

The only higher-end department store I truly like is Nordstrom, and that is simply because of their customer service and relaxing atmosphere to shop it. I know that I can return something if I have a problem, even if I have worn the item. No other department store is like that. Bloomingdales carries nice things, but I find their stores to be chaotic, like a Macys on steroids. 

IIRC, SP was supposed to get a Lord and Taylor but they dropped out? Or am I thinking of Saks?

[turbocraig]

1 hour ago, LKN704 said:

I frequent Uniqlo very often. This past year I made it a goal of mine to really slim down my wardrobe and I think a good majority of my clothes are from there. If anyone is in need of a good winter coat, I would say look there. I bought a nice long down coat on sale there last year for $100 dollars and the quality/warmth/style are all fantastic.

I'm kinda confused as to what our peer cities are for retail. We didn't get a H&M until the early 2010s, however growing up in Albany we got one of the first H&M stores in the country in 2000 (I remember going there with my parents, and my mom buying maternity clothes there while pregnant) and at one point in 2001 they opened up a second store in Saratoga Springs that has since closed. I'm not sure when SP got an Apple Store, but Albany had one back in 2001 (one of the first stores, I remember they used to give out Evian water bottles while you shopped). 

Albany also has a Zara, and had a Lord & Taylor that just recently closed. 

My point is that the Capital District metro area (includes Albany and Saratoga) only has a population of just a hair over a million people. In Albany's case, I'm willing to bet its relative proximity to NYC helps as people are used to driving or taking the train down for shopping, so such chains are much more familiar. 

Uniqlo so far has stuck to major cities (NY/BOS/DC/CHI/LA/SF/MIA/PHL/DEN/SEA) but COS has expanded more. Atlanta and Austin both have COS. 

I noticed the SouthEnd Madewell now has a men's section...I like their jeans. 

I grew up about 30 mins west of Albany and remember when I went back up there for a visit and went to Crossgates and saw their H+M for the first time about 20 yrs ago.  I thought for sure we'd have had one long before they actually made it here.  Same for Zara when I saw it there a few years ago on another trip.  Their store is huge - a two level store as big as our H+M on both floors IIRC.  Not a knock against that region, but I'm surprised the demographics and really just the overall fashion sense of the folks in Upstate NY overall warrant them getting stores that we don't, or at least decades sooner.  Again, I'm no fashionista and not trying to start a flame war or anything of that nature.  And no superiority complex here - my extended family and lots of friends are still there - but if you're from there or have ever been to the area, you should understand what I'm saying.  This isn't a zero-sum game; I'm happy they have good shopping up there, it's just surprising to me that we seem to have this vacuous hole in the market in this city.  I probably sound like a d*ck in re-reading this, but I don't know how else to put it.  Just my honest thoughts having lived there.

[LKN704]

1 hour ago, turbocraig said:

I grew up about 30 mins west of Albany and remember when I went back up there for a visit and went to Crossgates and saw their H+M for the first time about 20 yrs ago.  I thought for sure we'd have had one long before they actually made it here.  Same for Zara when I saw it there a few years ago on another trip.  Their store is huge - a two level store as big as our H+M on both floors IIRC.  Not a knock against that region, but I'm surprised the demographics and really just the overall fashion sense of the folks in Upstate NY overall warrant them getting stores that we don't, or at least decades sooner.  Again, I'm no fashionista and not trying to start a flame war or anything of that nature.  And no superiority complex here - my extended family and lots of friends are still there - but if you're from there or have ever been to the area, you should understand what I'm saying.  This isn't a zero-sum game; I'm happy they have good shopping up there, it's just surprising to me that we seem to have this vacuous hole in the market in this city.  I probably sound like a d*ck in re-reading this, but I don't know how else to put it.  Just my honest thoughts having lived there.

No offense taken, and this is coming from someone who has contemplating moving back there several times (Even though I love being in cities and hate driving, but the proximity to the city and the mountains makes me consider it). I think you would be surprised at the demographics of the region as a whole. By 30 minutes west I am guessing Amsterdam? My dad's side of the family is actually from Amsterdam, and he was born there before they moved to Saratoga. Once you go past Schenectady, I really don't consider the cities/towns past to be part of the Capital District. I hate to off topic here in a thread about Charlotte retail but the Capital District is very much unlike the rest of Upstate IMO. The Capital District/Adirondacks have a different feel (at least to me) because of their ties to both NYC and their proximity to New England. Buffalo might as well be Chicago to someone in Albany. 

Keep in mind that the median income and education-level of the Capital District is higher than any other region of NY apart from the city. The median household income is actually higher in the Capital District than it is for the Charlotte region. Of course, the cost of living is slightly higher in New York State.

[Cityplanner]

5 hours ago, CLT2014 said:

Recipe for going out of business

True, and it was a self-inflicted wound.  Lord & Taylor was ALWAYS on sale, even though I would have paid more.

I hope that the brand is revived to have physical stores again.  I like Nordstrom, but the other high-end department stores just don't do it for me; I particularly dislike Neiman Marcus after being lectured about how my MasterCard wasn't good enough to be accepted there, 10+ years ago.

Edited January 13, 2021 by Cityplanner

[KJHburg]

2 hours ago, Cityplanner said:

True, and it was a self-inflicted wound.  Lord & Taylor was ALWAYS on sale, even though I would have paid more.

I hope that the brand is revived to have physical stores again.  I like Nordstrom, but the other high-end department stores just don't do it for me; I particularly dislike Neiman Marcus after being lectured about how my MasterCard wasn't good enough to be accepted there, 10+ years ago.

well I feel the opposite about Lord & Taylor and Neiman Marcus.  When I was making $5 an hour as a mail clerk in my college summers across the street from both a NM and a Lord & Taylor in DC Neiman gave me a credit card and Lord and Taylor turned me down.  Well I became their customer years later in terms of demographics and income but never shopped there again. Never. and yes I do still have my NM credit card to this day and use it once or twice a year to keep it open.   And since NM is my oldest account now it helps propel my credit score way up.  

In terms of stores and how somethings they make unusual decisions on store locations may come down to rent paid and deals they get.  For example Norfolk got a Nordstrom long before Charlotte  or Durham did mainly because the store was built for them and given to them on an attractive lease.  Well guess what that store is closed and both  stores in NC are still open.  Sometimes developers give anchor or destination stores a sweetheart deal to commit to their malls. 

[Cityplanner]

12 hours ago, KJHburg said:

well I feel the opposite about Lord & Taylor and Neiman Marcus.  When I was making $5 an hour as a mail clerk in my college summers across the street from both a NM and a Lord & Taylor in DC Neiman gave me a credit card and Lord and Taylor turned me down.  Well I became their customer years later in terms of demographics and income but never shopped there again. Never. and yes I do still have my NM credit card to this day and use it once or twice a year to keep it open.   And since NM is my oldest account now it helps propel my credit score way up.  

In terms of stores and how somethings they make unusual decisions on store locations may come down to rent paid and deals they get.  For example Norfolk got a Nordstrom long before Charlotte  or Durham did mainly because the store was built for them and given to them on an attractive lease.  Well guess what that store is closed and both  stores in NC are still open.  Sometimes developers give anchor or destination stores a sweetheart deal to commit to their malls. 

Great points.

Agreed.  And losing a downtown Nordstrom is much more painful than losing a Brooks Brothers or Hermes. 

[Temeteron]

Latest News and Juicy too:

The two spots next to Neiman Marcus (Trina Turk and Samsonite which both closed) are combining and YSL is coming! OMG! This is huge news for Charlotte retail!!! 

[nakers2]

On 1/8/2021 at 3:44 AM, TheOneRJ said:

The stores leading to NM do not seem to last. That is where Hermès, MontBlanc, Ralph Lauren, Tesla, Brooks Brothers, BCBG, Trina Turk, and Samsonite all were located (and all have since closed). 

I've noticed this too, I think because Burberry and Louis Vuitton's frontage flares outward, it obscures all but Niemen Marcus, so unless someone wants to go to NM, they're not even gonna see, let alone shop in these stores. I've only entered from the NM wing once. 

[TylerFerreroSorel]

4 hours ago, Temeteron said:

Latest News and Juicy too:

The two spots next to Neiman Marcus (Trina Turk and Samsonite which both closed) are combining and YSL is coming! OMG! This is huge news for Charlotte retail!!! 

Whoa, that is huge - thank you for sharing! Do you mind if I ask how you know? 

[Temeteron]

9 hours ago, TylerFerreroSorel said:

Whoa, that is huge - thank you for sharing! Do you mind if I ask how you know? 

I asked the people at Neiman and the people at Tory Burch and they both confirmed.  I know that’s not 100% confirmation but close enough :)

[TheOneRJ]

On 1/16/2021 at 4:42 PM, TylerFerreroSorel said:

Whoa, that is huge - thank you for sharing! Do you mind if I ask how you know? 

On 1/17/2021 at 1:58 AM, Temeteron said:

I asked the people at Neiman and the people at Tory Burch and they both confirmed.  I know that’s not 100% confirmation but close enough

Here’s some confirmation... the building permits. 
https://webpermit.mecklenburgcountync.gov/Default.aspx?PossePresentation=BuildingPermitpending&PosseObjectId=362910629

[Clemson16]

2 hours ago, TheOneRJ said:

Here’s some confirmation... the building permits. 
https://webpermit.mecklenburgcountync.gov/Default.aspx?PossePresentation=BuildingPermitpending&PosseObjectId=362910629

Was there yesterday- they had YSL painted on the temporary construction wall.

[TylerFerreroSorel]

How do you guys think Saint Laurent will do at Southpark?

[Temeteron]

Just now, TylerFerreroSorel said:

How do you guys think Saint Laurent will do at Southpark?

I think it’ll do very well.  It sells like crazy at Neiman Marcus, especially the shoes and the women’s clothing.  

[TheOneRJ]

42 minutes ago, TylerFerreroSorel said:

How do you guys think Saint Laurent will do at Southpark?

I’m actually quite shocked at this tenant choice to be honest. I’d like to think it’ll do well because it’s relatively difficult to find it anywhere in a large radius, but so was Hermès and we see how that turned out. 
 

I’m very pleased with Simon scoring some big fish for the mall, though. Hopefully the trend continues. 

[TylerFerreroSorel]

10 hours ago, TheOneRJ said:

I’m actually quite shocked at this tenant choice to be honest. I’d like to think it’ll do well because it’s relatively difficult to find it anywhere in a large radius, but so was Hermès and we see how that turned out. 
 

I’m very pleased with Simon scoring some big fish for the mall, though. Hopefully the trend continues. 

Same here... But I'm really hopeful for its success! Saint Laurent is also sold at Capitol (women's) and Tabor (men's), so as already stated, there is a market for it in Charlotte.

I would think a stand-alone Cartier would be at Southpark - certainly before Saint Laurent, anyway. The sales from the Love bracelets alone in Charlotte I would think would keep it in business. 

[Temeteron]

12 minutes ago, TylerFerreroSorel said:

Same here... But I'm really hopeful for its success! Saint Laurent is also sold at Capitol (women's) and Tabor (men's), so as already stated, there is a market for it in Charlotte.

I would think a stand-alone Cartier would be at Southpark - certainly before Saint Laurent, anyway. The sales from the Love bracelets alone in Charlotte I would think would keep it in business. 

There was a Cartier in Neiman when they first opened and it didn’t do too well, but then again that was over 10 years ago.  I feel like demographics have changed.  Usually these types of luxury brands start off in dept stores like Neiman, Nordstrom, Saks etc and build a. Following for a while before they open up their own stand alone boutiques.  This happened with Louis Vuitton almost 20 years ago when they were in Belk and then expanded after that.  Same with Gucci more recently.  I think YSL will do great

[TheOneRJ]

[Temeteron]

2 hours ago, TheOneRJ said:

For those of you who aren’t familiar, this is the top luxury variation of YSL.  My friend and I worked at Neiman back in the day and we call this one the “old lady YSL”. The younger version is just “YSL”   I’m hoping they will carry both

Edited January 25, 2021 by Temeteron

[urbanlover568]

Was a really great store for my sweet tooth 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/godiva-chocolate-closing-us-stores/

[SouthEndCLT811]

2 hours ago, urbanlover568 said:

Was a really great store for my sweet tooth 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/godiva-chocolate-closing-us-stores/

If only it were a public company, /r/wallstreetbets might have saved it lol

[urbanlover568]

1 hour ago, SouthEndCLT811 said:

If only it were a public company, /r/wallstreetbets might have saved it lol

I LIKE THE STONK! 

[rancenc]

I remember this iconic store from my teens and early twenties in the 1980's

[turbocraig]

3 hours ago, rancenc said:

I remember this iconic store from my teens and early twenties in the 1980's

One Hundred Percent.  Merry-Go-Round was another big taker of my parents’ money.  

[KJHburg]

This is more about Simon owner of Southpark, Concord Mills and half owner of the Charlotte Premium outlets.  They are giving back a slew of malls to their lenders including one possibly in Gaffney.   Southpark is one of their best performing and Concord Mills does great too.

'We Wish That New Owner The Best Of Luck': Simon Continues Handing Back Struggling Malls (bisnow.com)