SouthPark Mall

[Rufus]

Still waiting for Psycho Bunny to open at SP, but they have recently been aggressively expanding in similar markets. 

Also noticed that Scotch & Soda will be opening up - per the SP website. 

[rancenc]

New additions to Southpark Mall!

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/whats-in-store/article254387274.html

[Temeteron]

2 hours ago, rancenc said:

New additions to Southpark Mall!

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/whats-in-store/article254387274.html

It’s crazy to me how behind the observer is on retail news. Other media companies announced this 2 months ago. And the scotch and soda and psycho bunny facades have been up for months also 

Edited September 21, 2021 by Temeteron

[nakers2]

Speculation: The Southpark Macy's is on it's way out. 

I went in there the other day to buy some socks and the condition of the store is sorely dated. There's a lot of little details, from outdated displays, faded signage, to bathrooms that look like they haven't been upgraded since the 90's, stained carpet, you name it. Not to mention the modly, in severe need of a pressure washing exterior. 

Does anyone have any inside knowledge or thoughts on this? It really seems like a Macy's at a mall like Southpark should be one it's nicest locations. 

[Rufus]

26 minutes ago, nakers2 said:

Speculation: The Southpark Macy's is on it's way out. 

I went in there the other day to buy some socks and the condition of the store is sorely dated. There's a lot of little details, from outdated displays, faded signage, to bathrooms that look like they haven't been upgraded since the 90's, stained carpet, you name it. Not to mention the modly, in severe need of a pressure washing exterior. 

Does anyone have any inside knowledge or thoughts on this? It really seems like a Macy's at a mall like Southpark should be one it's nicest locations. 

There were heavy rumors before the 2008 Recession that Bloomingdale's was looking at this location. Not sure how popular they would be considering Belks (SP location only) and Nordstrom can rival its offerings, but it could have some cache. 

[nakers2]

19 minutes ago, Rufus said:

There were heavy rumors before the 2008 Recession that Bloomingdale's was looking at this location. Not sure how popular they would be considering Belks (SP location only) and Nordstrom can rival its offerings, but it could have some cache. 

That side of the mall, generally speaking, does not speak “high end mall” to me. Something should change. No hate on Macy’s, but this should be a flagship store. Dillards at least is three floors.

[CLT2014]

1 hour ago, nakers2 said:

Speculation: The Southpark Macy's is on it's way out. 

I went in there the other day to buy some socks and the condition of the store is sorely dated. There's a lot of little details, from outdated displays, faded signage, to bathrooms that look like they haven't been upgraded since the 90's, stained carpet, you name it. Not to mention the modly, in severe need of a pressure washing exterior. 

Does anyone have any inside knowledge or thoughts on this? It really seems like a Macy's at a mall like Southpark should be one it's nicest locations. 

Macy's position in much of the Southeast has always struggled. They came to Charlotte by acquiring Hecht's, which was a level below the average Macy's and was a competitor to stores like Khol's. They slapped the Macy's name on former Hecht's stores.... but didn't do much else to try to introduce consumers to the brand. In markets like Charlotte, Macy's just never caught on for being premium to Belk or Dillards that understood Southern shoppers better.

Macy's has struggled with this all over the country... acquiring different brands and never really figuring out how to merge them in other than slapping their name on the old brand building. They also can have inconsistent / poor maintenance of their stores...

Here is the Lennox Square, Buckhead Atlanta store as an example. Filthy. 

 

Edited September 21, 2021 by CLT2014

[Temeteron]

7 hours ago, CLT2014 said:

Macy's position in much of the Southeast has always struggled. They came to Charlotte by acquiring Hecht's, which was a level below the average Macy's and was a competitor to stores like Khol's. They slapped the Macy's name on former Hecht's stores.... but didn't do much else to try to introduce consumers to the brand. In markets like Charlotte, Macy's just never caught on for being premium to Belk or Dillards that understood Southern shoppers better.

Macy's has struggled with this all over the country... acquiring different brands and never really figuring out how to merge them in other than slapping their name on the old brand building. They also can have inconsistent / poor maintenance of their stores...

Here is the Lennox Square, Buckhead Atlanta store as an example. Filthy. 

 

Filthy but at least the Lenox Macy*s has way more European brands and bigger selection in general than SP location.  The SP location doesn’t even compete with Belk.  Which makes no sense to me. 

[tozmervo]

13 hours ago, nakers2 said:

Speculation: The Southpark Macy's is on it's way out. 

I went in there the other day to buy some socks and the condition of the store is sorely dated. There's a lot of little details, from outdated displays, faded signage, to bathrooms that look like they haven't been upgraded since the 90's, stained carpet, you name it. Not to mention the modly, in severe need of a pressure washing exterior. 

Does anyone have any inside knowledge or thoughts on this? It really seems like a Macy's at a mall like Southpark should be one it's nicest locations. 

It's been that way for a while, though. Who knows.

The exterior in many places needs work. My boss thought Neimans had closed because the outside was so dirty.

[KJHburg]

Macys has ruined every chain of department stores they have bought from Burdines in Florida,  to Joske in Texas to Carson Pirie Scott in Chicago and yes even The Hecht Co of Washington DC which I used to love (along with Woodies aka Woodward and Lothrop)  Even store chain they rolled up they destroyed.   Macys is good in NYC and a few select other places but I never think about them around here as a go to store.    I do remember the talk of turning the Southpark Macys into a Bloomingdales.  I wonder if after Christmas they will be another store closing hit list. 

[Temeteron]

18 minutes ago, KJHburg said:

Macys has ruined every chain of department stores they have bought from Burdines in Florida,  to Joske in Texas to Carson Pirie Scott in Chicago and yes even The Hecht Co of Washington DC which I used to love (along with Woodies aka Woodward and Lothrop)  Even store chain they rolled up they destroyed.   Macys is good in NYC and a few select other places but I never think about them around here as a go to store.    I do remember the talk of turning the Southpark Macys into a Bloomingdales.  I wonder if after Christmas they will be another store closing hit list. 

I’d rather Northlake Macy’s close and I’d assume that one would close before SP.   it’s the only other Macy’s in the Charlotte area 

[Matthew.Brendan]

The only Macy's I identify with

[Cadi40]

Bloomingdales would do astronomically better than Macy’s as I have found they’re typically better at keeping up with fashion trends and marketing. 

[CLT2014]

I don't think our city fits the demographic profile Bloomingdale's looks for, especially given existing competition from Neiman and Nordstrom (only so many mass affluent to target in Charlotte). Currently, the tourist meccas of Orlando and Honolulu are the only locations in metro areas with less than 3 million people. The vast majority of their stores are concentrated in the mega metros.

Bloomingdales isn't in multiple top 20 metro areas with more people than us including Dallas, Houston, Phoenix, Seattle, Denver, Detroit, Minneapolis, et.

[Temeteron]

28 minutes ago, CLT2014 said:

I don't think our city fits the demographic profile Bloomingdale's looks for, especially given existing competition from Neiman and Nordstrom (only so many mass affluent to target in Charlotte). Currently, the tourist meccas of Orlando and Honolulu are the only locations in metro areas with less than 3 million people. The vast majority of their stores are concentrated in the mega metros.

Bloomingdales isn't in multiple top 20 metro areas with more people than us including Dallas, Houston, Phoenix, Seattle, Denver, Detroit, Minneapolis, et.

Dallas probably because Neiman is so strong there. But in general, Bloomingdale’s has a much smaller footprint than it’s competitors and I actually respect that.  Department stores in general need to offer more unique brands to stand out from its competitors IMO.  When I went to Vancouver, the Holt Renfrew dept store there was amazing.  They had so many Japanese brands and European brands I felt like I was in Tokyo or London.  I understand every market is different but for goodness sake, every department store in Charlotte carries Nike, Lacoste and Ralph Lauren.  Enough already. It’s tired as hell. 

[videtur quam contuor]

Those are leased departments (I think).

[TheOneRJ]

I think a full scale Bloomingdale’s is unlikely, but they did just open a new prototype store that I think would world well at the mall. Maybe on the current Dick’s site. 
 

https://www.bloomingdales.com/c/bloomies/

[LKN704]

Outside of the Northeast Corridor, and maybe their flagship locations in city centers, I am not really sure of the relevancy of Macys today. The chain suffers from the fact that there is a huge disparity across locations. You have a nice Macys in the Northeast that could potentially rival Nordstrom, then you have a sad looking Macys in the sticks somewhere that is essentially a Kohls. Belk has the same issue to some degree, although I wouldn't say theirs is that drastic as I don't think any Belk carries upmarket brands. But take a visit to the Belk in Mooresville off of I77...it's a depressing store. 

For example, the Macys at the mall where I grew up in Albany (Colonie Center) was extremely nice, and quite large. The location has three stories, with a dedicated story for furniture, housewares, and children's. It carries more up-market brands and has less emphasis on their in house brands.

The only mid-market department store I can think of that is nice is Boscovs. There's one still in Albany. IIRC it's family run, and it's still like the department stores I remember in the late 20th century. In addition to clothing and beauty products, they have a furniture department, a candy counter, a hairdresser, optical, photo studio, travel center, a toy department, etc. While they are relatively basic in terms of their fashion, they have great customer service and lots of amenities like a gift wrapping office. 

Frankly I don't like Bloomingdales. Granted I have only been to their locations in DC and the NY Metro area, but I have found their stores to be chaotic and a mess, and the way they merchandise their department floors just looks cheap to me compared to Nordstrom. They basically are like a Macys with more upscale products (which is essentially what they are). 

[Temeteron]

11 minutes ago, LKN704 said:

Outside of the Northeast Corridor, and maybe their flagship locations in city centers, I am not really sure of the relevancy of Macys today. The chain suffers from the fact that there is a huge disparity across locations. You have a nice Macys in the Northeast that could potentially rival Nordstrom, then you have a sad looking Macys in the sticks somewhere that is essentially a Kohls. Belk has the same issue to some degree, although I wouldn't say theirs is that drastic as I don't think any Belk carries upmarket brands. But take a visit to the Belk in Mooresville off of I77...it's a depressing store. 

For example, the Macys at the mall where I grew up in Albany (Colonie Center) was extremely nice, and quite large. The location has three stories, with a dedicated story for furniture, housewares, and children's. It carries more up-market brands and has less emphasis on their in house brands.

The only mid-market department store I can think of that is nice is Boscovs. There's one still in Albany. IIRC it's family run, and it's still like the department stores I remember in the late 20th century. In addition to clothing and beauty products, they have a furniture department, a candy counter, a hairdresser, optical, photo studio, travel center, a toy department, etc. While they are relatively basic in terms of their fashion, they have great customer service and lots of amenities like a gift wrapping office. 

Frankly I don't like Bloomingdales. Granted I have only been to their locations in DC and the NY Metro area, but I have found their stores to be chaotic and a mess, and the way they merchandise their department floors just looks cheap to me compared to Nordstrom. They basically are like a Macys with more upscale products (which is essentially what they are). 

The Atlanta Bloomingdale’s is quite nice. Compared to our Nordstrom here, it makes our Nordstrom look like crap.  

[LKN704]

35 minutes ago, Temeteron said:

The Atlanta Bloomingdale’s is quite nice. Compared to our Nordstrom here, it makes our Nordstrom look like crap.  

I guess it's location specific. 

The Bloomingdales I have been in look like a tornado ran through. Tacky giant red "SALE" signs hanging overhead and then these ugly metallic signs advertising for the store credit card at each individual clothing display rack. I've never seen a Nordstrom merchandise/advertise like that.

Edited September 27, 2021 by LKN704

[TheOneRJ]

I’m still waiting for Neiman Marcus to add it’s third floor. 

[KJHburg]

What do you think of Von Maur which has moved into the Atlanta market and seems to be doing good?   Here are there stores in the southeast.  An upper midwest chain I think from Iowa.  IF and a big IF Macys southpark would close I could see this store coming in. 

Alabama
Riverchase Galleria ~ 2400 Riverchase Galleria ~ Hoover, AL 35244
Georgia
North Point Mall ~ 4000 North Point Circle ~ Alpharetta, GA 30022
Perimeter Mall ~ 4400 Ashford-Dunwoody Road ~ Atlanta, GA 30346     (this is to me is the new nicest mall in the ATL metro)  Lenox Square and Phipps have lost their luster if you ask me. 
Mall of Georgia ~ 3333 Buford Drive ~ Buford, GA 30519

Von Maur Store Locator

Edited October 2, 2021 by KJHburg

[Rufus]

On 10/1/2021 at 9:00 PM, KJHburg said:

What do you think of Von Maur which has moved into the Atlanta market and seems to be doing good?   Here are there stores in the southeast.  An upper midwest chain I think from Iowa.  IF and a big IF Macys southpark would close I could see this store coming in. 

Alabama
Riverchase Galleria ~ 2400 Riverchase Galleria ~ Hoover, AL 35244
Georgia
North Point Mall ~ 4000 North Point Circle ~ Alpharetta, GA 30022
Perimeter Mall ~ 4400 Ashford-Dunwoody Road ~ Atlanta, GA 30346     (this is to me is the new nicest mall in the ATL metro)  Lenox Square and Phipps have lost their luster if you ask me. 
Mall of Georgia ~ 3333 Buford Drive ~ Buford, GA 30519

Von Maur Store Locator

IMO Von Maur is great, but is too similar to Belk. I do think there is a niche for what is called "attainable luxury," things that are generally higher priced but can be afforded by a larger population. Think Michael Kors and Kate Spade. In this vein, I could see Von Maur working out, but only if it matches or exceeds the quality of the SP Belks. Anything less is a loss IMO. 

[TheOneRJ]

On 10/1/2021 at 9:00 PM, KJHburg said:

What do you think of Von Maur which has moved into the Atlanta market and seems to be doing good?   Here are there stores in the southeast.  An upper midwest chain I think from Iowa.  IF and a big IF Macys southpark would close I could see this store coming in. 

Alabama
Riverchase Galleria ~ 2400 Riverchase Galleria ~ Hoover, AL 35244
Georgia
North Point Mall ~ 4000 North Point Circle ~ Alpharetta, GA 30022
Perimeter Mall ~ 4400 Ashford-Dunwoody Road ~ Atlanta, GA 30346     (this is to me is the new nicest mall in the ATL metro)  Lenox Square and Phipps have lost their luster if you ask me. 
Mall of Georgia ~ 3333 Buford Drive ~ Buford, GA 30519

Von Maur Store Locator

Von Maur is too similar to Nordstrom IMO. None of those malls have both as a tenant either, so I think it’s unlikely to see a store at SouthPark. It could be a better fit for Northlake or Carolina Place. 

[KJHburg]

2 hours ago, TheOneRJ said:

Von Maur is too similar to Nordstrom IMO. None of those malls have both as a tenant either, so I think it’s unlikely to see a store at SouthPark. It could be a better fit for Northlake or Carolina Place. 

Von Maur and Nordstrom are both at Perimeter Mall