SouthPark Mall

[juniper]

I'm surprised SouthPark doesn't have a Club Monaco yet.

[Temeteron]

I'm surprised SouthPark doesn't have a Club Monaco yet.

I know right!

[StevenRocks]

Club Monaco hasn't expanded in years.

[nyxmike]

Looks like SouthPark updated their website. These were already mentioned by someone on here, but it is official now: BagNBaggage, Design Within Reach, M5 Restaurant, and Olsen Europe are listed as coming soon.

[Rufus]

So if Olsen is taking the former Crane Co. spot, then that leaves the others to the Village at Southpark. I wonder how many retailers the village will be able to hold and what retailers are coming. Isnt true that a lot of high-end, name brand stores have Charlotte on their radars? Who knows, maybe they are waiting to actually be inside of the mall or if they are jst watching the market.

[Temeteron]

So if Olsen is taking the former Crane Co. spot, then that leaves the others to the Village at Southpark. I wonder how many retailers the village will be able to hold and what retailers are coming. Isnt true that a lot of high-end, name brand stores have Charlotte on their radars? Who knows, maybe they are waiting to actually be inside of the mall or if they are jst watching the market.

There's actually one more empty spot in the main hallway where Oakley used to be......not sure what that will be.....oh actually the spot where Elisabeth was is another empty one also......so there is 2 spots in the mall......but if you think about it most of the store in SP are either new, fairly new, or just remodeled, so im not sure who else would leave.....

[mljones99]

According to the mall newsletter, White House Black Market is moving to Oakley's old location.

[StevenRocks]

Got a chance to do some SouthPark exploring today.

-- Billy Reid is a very cool store. Whether that translates into longevity in anyone's guess, but it's got the right look and feel for the type of merchandise it sells. However, you can mark me down as "ignored by the salespeople." LOL

-- Didn't get to go into Hermes, but it's an impressive looking boutique.

-- Dillard's now has its showcases filled on the Morrison side. It's a neat looking store for a Dillard's, though I still hate the brown mansard roof.

-- I'm not sure what'll take the White House {sodEmoji.|} Black Market space, but with neighbors like Mont Blanc and Christian Bernard, I'm sure it'll be very exclusive.

[juniper]

I worked at Dillards right before the renovations started so upon moving back to Charlotte this month I was eager to see how it's changed. I had a lot of former coworkers telling me that I had to check it out, it was so beautiful, et cetera, but to me they haven't done enough to change the Dillards template. It's nicer for sure but it still has that claustrophic, 70s look. I have been to enough of their stores (Atlanta and Nashville have the same look) to know how pervasive this is but I think they could have really done a lot more. Dillards likes to talk a lot about how they are fashion leaders but it never seems to be the case walking into their stores.

I really like Billy Reid. I talked to Jeremy, the director of stores, while I was there. The clothing is really nice, sort of a combination between Paul Smith and John Varvatos, and the prices aren't that bad. I haven't purchased anything yet but I will soon.

Of the half a dozen times or so I've been to the mall this month Hermes has only been open once. I've yet to go in.

I had an interview yesterday at Neiman Marcus. Hopefully I'll hear good news from them soon.

[Temeteron]

I worked at Dillards right before the renovations started so upon moving back to Charlotte this month I was eager to see how it's changed. I had a lot of former coworkers telling me that I had to check it out, it was so beautiful, et cetera, but to me they haven't done enough to change the Dillards template. It's nicer for sure but it still has that claustrophic, 70s look. I have been to enough of their stores (Atlanta and Nashville have the same look) to know how pervasive this is but I think they could have really done a lot more. Dillards likes to talk a lot about how they are fashion leaders but it never seems to be the case walking into their stores.

I really like Billy Reid. I talked to Jeremy, the director of stores, while I was there. The clothing is really nice, sort of a combination between Paul Smith and John Varvatos, and the prices aren't that bad. I haven't purchased anything yet but I will soon.

Of the half a dozen times or so I've been to the mall this month Hermes has only been open once. I've yet to go in.

I had an interview yesterday at Neiman Marcus. Hopefully I'll hear good news from them soon.

I know! Whats up with Hermes never being open??? And I thought Neiman clsoed early! Hermes just seems to take vacations! lol

[StevenRocks]

I worked at Dillards right before the renovations started so upon moving back to Charlotte this month I was eager to see how it's changed. I had a lot of former coworkers telling me that I had to check it out, it was so beautiful, et cetera, but to me they haven't done enough to change the Dillards template. It's nicer for sure but it still has that claustrophic, 70s look. I have been to enough of their stores (Atlanta and Nashville have the same look) to know how pervasive this is but I think they could have really done a lot more. Dillards likes to talk a lot about how they are fashion leaders but it never seems to be the case walking into their stores.

I think Dillard's SouthPark is a lot lighter and airier than it used to be inside, while the outside is a little heavy-handed architecturally. I can't say i care a lot for the new interior or exterior, but it's now a classic Dillard's instead of a converted Ivey's and I think that's what they were going for.

Fashion leader? Dillard's is a very conservative fashion store, and from what I know of the chain through about 15 years of exposure, that's what works for them. They've never been edgy like Neiman Marcus, Saks or (occasionally) Nordstrom, but that's not what keeps mammoth stores like Dillard's SouthPark in business. They succeed because they appeal to a large number of upper-middle market suburbanites. I can't hate on them for that.

Whats up with Hermes never being open??? And I thought Neiman clsoed early! Hermes just seems to take vacations! lol

Hermes closes at something like 6 or 7 daily. Boutiques like like that have limited clientele and hours, and it's not as popular as, say, Burberry or Louis Vuitton in the mass market.

Neiman Marcus SouthPark only closes early on Saturdays. The rest of the week, it's on mall hours generally. When I went on a Monday night, the service was noticably better than on a weekend.

[ScottCLT]

Fashion leader? Dillard's is a very conservative fashion store, and from what I know of the chain through about 15 years of exposure, that's what works for them. They've never been edgy like Neiman Marcus, Saks or (occasionally) Nordstrom, but that's not what keeps mammoth stores like Dillard's SouthPark in business. They succeed because they appeal to a large number of upper-middle market suburbanites. I can't hate on them for that.

They try to portray the "Fashion leader" thing in men's magazines like GQ or Detail, with 6-page ads featuring guys dressed in Daniel Cremieux jean jackets. They aren't succeeding, though...the ads are often laughable.

[StevenRocks]

They try to portray the "Fashion leader" thing in men's magazines like GQ or Detail, with 6-page ads featuring guys dressed in Daniel Cremieux jean jackets. They aren't succeeding, though...the ads are often laughable.

That's just advertising. They have stores stretching form coast to coast, so it makers sense to leverege their brand in fashion magazine advertising, especally since they have a US exclusive in the Daniel Cremieux line. Wal-Mart and Kohl's advertise in Vogue, so it could be worse

[mallguy]

I like Dillard's. The store has a consistently pretty good and pretty well-priced suit selection. Not as good as Nordstrom or Parisian or Lord & Taylor, but it's a decent place to shop. With same-store sales declining significantly lately, the chain needs to follow the thriving department stores and have more designer collections, though.

[juniper]

I said they see themselves as fashion leaders because in some of their financial reports they label themselves as such. It's certainly true that they are very conservative, but that's not at all how they view themselves. i think overall management is pretty ignorant of their struggles. It is certainly like this at SouthPark where the majority of employees see their wages declining every few months from lack of sales while management blames them for not "talking to people in the food court and bringing them back to the store." I know before the renovation they were not even breaking even, and there doesn't seem to be anyone shopping when I've gone in recently. I half-expected Simon to force them out of the mall but I imagine their relationship is pretty solid as Dillards is pretty omnipresent.

[Temeteron]

Dillard's Schmillard's go to any other mall for that.....I rather see Bloomie's take over that spot!

[mallguy]

I said they see themselves as fashion leaders because in some of their financial reports they label themselves as such. It's certainly true that they are very conservative, but that's not at all how they view themselves. i think overall management is pretty ignorant of their struggles. It is certainly like this at SouthPark where the majority of employees see their wages declining every few months from lack of sales while management blames them for not "talking to people in the food court and bringing them back to the store." I know before the renovation they were not even breaking even, and there doesn't seem to be anyone shopping when I've gone in recently. I half-expected Simon to force them out of the mall but I imagine their relationship is pretty solid as Dillards is pretty omnipresent.

Interesting- I'd be surprised to see a regular anchor in a mall like SouthPark close (Sears was a different story), but if the store isn't making money, maybe all Dillard's stores in Charlotte would exit; the Northlake one is dead, the Eastland one is on its way out and that leaves Carolina Place. I'd think that the current woes of Dillard's, with same-store sales declining, are fixable with a better merchandise mix. The chain has good locations in good malls (generally).

I wish Federated would upgrade that Macy's to a Bloomingdale's! I will not set foot in a Macy's after too many bad experiences on 34th Street in Manhattan.

Edited February 22, 2007 by mallguy

[StevenRocks]

To be sure, the term "fashion leader'" could be construed as a chain that moves a lot of designer apparel, which Dillard's does. Additionally, from a lot of people's perspectives, Dillard's is an upmarket retailer.

Dillard's is making money at SouthPark. They wouldn't have gone through the effort to expand and renovate a marginally profitable store. And they're not closing anytime soon.

Even if Eastland and Northlake were taken out of commission, the new Mint Hill/Stallings store, Eastridge, Carolina Place and SouthPark would still be enough reason for Dillard's to be in Charlotte. It's still a popular store.

The big thing with Dillard's SouthPark is that they're overshadowed by a exemplary slate of co-anchors, with only Macy's looking a little shabby by comparasin. They're above average on their selection, and while the service isn't exceptional, it's more than acceptable.

I'm not pining for a Bloomingdale's at SouthPark. It'll be like Macy's is: a poor imitation of the New York original.

[juniper]

Dillard's will continue at SouthPark if only because they have the top salesperson for all Dillard's. Dillard's definitely has a lot of money as a company, enough money that they can afford to renovate underperforming, marginally profitable (if even that) stores in a vastly overperforming mall as in SouthPark's case. Unfortunately they have not, as yet, updated their selection (save for bringing in that three truths line). They have a Polo department that doesn't even carry cashmere sweaters in a mall where another anchor's Polo department does close to $2 million.

Dillard's, in a way to combat their poor sales recently, has focussed more on private labels and such. They are much less interested in moving designer apparel because there is more profit to be had in the private labels. These labels for the most part do not bring in the customer, certainly not the high-end customer. Just because some people see Dillard's as an upmarket retailer doesn't mean it is.

Because of the way Dillard's buys, customers are trained to know that they can wait for almost any item to go to at least 50% (sometimes 75%) before purchasing.

Edited February 22, 2007 by juniper

[juniper]

The thing about Macy's is that their stores are not consistent countrywide. Sure, places like Saks and NM have different tiers which are governed by a city's demographics, but their goals are much different than Macy's (or Belk for that matter). Macy's West stores are much different than those on the east coast. Certainly a Bloomingdale's in Charlotte will be different from the one in New York -- or the one in Atlanta even -- but it is still seen as Federated's upscale store, whereas Macy's is a behemoth that they will throw done anywhere.

[StevenRocks]

I don't think Dillard's goal is to be Neiman Marcus or even Macy's for that matter. No 300-store chain with locations in diverse markets can afford to be edgy or particurally posh fashion-wise, because the vast majority of consumers, even those that shop SouthPark regularly, aren't enough buying luxury fashion items at full-price to keep the balance sheets positive on a store that size.

At SouthPark they're in a good market position, with exclusives in their Dior and Guerlain cosmetics counters, and their shoes, misses sportswear, status handbags, and men's clothing departments are more than competitive.

There are a lot of designer labels that won't sell to Dillard's because of vendor agreements with the other mall anchors. Belk, for example, will always get the new Estee Lauder brands becaue they're the top Lauder seller in the region. NM will always get the rarest brands like Jo Malone and Cartier. Nordstrom produces a lot of their exclusives in-house, as does Macy's. Additionally, Belk, NM and Nordstrom get a lot of boutique brands that don't typically sell to department stores, becaue they have small buying tems that focus on getting the rarer accounts.

All things considered, Dillard's SouthPark isn't that bad, I think.

Edited February 24, 2007 by StevenRocks

[kickazzz2000]

Has Juicy Couture opened yet? The store is still not listed on the company's website. Hermes has updated theirs.

[nyxmike]

Has Juicy Couture opened yet? The store is still not listed on the company's website. Hermes has updated theirs.

It will open in May according to the mall website.

[atlrvr]

I had a much more positive experience at Billy Reid a couple of weeks ago. This time Billy Reid was there himself and he was very personable. The sales girl there with him was also very friendly. I wasn't planning on buying anything, but after talking to Billy for a while I ended up buying a pair of boots, and while they were pricey, they are amazing in style and fit. Funny how a little bit of customer service turns into a sale.

On a different note, it appera that Soma ( a division of Chico's) will be opening in the mall. Also, I think a Wine Bar will be opening as well. The other retailers have love that...getting the SouthPark house wives tipsy before strolling into their store is a recipe for success.

[Temeteron]

The Picture People located close to the food court has closed!