Chicago Retail and Restaurant Thread

[pottebaum]

This article says they're planning both a Whole Foods and a Treasure Island in the Carson's building:

http://nwitimes.com/articles/2007/02...89008030b1.txt

^fifth line from the bottom.

[edsg25]

obviously a screw up since if two markets went into that location,it would kill them both. and, or course, TI is headed for Lakeshore East with no intention of moving in someplace less than a mile away.

[Loopy]

..

[pottebaum]

Does the landmark status of this building include some of the interior fixtures, like the pillars, etc? That going to be one classy Target.

[headcase]

Originally Posted by pottebaum

Does the landmark status of this building include some of the interior fixtures, like the pillars, etc? That going to be one classy Target.

I believe it does.

SSDD

[Urbanight]

Hi, i'm new to the threads. I'm really into retail development.

Anyone see the new Belmont Armory on Belmont near Clark? That is going to be a really cool building, its curved and covered with stainless steal. I'm sorta new to the city and never been to the other Belmont Armory -what are the clothes like?
Also on Halsted in LP, True Religion Jeans are coming - that is pretty major, and another place I just saw the other day is coming. I'm not sure of the name -its like Auo or something. Anyone know what i'm talking about?

[danthediscoman]

Originally Posted by LA1

Examples being the Carson Prarie Scott store, Best Buy rumored to go to Chicago place, etc or new restaurants going to the growing restaurant row on Wabash south of Roosevelt.

Compusa is closing on Chicago&Rush...maybe that's why we haven't heard anything about Best Buy, are they looking to take its place? Or maybe we haven't heard anything because they realized if Compusa can't stay open how will they

[paytonc]

Originally Posted by The Urban Politician

I've heard, by the way, that the garage in Whole Foods in River North sits nearly empty all day.

A friend of mine was once on the management team for the Huron & North WFM locations; he estimated that 80% of customers arrived on foot, and installed bike racks in some unused basement parking. The bike racks were still there last I checked; the parking lot (about 40 cars?) was about half full on a Saturday when the store was very busy.

That said, chains like Safeway (Dominick's) make it a rule to have "teaser" parking and a loading apron out front -- even if it's just for 10 cars. Some study apparely showed that this improves the perception of parking availability. Safeway has some CBD-adjacent stores (Skybridge, Lower Que Anne, SW Portland) but none of the "urban food halls" that WFM has been building. In fact, I don't remember seeing any parking at the last few new WFMs I've been to: Columbus Circle, Portland, Alexandria (or at Vancouver and Seattle locations under construction). Judging by the number of express lanes and ratio of prepared foods to grocery (all those things in the long aisles in the middle), people at these shops aren't really buying lots of groceries anyways.

Oh, and man -- has anyone *been* to Chicago Place lately? That place is completely dead. The food court needs renovation, anyways; I'd move it into the empty basement and lease out floors 3-8 as a single department store. We know that Carson's and Von Maur want in, but does Saks' lease prevent that?

[Chi_Coruscant]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/busine...i-bizfront-hed

Mag Mile losing last bit of local character
As independent stores exit, is famous shopping district just a long mall?

By Sandra Jones
Tribune staff reporter

March 17, 2007

There was a time when you could stroll down any of the world's biggest retail boulevards and know exactly what city you were in just by the names of the merchants.

On Chicago's Magnificent Mile that meant hand-picked books at Stuart Brent, designer dresses at Stanley Korshak, tailored suits at Bigsby & Kruthers or Frango mints at Marshall Field's.

No longer. Global and national retailers such as Nike, Apple, Louis Vuitton and Macy's have taken over, more interested in building their brands than building local character.

The latest casualty is also the last local independent name on the street: Hanig's Footwear, an upscale shoe store that has been operating in the heart of the Mag Mile since 1978 and caters to locals and celebrities, including actress Kathy Bates and U.S. Sen. Barack Obama.

After much wrangling with preservationists fighting to save the landmark Farwell Building that houses Hanig's, the city cleared the way earlier this month for Chicago-based Prism Development Co. to build a luxury condos on the site. Hanig will lose its lease and move out, most likely by this summer.

Once Hanig is gone there will be no more local shopkeepers on the street, according to the Greater North Michigan Avenue Association.

"Michigan Avenue has reached the point that Fifth Avenue reached years ago," said Paul Vogel, principal at Chicago-based Realty Development Research and a customer who buys his Mephistos at Hanig's. "The advertising value of having a store there is beyond the retail value. You can't justify the location based on retail sales because the rent is so high, so you look at it as an advertising expense."

The malling of Mag Mile began more than a decade ago, led by Gap, the Limited and Filene's Basement.

While Hanig's departure marks the end of an era, a backlash has begun in some major cities, where residents protest the conversion of treasured shopping districts into billboards for retail brands.

Late last year, the Paris city government banned Sweden's fast-fashion discount chain H&M from opening a flagship store on the Champs-Elysees, an attempt to stop what the French describe as the "banalization" of the fashionable boulevard, already populated with Gap, Disney and other ubiquitous stores.

Bostonians, led by Mayor Thomas Menino, have been waging a year-long battle to keep local merchants from being squeezed out of Faneuil Hall Marketplace.

Nicolas de Benoist, an industrial designer from Paris, was strolling North Michigan Avenue on Friday and noticed many familiar stores. In his opinion, the stores are entertainment, an experience designed to make shoppers notice the brand.

"The Champs-Elysees has the same kind of stores," said de Benoist. "We have all the same brands. You should look at these stores as 3-D advertising. It's all about the experience."

Peter Hanig, owner of Hanig's Footwear, is a preservationist who lives in an Arts and Crafts house, works in the store every day and brought the popular "Cows on Parade" exhibit to Chicago. Ever since the Terra Foundation for American Art, owner of the Farwell Building, signed a preliminary agreement last year to sell the property to Prism, Hanig has been searching for another Mag Mile location with no luck.

Street-level space on North Michigan is rare and expensive. Even big-name retailers wait years for a space to open up.

An estimated 30,000 to 40,000 people walk some portion of the mile-long stretch of stores between the Chicago River and Oak Street on a busy Saturday, according to the Greater North Michigan Avenue Association. About two-thirds of them are tourists spending an average $452 each during their visit. All told, retailers on the avenue, including the malls, generate just under $2 billion a year in sales, according to the group.

Rising demand sparked a 25 percent spike in rent on the street to $325 for the year ended June 2006, one of the biggest percentage increases among the world's mature shopping boulevards, according to the most recent annual report from Cushman & Wakefield.

Hanig said he pays $265 a square foot for his 3,000-square-foot Mag Mile store. Spending more would hurt profits, but it's something he would consider, if he could only find a space. He wants to avoid a mall because the thinks there is less foot traffic.

The Terra Foundation, his current landlord, has offered Hanig retail space in the new building, said Donald Ratner, Terra's chief financial officer.

But Hanig said he can't afford to go without a store for the estimated two years it will take to build the condos. "I've seen so many people go out of business by making excessively optimistic predictions, so I'm taking my chances to find another place."

Hanig is considering moving off of Michigan Avenue, to Bucktown or possibly the suburbs. He already operates shoe stores in Lincoln Park, Lakeview, Evanston and Wilmette.

"It's a shame," said Sally Becker, a neighborhood resident who led the high-profile and unsuccessful attempt to prevent Victoria's Secret from opening on the street. "Now it's all the same stuff you see if you go from city to city. It's like the sameness the malls have become."

Garrett Popcorn, a longstanding fixture on the street that will be forced out when demolition begins on the Farwell Building, is also looking for a new location, said Scott Schroeder, CFO of CaramelCrisp LLC, a private investment group that bought the Chicago popcorn icon from the third-generation Garrett family in 2005. Garrett opened a store in New York last year and is looking to expand nationally.

Out on Michigan Avenue, many shoppers think there is still excitement to soak up.

A group of college students from Grand Rapids, Mich., came to Chicago for the first time and spent Friday afternoon shopping at H&M and Nordstrom, although both retailers have stores in Michigan.

"It's definitely more the experience than the store," Danielle Cannon said.

----------

smjones@tribune.com

On North Michigan Avenue, demand for storefront space is driving up rental prices and raising questions about how smaller, independent stores can survive on the Magnificent Mile.



RENTAL GROWTH

Increase in rent for top American shopping locations

# SHOPPING LOCATION, CITY, ANNUAL GROWTH IN ASKING RENT PRICES

1. Michigan Ave., Chicago, 25.0%

2. Rodeo Drive, Los Angeles, 16.7%

3. Union Square, San Francisco, 15.4%

4. Madison Avenue, New York, 10.0%

5. Post Street, San Francisco, 9.1%

6. Iguatemi Shopping, Sao Paulo, 9.1%

7. E. 57th Street, New York, 6.7%

8. Robson Street, Vancouver, 5.0%

9. Bloor Street, Toronto, 5.0%

10. 5th Avenue, New York, 3.8%



TOP SHOPPING LOCATIONS WORLDWIDE

Based on rent paid by retailers

SHOPPING LOCATION, CITY, 2006 RENT (ASKING PRICE PER SQUARE FOOT)

THE AMERICAS

5th Avenue, New York City $1,350

Madison Ave., New York City $1,100

E. 57th St., New York City $800

Union Square, San Francisco $375

Rodeo Drive, Los Angeles $350

Michigan Avenue, Chicago $325



EUROPE

Champs-Elysees, Paris $805

New Bond Street, London $673

Oxford Street, London $583

Grafton Street, Dublin $534

Covent Garden, London $505



ASIA/PACIFIC/AUSTRALIA

Causeway Bay, Hong Kong $1,134

Ginza, Tokyo $652

Omotesando, Tokyo $478

Pitt Street Mall, Sydney $391

Myeongdong, Seoul $376

Source: Cushman & Wakefield

Chicago Tribune
Copyright © 2007, Chicago Tribune

[ThirdCoast312]

some good news about independent chicago retail to balance the bad news above .......

http://www.timeout.com/chicago/Detai...cord_store.xml

The return of your local record store

Wasn’t downloading supposed to kill mom-and-pop record shops? It looks like no one told the folks who are running (and opening) stores across the city.

By Matthew Lurie Photographs by Erica Gannett

When Tower Records closed its two locations last November, it seemed like a neat conclusion to the iPod-will-kill-the-brick-and-mortar-record-store narrative. After all, it’s easy to get an endless supply of music without leaving your home: You can download illegally through file-sharing sites like Kazaa, legally through iTunes or eMusic, or get a limitless selection of CDs delivered to your door from Amazon.com.



Permanent Records

And yet independent stores Permanent Records (1914 W Chicago Ave) and Kstarke Records (1109 N Western Ave) opened in Ukrainian Village and Humboldt Park last year, and Reckless Records is opening its third spot the last weekend of this month in the Loop (26 E Madison St). Other standbys include Record Dugout (6055 W 63rd St) and Beverly Records (11612 S Western Ave). “The same people who say, ‘Aren’t you worried about downloading?’ are usually buying ten CDs,” says Liz Tooley, owner of
Permanent Records.


Kstarke Records

The main reason these stores are thriving? They’re not trying to please everyone. “The more you specialize, the better off you’re going to be,” says Tooley, who moved here from Columbia, Missouri, last year to open Permanent with her boyfriend. “If you carry a lot of the albums people are downloading like crazy [such as Top 40 pop], you’re not going to be able to sell them a year from now, let alone today.” Kstarke, for example, specializes in rare psychedelic rock, early dance music and kitschy old stuff—the store recently sold a 12-inch promo of Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust” (on clear vinyl, no less) for $160.


Reckless Records

Within this niche, vinyl has become to record stores what porn is to indie video stores: a staple that the chains won’t touch. Kevin Starke, 36, opened his nearly all-vinyl namesake store last year. “There’s still plenty of people who love the feel of vinyl, the artwork,” Starke says. “I’m shocked to see it but young kids come in here wanting old soul 45s. You’re 17 and you want a rare soul 45? Well, I got plenty of ’em.”

Planet of Sound

At the same time, the idea of a record store as simply a place to buy music has become as passé as a first-generation iPod. “We do in-stores every week, we’re doing movie nights in March, we want to do art installations…. We want to make people feel like they’re in this together,” Tooley says. And pop-culture bric-a-brac has gone from an afterthought to a vital part of stores’ business plans. “We go out looking for records and CDs but we often find other stuff, like board games,” says Sam Ross, an employee at Laurie’s Planet of Sound (4639 N Lincoln Ave). “We have Pac-Man and Alf stuffed animals, a Johnny Cash action figure, a little Social Distortion skeleton guy and we were carrying KISS Monopoly for a while.”

Beverly Records

Ironically, the same Internet that seemed to spell doom for record stores has actually helped them. “I get 90 percent of my [online] business from overseas on eBay,” Starke says. “People from Japan, the U.K., Germany, the Netherlands spend crazy amounts of money on records.” And at Permanent, some trade-ins get sold on Amazon. “Everybody bought the Ace of Base album,” Tooley says, “But what are you gonna do with it?” Permanent sells more mainstream trade-ins online or donates your records (with your consent), reserving store space for records the owners like.



Record Dugout

The brain trust at Reckless is convinced the renaissance of downtown as a de facto college town will help it survive, too. “It used to be a ghost town in the Loop,” remembers Bryan Smith, 37, general manager for all of the Reckless outlets in Chicago (3161 N Broadway, 1532 N Milwaukee Ave). “Now there’s a huge student population, as well as people who don’t necessarily make it out to our other stores.” The new Reckless will stock a broad range of genres, rather than predicting what this mix of kids and tourists will want. “We’re interested in adapting to what will serve the Loop best,” he says.

But perhaps the biggest reason so many of these smaller stores are thriving is that, unlike Tower, “we’re not in this to get rich,” Tooley says. “As long as we can keep the doors open and pay the rent, we’re happy to do it.” For Smith, it takes a certain breed to run a record store: “We really are kind of oddballs in the world of business. I’m sure digital downloading has affected our business, but I’m not too panicked. Part of that is because I like records beyond just hearing the songs. I like the bands, I like seeing the bands, I like playing in bands, holding the records, reading the lyrics. And I don’t think digital music has caught up with that.”

[paytonc]

Carson's investigating Roosevelt Collection and Riverside Park (oh, and Gurnee Mills):

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=24268

[Belacqua]

Originally Posted by ThirdCoast312

some good news about independent chicago retail to balance the bad news above .......

http://www.timeout.com/chicago/Detai...cord_store.xml

And yet independent stores Permanent Records (1914 W Chicago Ave) and Kstarke Records (1109 N Western Ave) opened in Ukrainian Village and Humboldt Park last year, and Reckless Records is opening its third spot the last weekend of this month in the Loop (26 E Madison St). <snip>

The brain trust at Reckless is convinced the renaissance of downtown as a de facto college town will help it survive, too. “It used to be a ghost town in the Loop,” remembers Bryan Smith, 37, general manager for all of the Reckless outlets in Chicago (3161 N Broadway, 1532 N Milwaukee Ave). “Now there’s a huge student population, as well as people who don’t necessarily make it out to our other stores.” The new Reckless will stock a broad range of genres, rather than predicting what this mix of kids and tourists will want. “We’re interested in adapting to what will serve the Loop best,” he says.

Wow, for me Reckless Records is a much greater sign of real vitality in the Loop and downtown than 1000 stories about high-rise densification and the accompanying benefits (although of course they're related). A good record store was the last thing really missing, I thought.

[Belacqua]

Originally Posted by paytonc

Carson's investigating Roosevelt Collection and Riverside Park (oh, and Gurnee Mills):

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=24268

From that article: "Real estate brokers who have talked to Carson's, however, say the company believes it can squeeze into Roosevelt Collection by designing a multilevel space. Failing that, it could consider an empty parcel across Roosevelt Road, the brokers say."

Either this is utter baseless speculation, or this could be real news. I thought Riverside Park (or whatever they now call that plot south of Roosevelt) was completely out of play post-Rezmar. Is somebody actively talking about developing it again? Last I heard DeBartolo had bought it, and then that fell through after a couple months. In any case, any move there by Carson's would have to be years off.

That whole article strikes me as somebody talking out their ass, since Centrum claims to have no inkling about a major anchor tenant looking at their space.

[nomarandlee]

http://www.suntimes.com/business/305...ders21.article

Last chapter?
Borders looking to rent out 4 stores on North, South sides

March 21, 2007
BY SANDRA GUY Business Reporter

Borders Group is looking to sublease four of its Chicago stores to other retailers, which would result in the Borders bookstores' closings.

The stores include two in Lincoln Park -- at 2817 N. Clark St. and at Lincoln Park Center, 755 W. North Ave. -- an outlet in Uptown at 4718 N. Broadway, and a store in Hyde Park at 1539 E. 53rd St.

Borders spokeswoman Ann Binkley said Tuesday the company may fail to find suitable tenants, and could continue to operate any or all of the bookstores.
But she said Borders would "seriously take into consideration" a viable offer from other retailers to lease the four existing bookstores.

Allen Joffe, a principal at Chicago-based Baum Realty Group, said the bookstores in Lincoln Park and in Hyde Park are in prime locations. But he said Borders might have a difficult time finding a single tenant for the large, multilevel sites.

"The question is whether Borders is going to be successful in finding a single tenant, or will it have to find multiple tenants?" Joffe said.

Borders Superstores average 24,000 square feet.

Borders has no plans to lease its other stores in the Chicago market, the spokeswoman said.

Chicago is one of Borders' largest markets, with 30 stores in the region.




===================

http://www.chicagotribune.com/busine...i-bizfront-hed

Borders to retrench, may sublease 4 Chicago-area stores

Sandra Jones
Tribune staff reporter
Published March 20, 2007, 7:12 PM CDT

Borders Group Inc., the nation's second-largest bookseller, is exploring retrenching in Chicago, according to real estate sources.

The Ann Arbor, Mich.-based company hired Oakbrook Terrace-based Mid-America Real Estate Corp. to sub-lease four of its eight Chicago stores: two locations in Lincoln Park, one in Uptown and one in Hyde Park, according to two real estate brokers close to the deal.

The move comes as Borders prepares to outline a new strategic plan to Wall Street on Thursday when it reports fourth-quarter earnings. The company warned investors in January that it will miss its fourth-quarter profit forecast, reflecting bigger-than-expected sales declines during the crucial holiday season at its superstores and in its music business.

Officials from Borders and Mid-America didn't return calls seeking comment.

The locations on the market are at 4718 N. Broadway Ave., 1539 E. 53rd St., 755 W. North Ave. and 2817 N. Clark St.
Borders' other city stores are on North Michigan Avenue, State Street, Lincoln Village and Beverly. It also operates two Waldenbooks stores downtown.

smjones@tribune.com




----------------------------------

That would kinda stink. I tend to think of Borders as like Starbucks in that its landing represents a symbol of stability and healthiness for other retailers to start to follow into a hood. Even though Uptown and Hyde Park will be ok without one I hope they do find a way to stay in those locations.

[Chicago3rd]

Originally Posted by danthediscoman

Compusa is closing on Chicago&Rush...maybe that's why we haven't heard anything about Best Buy, are they looking to take its place? Or maybe we haven't heard anything because they realized if Compusa can't stay open how will they

Has nothing to do with Compusa's location...it is a company wide thing.

[nomarandlee]

http://www.suntimes.com/business/307...igan22.article

Mag Mile booster eager to grow Boul Mich brand

March 22, 2007
BY SANDRA GUY Business Reporter

The new chairman of the board of the association that acts as booster and voice for Magnificent Mile retailers says the famous Boul Mich can become even better known worldwide.

"We'd like to enhance our ability to draw people regionally, nationally and internationally to come to Michigan Avenue on business, on vacation and for events," said Ralph M. Weber, vice president, community relations, at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and the new chairman of the Greater North Michigan Avenue Association. The association's board has 110 members, but the key policymaking body is the 20-member executive committee.

The association last year launched its first consumer-oriented marketing campaign with the tag line, "Feel Magnificent," which emphasizes the area's hotels, restaurants, retailers and tourist draws.

To ensure the Mag Mile looks its best, the association is seeking a new way to finance the signature planters that have graced the Mag Mile median for the last 12 years. The planters are now funded by voluntary contributions from association members, but Weber is seeking a more permanent way to finance them.

The issue came to light in September when Gordon Segal, CEO of Crate & Barrel, told an association luncheon that local merchants were failing to come up with their share of the $200,000 it takes to keep the planter program going annually.

The Michigan Avenue association also will suggest new lighting for cars and for pedestrians when the city resurfaces Michigan Avenue north of the river, starting in 2009. The $15 million to $20 million curb-to-curb resurfacing project is scheduled to start in 2009 and last for two years.

The project, from the Chicago River to Oak Street, will add medians to the Michigan Avenue half-blocks that don't already have them.

John Maxson, the Michigan Avenue association's president and CEO, said the association also plans to host a big-name stage act at Pioneer Court this year on the day of the Magnificent Mile Lights Festival to bring more national attention to the event.

Weber, 59, is a 26-year employee at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, and has represented the hospital on the association for 20 years.

About 350 people who represent association members volunteer regularly to put on programs, plan luncheons, and suggest traffic and sidewalk improvements, among other things.

Said Weber, "There's a high level of energy and activity . . . that's one of the reasons [the association] is so successful."

sguy@suntimes.com

[edsg25]

Originally Posted by paytonc

Oh, and man -- has anyone *been* to Chicago Place lately? That place is completely dead. The food court needs renovation, anyways; I'd move it into the empty basement and lease out floors 3-8 as a single department store. We know that Carson's and Von Maur want in, but does Saks' lease prevent that?

most malls have their ups and downs. from what i've seen at Chicago Place, there never has been any ups; it's been all down.

It lacks the size and scope of Water Tower Place, the class of 900 North Michigan, and the ability to draw you through it to get to Nordstrom of North Bridge.What the heck is Chgo Place all about anyway?

[trvlr70]

The interior of the mall is really cheaply made. While Water Tower Place and 900 N. Michigan are covered with polished marble and granite, Chicago Place is constructed with cheap, tacky, faux finishes. The only reason I ever went in there was for Room & Board....and now they are out of there.

It will be dental offices in a year.

[Urbanight]

I hope Carson's do not make it to the Mag, it is are not worthy. The Mag needs the flagship stores, i don't really care if independents lose their place, as long as decent flagship stores pop up.

Chicago Place has issues, i'm not really drawn into there. It could use some remodeling.

About Borders, It would be nice if Barnes and Noble takes the Clark and Diversey spot and the uptown spot. Barnes and Noble could use the bigger space at Clarke and Diversey. Then there would be an empty space at 3 large spots, the Barnes and Noble, Pier 1, and the Vitamin/health food store that recently closed. Maybe Banana Republic? J. Crew?, Forever 21? Who knows. The Uptown spot is vital because it is still an up and coming. neighborhood

[Chi_Coruscant]

- edit