ahem, hint, hint   8-)

 

if any retailers in ne ohio are looking for more interesting tenants out there:

 

japan's most popular casual clothes outlet "uniqlo" is the new h&m:

 

link:

http://www.uniqlo.com/flagship/

 

 

one another more unique casual retailer is mexx, which was from europe, but is now owned by liz claiborne:

 

link:

http://www.mexx.com/mexxcms/opencms/mexx.com/site/index.jsp

 

 

go get'em tigers!

 

mexx isn't too bad (they are all over in canada). I put them somewhere as a cross between express and club monaco.

Goodness.  more tacky tacky clothing stores!  I wouldn't set foot in one of those good awful retail black holes!

I don't know if this fits here, but do you guys think a modern retailer like Target could prosper in the Higbee Building? I know Dilliards used to be in there and then left, but frankly, I've never spent a dime in a Dilliards my whole life. It seems like those old-school department stores are struggling even in the suburbs.

 

Someone suggested the idea of moving a store like Target in to the building, and I thought it sounded like a good idea. There are a lot of downtown workers in Cleveland, and people love Target. I know I'd be in there throughout the week and even on the weekend via the Rapid. Target isn't afraid of downtown locations, either. I believe they've been dying to get into Manhattan for obvious reasons, but I believe they are also downtown in their home base of Minneapolis.

 

What do you think is up with that location? Is someone sitting on that thing for some reason? I just don't get how there can be vacancy in that area of downtown when it offers the most superior spaces.

 

I think it could do well.  It would serve the downtown populace, and as a discount store it would do well at the hub of Cleveland's public transit system.  But there is a Target opening at Steelyard Commons, which probably preempts a downtown location for now.

DAMN THAT STRIP MALL!

 

 

What do you think is up with that location? Is someone sitting on that thing for some reason? I just don't get how there can be vacancy in that area of downtown when it offers the most superior spaces.

 

By next spring the ground level Higbee space will become a walk-in visitor center run by the CVB. In addition, the CVB and Greater Cleveland Partnership are moving from their offices from the Terminal Tower to the Higbee building. I've seen renderings of the plans. This restoration work looks fantastic and openning it up will be a great benefit to the community and visitors. By the way - I also noticed a lot of work being done over the summer. It was especially funny to see workers wheeling the giant chandaliers around outside on Public Square and Prospect. I believe this project is on schedule.

Marc’s to add 2 links to discount chain

Related Links 

Marc's

 

 

 

 

By JOHN BOOTH

 

8:46 am, September 11, 2006

 

 

 

Parma-based Marc’s plans to open its smallest store yet in the Coventry neighborhood of Cleveland Heights this fall.

 

The company also will add a store of a more typical size in Niles.

 

The discount retailer’s 14,000-square-foot space on Coventry Road should open in December, according to Marc’s marketing director Day Armelli, and a 40,000- square-foot store is expected to open near Eastwood Mall in Niles in November.

 

The new stores will bring Marc’s total to 53 Ohio locations.

 

http://crainsclevelandbusiness.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060911/FREE/60911001/1073

^^ From everything I've heard, the move is on schedule ... but it seems like it's taking forever! Meanwhile, the Visitor Center is supposed to be equipped with info kiosks so that tourists can put together a travel itinerary, buy discounted tickets to arts and culture events, etc.

I was very happy to see the Marc's sign in the window yesterday on Coventry. Its great to put a local retailer in a spot that will do very well. Coventry needs that type of store.

But isn't Marc's the Ohio version of Aldi's, sans the weird German milk?

 

Atleast in Columbus they are.  Meaning, trash.

Does Aldi's carry non-food products? 

 

Marc's isn't the classiest place around, but it sure is cheap and convenient.  Its a good store to have in a neighborhood setting (especially one with loads of students and young professionals like Coventry).

I usually don't pay attention if it does or not, as I don't shop there (unless to get cheapo milk).

Aldi's carries non-food products but they're aren't typical, every day kind of stuff. Marcs is definitely trashy (I shopped there once - never again, because it's really an unpleasant experience) but a cheap store like that will be a good fit for Coventry, as wimwar said.

Oh, I'm not trying to downplay Marc's.  Every college/yuppie area needs a cheap grocer, like a Trader Joe's or Aldi's.  I was just wondering why Marc's, as it was (well, atleast in Columbus) like the "trashy Aldi's."

As much as I loved the Medic that Marc's is replacing, I can assure you that it was far from classy, either. Still, one would think that with the tenant mix in the neighborhood, something a little cleaner and more modern would have gone in. But I'll take Marc's any day!

No, Aldi's sells all generic stuff and you have to pay for bags.  That place sucks a big one.

 

Marc's sells all name brand groceries at a discount.  They also have a closeouts section that just sells random crap for cheap.  My friend bought a 37 inch Sharp Aquos LCD TV at Marc's for $1400 (about $700 less than it was retailing for at the time).  That was a rare case, usually the closeouts section is just good for xmas decorations and lawn ornaments.  But for groceries, Marc's is awesome.  Some of the older stores aren't that nice, but they've been cleaning them up.  The newer ones in the burbs are very nice...like the one in Rocky River or in Ridge Park Sq in Parma.

Sure Marc's are trashy, but they spend little on building aesthetics and equipment like debit/credit devices and digital cash regiters as well as UPC scanners. In turn they can offer better (cheap) prices. Basically lower overhead means good prices.

^Yep, and when they're too cheap to take debit/credit cards, they're too cheap to get my business.

 

Honestly though - I'm pretty sure that they hire only the most deranged-looking, crabbiest, hygienically-challenged, miserable, crankiest, brain-dead, sociopathic (or any combination of the above) people to work there. I don't buy groceries expecting to be pampered, or for the staff to be oh-so-perky, or know everything about every product, but oh my holy god - it's damaging to one's psyche to shop at Marc's! I'll gladly pay a little extra rather than be traumatized!

I like Marc's. But then again, I'm PWT.

 

I have been seeing a lot of press lately for Macy's, including something about their famous parade memorabilia coming to Great Northern. I wonder what the chances are of having somebody like them (or other Federated stores) moving into the remainder of the Higbee's building, or even May Co?

 

 

Hey now - I'm born-and-bred PWT - officially Appalachian in fact! :-D

Come on now, Marcs rules! I guess it's good to fill that space with something, but Coventry is really losing its edge, imo

^its replacing that filthy Medic Drugstore. How is that an example of Coventry 'losing its edge'?

That's just my opinion on that strip. It would have been nice if something different would have moved in that space. Coventry isn't the bohemian center of Cleveland anymore. There's just not a whole lot of draw to that area anymore, in my opinion, except the Grog Shop.

If the Grog shop were to be replaced by another Winking Lizard, then I would see your point. This is at worst a lateral move for Coventry. IMO, it adds a store that improves the walkability of the neighborhood and reduces the need to get in a car and drive somewhere for your basic necessities.

"Coventry isn't the bohemian center of Cleveland anymore."

 

It hasn't been the bohemian center for a long time - mostly because the young bohemians did what they always do - grew up and got jobs :-)

^ Or were displaced by the escalating rents they helped facilitate and moved to the Warehouse District ... and then Tremont and Ohio City ... and then Detroit Shoreway and the Near East Side  :wink:

Sure Marc's are trashy, but they spend little on building aesthetics and equipment like debit/credit devices and digital cash regiters as well as UPC scanners. In turn they can offer better (cheap) prices. Basically lower overhead means good prices.

 

Some Marc's actually take debit cards and Discover Card now.  No more checks!  Thank jebus!

 

I still won't buy their meat/poulty.  Closeout steaks just don't seem right.

"No more checks!"

 

You're talking about those paper things that people take forever to scribble out, right? :lol:

^ Or were displaced by the escalating rents they helped facilitate and moved to the Warehouse District ... and then Tremont and Ohio City ... and then Detroit Shoreway and the Near East Side  :wink:

 

too funny. hey be glad you still have real bohemians at all. in nyc they have been replaced by the suburban hipsters aka the fauxhemians.

 

i'd put midtown and slavic village out there as fertile grounds for bohemia. yeah definately detroit-shoreway too. in fact at the moment those three nabes are just about nirvana for the DIY artsy crowd.

 

Just on a side note,

I brought a pineapple up to a cash register at the Marc's in Painesville.  The 16-18 year old cashier guy looked at it, looked at me, and looked at the pineapple again.  I did not know what was going on until he looked at me, confused, and asked "What in the hell is that thing?".  I thought he was joking, and said a pineapple.  He said "No way, I never new they looked like that, do you have to peel it?"  I left stunned, but with my pineapple.

^^ funniest thing I've read today. When I was a little kid I wondered that. But the fact that a 16 year old is asking that is a little frightening.

 

Concerning Cleveland Heights, I agree that Marcs is a step up from an empty Medic store. But I just think that area should be more attractive and impressive than any, old neighborhood. It has all the building blocks for being a really cool, exciting strip -- it's in a dense area, residential area with a relatively affluent population. But instead, it's just ...bllllahhhh. Boring. It's a little depressing, too, because it just seem irrelevant. That's just my opinion.

 

It just doesn't compare with what is going on in Ohio City and Tremont. Maybe it's just like you guys say and people have moved on.

Well, Ohio City has its share of discount stores, but it does have a fantastic grocer and the West Side Market.  Tremont is still without a true grocer and will likely not see one anytime soon with SYC opening down the road. 

 

I think Marc's fits in really well on Coventry.  Sure, I would've been more stoked to see a plan for a 4-story condo development with a Trader Joe's on the ground floor, but that may never happen, so for now, I'm just glad that vacancy is going to be filled and that the pedestrian-friendly convenience shopping will be brought back.

 

Back to Downtown.  Yes, I think Target would work well in the May Co. Building, but I think it's more likely to be in a new space created specially for it in Pesht (someday soon, I hope!).  Not that the May Co. Building wouldn't be ideal...just more work.  I am very glad to hear that the visitor center plans are still in the pipeline and moving along on schedule!

Macy's?

Anyone?

Macy's?

Anyone?

 

that's what the work on the first few floors of the may co building is for.  or is this not out of the bag yet?

shut up

Macy's?

Anyone?

 

that's what the work on the first few floors of the may co building is for.  or is this not out of the bag yet?

 

It's cruel to even joke about such a thing.

Seriously, though, doesn't Macy's want a Downtown Cleveland location?  Come on now!

Seriously, though, doesn't Macy's want a Downtown Cleveland location?  Come on now!

 

NO, the question is - Does Cleveland want a downtown Flagship (not just a regular everyday crappy) Macy's and if they get it...will Clevelanders shop in a downtown location, supporting the business justification for building/redesigning the current May Co. store?? ???

 

If the store does open downtown, it should pay homage to The May Co.!

Just make the "C" real small.

It is Federated's policy to only operate downtown stores in the largest metro markets. Cleveland does not fit with their policy. Columbus has a downtown store because they inherited it from May. It remains to be seen how long the store in columbus stays open since it does not necessarily fit with their corporate policy. Cinci will have a store as long as it remains a HQ city. It goes with the priviledge of having the corporate parent in town.

 

However, it is interesting to note that the flagship Macy's in Cinci is not downtown but rather in Kenwood.

Interesting indeed. 

Places in Style

Locally owned chic

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

Roxanne Washington

Plain Dealer Reporter

 

It's been noisy and traffic-challenged in Greater Cleveland lately, as new shopping centers such as Crocker Park and Legacy Village rise from the dust, and old favorites such as Beachcliff Market Square get extreme makeovers.

 

But there's been nothing quite like what's happening at Eton, Chagrin Boulevard in Woodmere.

 

More at cleveland.com http://www.cleveland.com

" "There is no other place that is so focused on the unusual, the independent, the exceptional retailer."

 

Or the car. I'm sorry - as great as Stark's plans are for downtown, and I'll give credit that for what it is, Crocker Park is pretty nice, but Eton is the biggest clusterf#ck of a parking lot with a gussied up strip plaza. I rarely go there but if I do, it's always with a sense of dread.

cleveland can build strip malls with the best of 'em!

I grew up in Shaker and to me, this sounds like it's somewhere near the Pennsylvania border.  Now I live on the Near West Side and I wouldn't venture this far even if it was to buy something I couldn't find anywhere else in Northeast Ohio.  I keep wondering what all of Stark's positioning and recruiting with his exurban developments will do to his chances in the city.  I mean, if sprawl in Beachwood is leaving for sprawl in Woodmere, what's next? 

 

I need to hear more REAL stuff about Pesht because the only time I hear anything concrete about Bob Stark and retail it's about Crocker or Eton!

It is Federated's policy to only operate downtown stores in the largest metro markets. Cleveland does not fit with their policy. Columbus has a downtown store because they inherited it from May. It remains to be seen how long the store in columbus stays open since it does not necessarily fit with their corporate policy. Cinci will have a store as long as it remains a HQ city. It goes with the priviledge of having the corporate parent in town.

 

However, it is interesting to note that the flagship Macy's in Cinci is not downtown but rather in Kenwood.

 

Do you work for federated, since you are saying what their "policy" is?

 

I grew up in Shaker and to me, this sounds like it's somewhere near the Pennsylvania border.  Now I live on the Near West Side and I wouldn't venture this far even if it was to buy something I couldn't find anywhere else in Northeast Ohio.  I keep wondering what all of Stark's positioning and recruiting with his exurban developments will do to his chances in the city.  I mean, if sprawl in Beachwood is leaving for sprawl in Woodmere, what's next? 

 

I need to hear more REAL stuff about Pesht because the only time I hear anything concrete about Bob Stark and retail it's about Crocker or Eton!

 

Yeah Im shocked that Janis would move.  She even had a location in Tower City at one time.  I had a friend who used to work their in the early 90's.  Janis is a Clevelander who moved to NYC, then back to Cleveland to "make it happen".  Apparently SS wasnt working for her any longer.  :-(

 

I feel the same way.  I do most of my shopping either downtown, the west side market or between the square and 116 street.

While some local retailers abandon the Square for the burbs, others are making an investment in nearby Larchmere.

 

Vendors gather under one roof at antiques mall on Larchmere

Friday, September 22, 2006

Laura De Marco

Plain Dealer Columnist

 

Marc Goodman welcomes competition in his new venture. In fact, he invited it in.

 

Last Friday, the mainstay of the Larchmere Boulevard antiques scene opened a minimall that houses six other vendors.

 

More at cleveland.com http://www.cleveland.com

I wonder if Stark is talking to Von Maur (the moderately upscale midwestern chain of department stores) about a store in downtown as they have said in a recent article they would like to expand beyond Columbus and Dayton to both Cincinnati and Cleveland.

I wonder if Stark is talking to Von Maur (the moderately upscale midwestern chain of department stores) about a store in downtown as they have said in a recent article they would like to expand beyond Columbus and Dayton to both Cincinnati and Cleveland.

 

we have plenty of bad/low budget/moderate retail in the city as it is.  Why add one more lax luster property?  Seriously?!