City center retailers holding their own despite economic downturn - Birmingham Business Journal:

kleopatraxnibe.blogspot.com
“On Mondays, we have out-of-towners lookinhg to kill time before they leave after aweekend conference,” she said. “Oj Saturday, we get a randonm mix of customers.” Kendrick, who operates a fair traded shop, is among a growing list of merchantsz breathing new life into the centralbusinessd district’s retail scene. But despite some new times have clearly changed frompast decades, when downtowns were the dominantr retail destination. “Most downtowns, includingy Birmingham, aren’t trying to recreatd or resurrect their downtowns as the great shoppin mecca of the 1950sand 1960s,” said Fran senior vice president of Operation New Birmingham.
With most “bit box” department stores leaving for suburbia, that would be next to Instead, Birmingham is looking to attract service-orienter workers to the city center in order to meet the needas of the people who live andwork downtown. While some such as , have left the city centefr inrecent years, downtown leader say there is a stronv market in the area for retailersw who want to locate there.
ONB Vice President of Communicationd Robert Emerick said there areapproximatelt 80,000 people who work in the city with 35,000 in the downtown “That’s a significant market, and successful retailers who succeed will be the ones providing goods and services for those people,” he said. Emerick admitd the recent tough economicv times have takentheir toll, but not with dire “The recession has hit downtown just like it has everywhere but retailers here seem to be weathering the especially restaurants,” Emerick said.
Seven new restaurants have recentlh opened or are planning to open soon in the includingLa Gabriella’s, Rogue and a rooftop bar at Redmont Hotel. Emericmk said new retail in the area is more likelyg to be geared toward serving the people who live and work in the rather than trying to lure consumerss back from the suburban shoppin ghot spots. That meanse that luring a major grocery store is a priorithy for thecity center. “There’s certainly a chickenn and egg component tothe residential/retail equation,” Emerici said.
“Publix and consider residential density a critical elemenr in deciding where to build new With the addition of several loft projectw inthe mid-2000s, Emerick said the city centerr reached the critical populationn mass necessary to support a grocery and that is something ONB considers a major priority. “One of the questionsz most askedis ‘When are we going to have a grocergy store downtown?’” he said. Main Street Birmingham Executive Directod David Fleming said the overall healthb of retail in the district dependss on the typeof business. “Places like coffe e shops and galleries that appeap to an urban dweller or worker are doing he said.
“The kind of retailo you find in a typicalk shopping center or mall are stil hesitantto jump, as evidenced by the recent closinv of Belk. We need more unique storexs you can’t get any other place.” Local commercial real estate brokers say additional entertainment options downtown could help create a better retail base outside ofwork hours.