Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
Issue link: https://sct.epubxp.com/i/122387
r e T a i l i n g T o d a y but Block came to realize that the stores needed other wares as well. She began buying new apparel in the Los Angeles garment district, and today the mix for all the Buffalo Exchange shops is 80 percent used and 20 percent new. The stores sell vintage and retro clothing, new and used jewelry and accessories, and purses and shoes. The bread-and-butter for all the stores, though, is what Block calls "recycled mall merchandise": brand-name clothes from the likes of Gap or Banana Republic. "We sell everything from Dior to Target and Forever 21," she said. Eventually, it became impractical for Block to do all the buying, so she trained others as buyers. The merchandise is brought in and put on display for a month. If it does not sell, it is marked down for another month. If at that point it still does not sell, then it goes either to charity or to the company's outlet store, in Nogales, Ariz., a border city with Mexico. Buffalo Exchange has tried to establish an Internet store, but Block says her chain might be one of the few in America for which the Internet option does not really work. "We are used 148 SCT / M a y 2 0 1 3 to fast turnover, the Internet is not," she said. "In addition, all our items are unique, so to post each one is too time-consuming. Internet used-goods stores that are more successful sell selective high-priced items; we sell many low-priced items. This business is conducive to live shopping." The one place a Buffalo Exchange shop will not be found is in a mall, but the stores find good locations in stand-alone buildings and urban settings. Buffalo Exchange stores today range from 2,000 to 9,000 square feet. The chain operates two stores in the New York City borough of Manhattan and two more in the borough of Brooklyn. The most recent one opened in Atlanta, and Block is now scouting locations in New York's borough of Queens, in Baltimore and in Nashville, Tenn. The company has closed only three stores over the years — in Boise, Idaho; Flagstaff, Ariz.; and Oakland, Calif. — although some of the stores may open for business in one place and then migrate to another location as the population shifts. Three of the chain's stores are posting annual sales in excess of $3 million. "We view ourselves as filling a unique space in the shopping world, so we look for unique locations around universities or [in] interesting neighborhoods that are up-andcoming, where artist types live," said Block. Some Buffalo Exchange shops operate near used-record stores and secondhand bookstores, but those shops are dying out, says Block. The two chains she likes to be near are Urban Outfitters and American Apparel, she says. "They have similar shopping demographics to our stores." Many say that success means having the last laugh, and this may be true. "It used to be that no one wanted us, because we sold used clothing," said Block. "Now shopping center owners are knocking down our doors. But to be in a Target supercenter is not for us. We'd rather be in the strip center, with an antique store on one end and a coffee shop at the other." SCT