Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
Issue link: https://sct.epubxp.com/i/448937
F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 5 / S C T 29 ally turn a profit? If the store's 70 percent year-on-year revenue growth for 2014 is any indication, not to mention its 20 percent sales gains for December alone, the answer seems to be an emphatic yes. The concept is the brainchild of 32-year- old Jason Ballard, co-founder and presi- dent, whose idea has taken flight through the backing of fellow retail innovator reeHouse Is a green Home- improvement store that has been thriving in sustainability-minded austin, Texas, for about two years. now the concept is poised to go national. The spacious, crisply organized store, which took over a vacant, 25,000-square-foot Borders site in Westgate shopping Cen- ter in late 2011, has quickly become a one-stop shop for home own- ers seeking to make their living space healthier and more energy- efficient. The offerings include nontoxic and energy-efficient building products, flooring made from recycled material, natural cleaners, LeD lighting, solvent- free finishes, water-conserving cisterns and solar-energy systems. But can such an esoteric startup actu- and Container store co-founder garrett Boone. Ballard recalls how his idea "got laughed out of a lot of board rooms" by quick-profit seekers. That was before Boone and his group of investors com- mitted to the long term. Ballard says open- ing the first store in austin "was an easy choice for us, because it gave us a soft land- ing and a place to build from." TreeHouse is ready to branch out, and Ballard and the investors are mulling over two vastly differing growth strategies: one approach would be to open stores in far-less-green Texas cities such as Dallas or Houston, using the "if I can make it there, I can make it anywhere" premise; the other would be to gravitate to like-minded sustainability havens like Boulder, Colo.; Portland, ore.; san Francisco; and seattle. Ballard says numerous boutique green stores have failed in the effort, while any T adding branches Treehouse is going naTional wiTh susTainable home-improvemenT sTores By Steve McLinden r e T a i l i n g T o d a y