Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
Issue link: https://sct.epubxp.com/i/617826
it was additive to the brand." Then, too, he points out, there are peo- ple who do view bicycles as an accessory as well as a mode of transportation or form of exercise. The one thread that ties all this together continues to be that concentration on U.S.- made products. "The American-made story and the quality behind it really resonates with customers," said Steve Ferris, a JLL executive vice president based in Boston. Ferris is part of the JLL team that pro- vides real estate consult- ing services to Shinola in the U.S. Shinola also keeps building up its wholesale business, which includes the likes of Bloomingdale's, Nordstrom and other major department stores, along with its network of stores. The company has plans to open about 10 stores in North America this year and roughly a dozen per year going forward. "We think at maturity this has some- where between 75 to 100 stores in the United States," said Carr. Shinola pre- fers urban high-street locations in ma- jor cities, notably areas that are trendy or seeing revitalization. The chain has committed to a lease within the rede- velopment of the former Shaker Plaza shopping center, in Shaker Heights, Ohio, set to open in mid-2017. This mixed-use redevelopment project in that upscale Cleveland suburb will com- prise roughly 100,000 square feet of re- tail space, 60,000 square feet of offices and 102 apartments in its first phase. Shinola stores can be as large as its 11,000-square-foot flagship in Detroit and as small as 500 square feet, with designs intended to fit the particular neighborhood and the building. "The goal is to find buildings where we can highlight the design or architecture that is already there," said Carr. "We don't want any two to be the same. We want them to feel like they are part of that com- munity." The store in Washington, D.C., was once a Studebaker showroom. Some of the original features were repainted but otherwise left intact, Carr says. "What is important to them is that their stores are part of the community," said Ferris. Shinola makes a point of including other uses within its stores to encourage customers to spend more time there. The Ann Arbor, Mich., store includes a com- munity room, while the New York City store, in the trendy Tribeca neighborhood, features an in-store café. "They want their stores to be an integral part of each com- munity, not just a store that someone comes i n , b u y s s o m e t h i n g and leaves," he said. Expansion into Eu- rope and Asia is on the radar too, but for now the focus will remain on whole- sale and retail expansion in North America. "We believe the opportunity in the U.S. is very real and right in front of us, and we need to execute that flaw- lessly before we begin a serious inter- national rollout," said Carr. That said, though, Shinola has made a start at ex- panding internationally. The company opened a business office in 2014 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, to help build its wholesale business in Europe. Early the following year the company opened the London store, in Soho, and its first Canada store is set for later this spring, in Toronto. Meanwhile, the company is still in infancy with particular regard to distri- bution in the U.S., Carr says. "We've got to further that penetration here before we really expand abroad," he said, "but we get requests daily for ex- pansion around the world." S C T For leasing, contact Michael Timlin, real estate manager, at mtimlin@shinola.com. r e T a i l i n g T o d a y J a n u a r y 2 0 1 6 / S C T 17 "They want their stores to be an integral part of each community, not just a store that someone comes in, buys something and leaves." S h i n o l a i n t e n d S t o o p e n a b o u t a d o z e n S t o r e S a y e a r .