The New Retail Thread

Nothing on the internet yet, but my son lives on West Newton Street and he just told me that 250 West Newton (which has been vacant for years) is now sporting "Coming Soon" signs in the windows of a new Blank Street Coffee! Always great to see empty storefronts re-animate and bring more life to the city:

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shmessy said:
Nothing on the internet yet, but my son lives on West Newton Street and he just told me that 250 West Newton (which has been vacant for years) is now sporting "Coming Soon" signs in the windows of a new Blank Street Coffee! Always great to see empty storefronts re-animate and bring more life to the city:
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That is great news. That building has been vacant for years, maybe decades? I remember there was a laundromat/dry cleaners there at least 20 years ago, with a video rental store in the basement. Then it was supposed to be a coffee shop but for some reason it never opened, and it's sat empty at least 20 years. Let's hope this time it works out!
 
St. Botolph Street said:
That is great news. That building has been vacant for years, maybe decades? I remember there was a laundromat/dry cleaners there at least 20 years ago, with a video rental store in the basement. Then it was supposed to be a coffee shop but for some reason it never opened, and it's sat empty at least 20 years. Let's hope this time it works out!
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I'm excited for the neighborhood there. It will allow folks to congregate and socialize in that type of setting without having to go down (not that far, of course) to Huntington or cross the street to the Pru. Plus, empty storefronts are just depressing.
 
St. Botolph Street said:
That is great news.
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Is it? A few observations. I swear I have no dog in this fight and am not being negative just for negativity's sake. (As we all know, the negativity in this town sucks already as it is...)

1.) The COMING SOON for the Blank Street Coffee allegedly coming to DTX has been up for well over a year--it got posted very soon after this Aug. 2024 streetview. Zero sign of construction activity. Assuming they belly-flopped there, is that not indicative of greater expansion woes? Possibly tied to their unionization issues?

2.) People really hate Blank Street Coffee. I mean, really hate it. Here's what Google spits back when you type in "Why Do People Hate Blank Street Coffee So Much?":

People hate Blank Street Coffee primarily due to its rapid, venture-backed expansion that threatens independent cafes, its "pretend indie" aesthetic, and its use of automated coffee machines instead of traditional baristas. Critics view the chain as a gentrifying force that mimics local, small-business charm while operating as a corporate entity.

Here is a breakdown of the main reasons for the criticism:

Threat to Local Businesses: Backed by millions in venture capital, Blank Street has rapidly opened numerous locations, often in direct competition with local, independent, and family-owned coffee shops.

"Inauthentic" Aesthetic: The brand is criticized for using a "cozy, local-shop" aesthetic to mask that it is a high-volume chain, which many consider deceptive.

Automation over Baristas: Instead of skilled baristas, Blank Street uses automated machines (like Eversys) to prepare drinks. This removes the artisan aspect of coffee making and limits staff to serving as cashiers.

Controversies: The company has faced allegations of stealing branding from a Black-owned, independent coffee shop. Additionally, employees have reported poor working conditions, low wages, and, in some locations, attempts to unionize.

Quality and Atmosphere: Critics often describe the coffee as mediocre and the minimalist, small-footprint locations as sterile or lacking the "third place" comfort of a traditional cafe.
 
DBM said:
Is it? A few observations. I swear I have no dog in this fight and am not being negative just for negativity's sake. (As we all know, the negativity in this town sucks already as it is...)

1.) The COMING SOON for the Blank Street Coffee allegedly coming to DTX has been up for well over a year--it got posted very soon after this Aug. 2024 streetview. Zero sign of construction activity. Assuming they belly-flopped there, is that not indicative of greater expansion woes? Possibly tied to their unionization issues?

2.) People really hate Blank Street Coffee. I mean, really hate it. Here's what Google spits back when you type in "Why Do People Hate Blank Street Coffee So Much?":

People hate Blank Street Coffee primarily due to its rapid, venture-backed expansion that threatens independent cafes, its "pretend indie" aesthetic, and its use of automated coffee machines instead of traditional baristas. Critics view the chain as a gentrifying force that mimics local, small-business charm while operating as a corporate entity.

Here is a breakdown of the main reasons for the criticism:

Threat to Local Businesses: Backed by millions in venture capital, Blank Street has rapidly opened numerous locations, often in direct competition with local, independent, and family-owned coffee shops.

"Inauthentic" Aesthetic: The brand is criticized for using a "cozy, local-shop" aesthetic to mask that it is a high-volume chain, which many consider deceptive.

Automation over Baristas: Instead of skilled baristas, Blank Street uses automated machines (like Eversys) to prepare drinks. This removes the artisan aspect of coffee making and limits staff to serving as cashiers.

Controversies: The company has faced allegations of stealing branding from a Black-owned, independent coffee shop. Additionally, employees have reported poor working conditions, low wages, and, in some locations, attempts to unionize.

Quality and Atmosphere: Critics often describe the coffee as mediocre and the minimalist, small-footprint locations as sterile or lacking the "third place" comfort of a traditional cafe.
Click to expand...

Honestly, I just googled "why do people hate dunkin donuts". Man, people really HATE it too. You can do that for every single business.

I appreciate your post and there are a lot of good points in it. That being said, Ahhh yes, the threat to independent coffee shops.........Question: over the 20+years that was an empty storefront, why didn't mom and pop open a coffee shop there? I mean, for a generation it was just sitting there. Blank Street wasn't around prohibiting this nice opportunity from others. We can be pious about the independents (and, given a choice, I tend to choose a good one over a chain every time), but if the result of that piety is empty storefronts, sign me up for 1,000 Starbucks right now.

The SOLUTION is for the Mass legislature and the unions and the business community (left and right, folks) to work together to create the environment where mom and pops can open and thrive. Blaming Blank Streetfor making a mouse trap that fits the structures of the economic system is not their fault.....it's the system's.

In the meantime, yes, I am concerned about the lack of promised opening at that DTX location being a template for the future of this one. Hopefully, both will open soon........along with many many independent businesses.
 
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shmessy said:
The SOLUTION is for the Mass legislature and the unions and the business community (left and right, folks) to work together to create the environment where mom and pops can open and thrive. Blaming Blank Streetfor making a mouse trap that fits the structures of the economic system is not their fault.....it's the system's.
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I've always wondered if maybe local government should act as a landlord in some limited, high-value areas (think Newbury St, Harvard Sq, Downtown, etc) and offer low rent leases on a mixed lottery/merit system to small businesses. There's clearly potential for good results in revitalizing areas that have become too exclusive for many, but there's also so, so, so much potential for misuse, corruption, and exploitation that I'm not sure it's ultimately possible to make it work.
 
Looks like Avra is nearing opening

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New food hall planned for Allston Village, where the used clothing place used to be on Brighton Ave:

novomarketplace.com

Novo Marketplace

Discover Novo Marketplace, the new food hall in Allston. Featuring 16 vendors offering international cuisine and a vibrant community space. Opening soon!
novomarketplace.com novomarketplace.com
 
Smuttynose said:
The Croft School, a private elementary school, is taking over the former Stella Restaurant space on the ground floor of 1525 Washington Street in the South End. This is disappointing because Stella was really the only interesting street-level presence along this stretch of Washington.

This stretch is dead mostly because of the city. The Blackstone School could not have a worse Washington Street presence. It's mostly a giant surface parking lot. The small part of the school that is on Washington is a giant blank windowless brick wall. Across the street is a large 1950-era inward-facing public housing complex, the Salvation Army, and what appears to be an abandoned post office (probably utilized by the housing complex today). About 10 years ago, the City opted to use stimulus funds to simply renovate the housing units instead of attempting to redevelop them into something that would help activate the street a bit.

It's unfortunate because this stretch opens on to to the Blackstone/Franklin Square parks and its currently such a dead space. Immediately north and south there are healthy pockets of activity on Washington.

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Well, that didn't last too long. It would be somewhat ironic if a grocery store was the next tenant in the former Stella space.
 
BACsop said:
New food hall planned for Allston Village, where the used clothing place used to be on Brighton Ave:

novomarketplace.com

Novo Marketplace

Discover Novo Marketplace, the new food hall in Allston. Featuring 16 vendors offering international cuisine and a vibrant community space. Opening soon!
novomarketplace.com novomarketplace.com
Click to expand...

Awesome - and it says it's open daily 7am-11:00pm!!!!! - should be a great addition to this streetscape:

www.google.com

Street View · Google Maps

Explore a place in a more immersive way in Google Maps.
www.google.com www.google.com
 
Roxxma said:
Well, that didn't last too long. It would be somewhat ironic if a grocery store was the next tenant in the former Stella space.
Click to expand...
The Croft School also occupies all of 3815 Washington St on the JP/Roslindale border, except for some ground floor space occupied by a bank branch. The ground floor there used to be Harvest Co-Op and upstairs used to be office space.

I wonder if the upstairs there could be a candidate for an office-to-residential conversion? The building is only about 15 years old but still - that looks like it could be tough office space to lease out in the current market.

But it really is a perfect location for... a school.
 
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