The Benjamin & VIA (née One Seaport Square) | Parcels B-C@Seaport Sq. | Seaport

falcon42 said:
I saw on their website than Bonobos and Banana Republic were some of the tenants listed
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Ugh.. the Gap is also listed (though it's not specific which retailers will actually be within One Seaport Sq.). Seriously?? Could it get any more boring than Banana Republic and the Gap?! It's remotely possible the site is referring to the locations in Faneuil Hall.
 
jl326 said:
Ugh.. the Gap is also listed (though it's not specific which retailers will actually be within One Seaport Sq.). Seriously?? Could it get any more boring than Banana Republic and the Gap?! It's remotely possible the site is referring to the locations in Faneuil Hall.
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What are the other options? People in the Seaport need clothes.
 
datadyne007 said:
What are the other options? People in the Seaport need clothes.
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Among national clothing retailers?

Abercrombie & Fitch, Abraham & Straus, Acorn Stores, Aéropostale (clothing), Against All Odds (clothing retailer), Al's Formal Wear, Alkemeyer Commercial Buildings, Allied Stores, American Apparel, American Eagle Outfitters, Anchor Blue Clothing Company, Anderson-Little, Andy & Evan, Anine Bing, Ann Inc., Anthropologie, Ascena Retail Group, Avenue (store), Barneys New York, Barneys Warehouse, Eddie Bauer, BCBG Max Azria, Bebe Stores, Ben Cooper, Inc., Bergdorf Goodman, Best & Co., BHLDN, Bigsby & Kruthers, BikiniLuxe, Billionaire Boys Club (clothing retailer), Bloomingdale's, Bon Worth, Bonobos (apparel), Brideside, Brighton Collectibles, Brooks Brothers, Buckle (clothing retailer)
Buffalo Exchange
C. Crawford Hollidge
C. Wonder
Camp Beverly Hills
Campmor
Carson's
Cato Corporation
Cavender's
Charlotte Russe (clothing retailer)
Charming Charlie
Charming Shoppes
Chess King
Chico's (clothing retailer)
Christopher & Banks
Citi Trends
CJ Banks
Club Monaco
Coco & Breezy
Coldwater Creek
Colorado Trading & Clothing
County Seat (store)
Coup d'etat Brooklyn
Crazy Shirts
Dash (boutique)
Dash's Designer
David's Bridal
Davidson's
De Pinna
Deb Shops
Delia's
Denim & Soul
Designer Bride
Destination Maternity
Destination XL Group
Dick's Sporting Goods
Dillard's
DKNY
Donaldson's
User:Draykyle/sandbox/Fullbeauty Brands2
Elder-Beerman
Eloquii
Ex-Boyfriend
Express, Inc.
Fabletics
Fashion To Figure
Femme for DKNY
Filene's
Eileen Fisher
Foley's
Foot Locker
Forever 21
Forth & Towne
Fred Segal
Frederick's of Hollywood
Free People
Fullbeauty Brands
G-Unit Clothing Company
Gadzooks (retailer)
G&L Clothing
Gantos
Garfinckel's
Garment District (clothing retailer)
Gart Sports
Gilly Hicks
Glik's
Goody's (store)
Guess (clothing)
Gymboree
Halle Brothers Co.
Halls (department store)
Hamilton Shirts
Hamrick's
Han Kjøbenhavn
Harzfeld's
The Hempest
Hengerer's
Henry's (clothiers)
Herberger's
Hickey Freeman
Tommy Hilfiger (company)
Hudson's
Imitation of Christ (designs)
Individualized Apparel Group
Island Company
J Brand
J. Press
J.Crew
Jenni Rivera Fashion
Johnny Cupcakes
Johnston & Murphy
JoS. A. Bank Clothiers
JustFab
Karmaloop
Kaufmann's
Kenneth Cole Productions
Kitson (store)
Kohl's
Kuppenheimer
L Brands
Lane Bryant
Lansky Brothers
Lazarus (department store)
League Collegiate Wear
Leh's
The Limited
J.Lindeberg
Live Breathe Futbol
Loeb's (department store)
Lolly Wolly Doodle
London Fog (company)
Macy's
Macy's, Inc.
Marshalls
Martin + Osa
Maui and Sons
Maurices
The May Department Stores Company
Jessica McClintock
McGinty's Department Store
McKids
Meier & Frank
Mervyn's
Milly (fashion brand)
ModCloth
Moosejaw
Morsam Fashions
MW Tux
Naartjie (clothing retailer)
Nau (clothing retailer)
Neiman Marcus
New York & Company
Nordstrom
Norm Thompson Outfitters
Nygård International
Oaklandish
Old Navy
Orr's
Oshman's Sporting Goods
Ostrow Textile Company
Outdoor Research
PacSun
Palace Lodge
Paul Stuart
Peaches Boutique
Pelle Pelle
Piperlime
The Popular (department store)
QVC
Ragstock (clothing retailer)
Raleigh Haberdasher
Ralph Lauren Corporation
REI
Retail Slut
Charles S. Richardson
Robert Hall Clothes
Rocawear
Roos/Atkins
Ross Stores
Saks Fifth Avenue
Andrew Saks
Salkin & Linoff
Shiekh Shoes
SINGER22
E. T. Slattery
Sophias Style Boutique
Southern Marsh Collection
Southern Tide
Sport Chalet
Sports Authority
Sports Authority, Inc.
Stanley Korshak
Stern's
Steve & Barry's
Strawbridge's
Stroud's Mercantile
Sublime Dreamer
Anna Sui
Supreme (brand)
Surropa
Swimsuitsforall
Syms Corporation
T-Shirt Hell
T.J. Maxx
T.K. Maxx
Tailored Brands
Talbots
Tea Collection
Theory (clothing retailer)
Thyme Maternity
Tilly's
Today's Man
Tori Richard
Torrid (clothing retailer)
Tory Burch (company)
Trashy Lingerie
True & Co.
Tween Brands
Twigs Boutique
Urban Outfitters
Vanity (clothing)
Venus Fashion
Vineyard Vines
Von Maur
Warnaco Group
Westport Big & Tall
Wet Seal
White House Black Market
Wilkes Bashford
Zappos
ZCMI
Ruti Zisser
Zulily
 
datadyne007 said:
What are the other options? People in the Seaport need clothes.
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I have no problem with one of those stores but does One Seaport really need both Gap brands in the same development? How about they combine them into one storefront and call it the Banana Gap. :)
 
Clothing retail is one of those industries that really benefits from clustering (like a mall or Newbury street). I can see how only a major national brand with broad appeal (e.g. the Gap) would be willing to go it alone in an un-established district that will never be clothing-dominated. Johnny Cupcakes isn't going to sell enough clever tees in the Seaport to justify the rent. Gap will sell plenty of socks and hoodies to people who live nearby.

Edit to add another example - LL Bean, as a pretty unique brand and a destination in its own right, will likely also thrive even outside of a cluster.
 
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dshoost88 said:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbNnVV5cnSw
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LOL! Exactly!! The Gap is equivalent to finding out that the new restaurant coming into a highly anticipated area is going to be a Domino's Pizza. It wouldn't be difficult at all to think of something more interesting than the Banana Republic/Gap/Old Navy line. Dshoost88's list also doesn't include countless designer brands, high-end or otherwise.

Who shops at the Gap other than teenagers? How many people under 21 are in the Seaport? How many people would go out of the way to the Seaport to shop at the Gap?
 
Don't blame The Gap for moving in, blame everyone else for not moving in.

And is Banana Republic really so bad?
 
Yeah ok, I'm supposed to believe that you all would be applauding if random designer brands that no one could afford went in here. God forbid the store fronts are actually active b/c they're filled with popular chains that sell essentials like underwear, basic tees, shirts, jeans, dress pants, skirts/dresses etc.
 
datadyne007 said:
Yeah ok, I'm supposed to believe that you all would be applauding if random designer brands that no one could afford went in here. God forbid the store fronts are actually active b/c they're filled with popular chains that sell essentials like underwear, basic tees, shirts, jeans, dress pants, skirts/dresses etc.
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Yup, nailed it. In all seriousness, knowing you can grab some dress socks and underwear without having to T/uber/taxi/drive to South Bay (or pitstop at DTX on the T ride home, I guess) changes the game for a prospective tenant. It makes it more than just trendy or future-facing to live here -- it's now an accommodating and convenient residence.

***Just my thought process as a prospective tenant. No qualms about leaving the neighborhood for such amenities, but as someone who frequently needs a belt/socks/dress shirt on the fly, bring it on.
 
I wasn't trying to instigate debate or criticism of anyone on AB, so I apologize if my posts came off that way. Putting personal tastes and dispensable incomes for dress essentials aside, my concern with having the Banana Republic @ One Seaport Square is more surprise because there's already one at Quincy Market a quick 15-minute walk away. There's a Gap at Quincy Market, too, as well as the Gap outlet at Downtown Crossing--both also just a 15-minute walk away from this site.

If we're going to saturate our city with more retail (especially in the Seaport the next few years), then I'd hope we see some greater diversity in product offerings than Gap or Banana Republic--not because it's the "Gap" brand, but because there's already several of them close by.

And as far as "blaming everyone else for not moving in," a major reason it's not more competitive is because most of the developers of new buildings around the city are asking for commercial rents that prevent greater diversity. If you're already making bucket loads of money from the rest of your property, lower the asking commercial rents in your retail spaces to promote local small business diversity.
 
dshoost88 said:
And as far as "blaming everyone else for not moving in," a major reason it's not more competitive is because most of the developers of new buildings around the city are asking for commercial rents that prevent greater diversity. If you're already making bucket loads of money from the rest of your property, lower the asking commercial rents in your retail spaces to promote local small business diversity.
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Gap is no more able to afford Seaport rents than most of those other retailers you listed in your post last night.

The idea of applying inclusionary zoning provisions to retail is interesting though. Regulating use doesn't work (e.g., that "innovation space" thing at Waterside Place or the disastrous "fast food" cap at Kendall) but requiring developers to set aside lower-priced retail space for local companies with fewer than x locations could be cool. This would apply more to smaller spaces than Gap-sized spaces though.
 
dshoost88 said:
And as far as "blaming everyone else for not moving in," a major reason it's not more competitive is because most of the developers of new buildings around the city are asking for commercial rents that prevent greater diversity. If you're already making bucket loads of money from the rest of your property, lower the asking commercial rents in your retail spaces to promote local small business diversity.
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There are multiple people here on AB who would basically say this is idiotic (I'm not one of them). Note the posts that call people worthless if they don't know how to "take enough risk" or "create enough value."

It's all part and parcel of a society/culture that demands the maximization of "shareholder value" ($$$$$$$$$$) above and beyond all else. REITs or other property owners aren't going to willingly lower their profits, at least not by much - probably not enough to attract significantly different tenants.

Inclusionary retail zoning would be the route via which this actually happens.
 
Um. Are we even sure that The Gap and BR are going in there? Will someone please provide a link to the page that indicates that. I haven't been able to find it.
 
datadyne007 said:
Yeah ok, I'm supposed to believe that you all would be applauding if random designer brands that no one could afford went in here. God forbid the store fronts are actually active b/c they're filled with popular chains that sell essentials like underwear, basic tees, shirts, jeans, dress pants, skirts/dresses etc.
Click to expand...

dshoost88 said:
I wasn't trying to instigate debate or criticism of anyone on AB, so I apologize if my posts came off that way. Putting personal tastes and dispensable incomes for dress essentials aside, my concern with having the Banana Republic @ One Seaport Square is more surprise because there's already one at Quincy Market a quick 15-minute walk away. There's a Gap at Quincy Market, too, as well as the Gap outlet at Downtown Crossing--both also just a 15-minute walk away from this site.

If we're going to saturate our city with more retail (especially in the Seaport the next few years), then I'd hope we see some greater diversity in product offerings than Gap or Banana Republic--not because it's the "Gap" brand, but because there's already several of them close by.

And as far as "blaming everyone else for not moving in," a major reason it's not more competitive is because most of the developers of new buildings around the city are asking for commercial rents that prevent greater diversity. If you're already making bucket loads of money from the rest of your property, lower the asking commercial rents in your retail spaces to promote local small business diversity.
Click to expand...

Dshoost's point above is probably more in-line with what I intended to convey in my bemoaning against the Gap.. which then turned to just plain out ranting on the Gap because of the disappoint I felt (partly because of the two other nearby locations).

Many people were going on and on for the last couple of years speculating and anticipating what kind of awesome retail would land in the Seaport. Some people aren't too keen that there seem to be too many steakhouses in the Seaport (ex: Mortons, Ocean Prime, Mastro's), but at least it's the only location in Massachusetts where each exist (for now anyway). That, at least, makes the restaurants somewhat unique. The Gap, to me, is just about as boring and as common as you could possibly get as a clothier. Note that I am not blaming them if they are setting up shop here, if that turns out to actually be the case. It's just simply disappointing from my own perspective as someone who has long awaited for "exciting" retail options in the area. Even a Barney's New York or something would've been much less common.

A side note on affordability. Last I checked, studios at the Benjamin and VIA were starting at over $2,800/month, one-bedrooms starting at well into the $3,000's, and two-bedrooms starting at mid $4,000's with several going into $5,500 or so. I imagine other immediate surrounding rentals at 100 Pier 4 and Watermark to at least compare relatively with these prices +/- a few hundred dollars, depending on floor, layout, size, view, etc. Rates in Fort Point and further down the Seaport (e.g., Waterside) are likely generally lower still, but again, still high in the grand scheme of things and relatively comparable. I don't think affordability to be a huge issue for the population here.
 
Based on the Globe article, it looks like whoever indicated that The Gap and Banana Republic were signed as tenants at Seaport Square may have been misinformed.
 
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I'm a big fan of roof decks. It recoups some of the lost open ground space that a building footprint takes away.
 
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