The New Retail Thread

"Greed" is a simple, decisive, and not altogether incorrect response to a rather complicated question.

Taking a longer view, there's neither a deep enough understanding or a great enough reward to the proper stewardship of retail districts across the country. This is true of property owners and their tenants. Property owners want occupancy under a contract that favors their long-term plans for the property. And some may recall a time when retailers wanted to compete to the betterment of their products and services, but that's well in the past. In today's world, we live with the things that someone else can finance.
 
falcon42 said:
Paul is trash, no surprise. A lot of bread, a little meat.
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If you go to Paris, you will see that Paul is the Dunkin' Donuts of France. They are everywhere-in airports, train stations, public spaces (the Eiffel Tower, Louvre). I do not know why it does not translate better in the US.
 
statler said:
This won't affect many people here but the Rite-Aid on the corner of Cambridge St and Bowdoin St is closing.

They were going to switch over to a Walgreens but the landlord supposedly doubled the rent.

It will probably fill just as quickly as the Burger King and Finagle spaces down the street.

Why are commercial real estate owners so bad at pricing their product?
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That's not how it works. Most of the Rite Aid leases were assigned. Some leases had assignment clauses which allowed the LL to get a little something. By no means were they doubling rent though. Most of the store closures were from the TENANT because of location of other stores in the area.
 
statler said:
This won't affect many people here but the Rite-Aid on the corner of Cambridge St and Bowdoin St is closing.

They were going to switch over to a Walgreens but the landlord supposedly doubled the rent.

It will probably fill just as quickly as the Burger King and Finagle spaces down the street.

Why are commercial real estate owners so bad at pricing their product?
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This affects me as I work in the area and frequent this location. Too bad. But I hope the space doesn’t sit vacant for too long.
 
Missed this in April when BBJ had it:
Chase (NYSE: JPM) is set to open brand-new branches at 800 Boylston St. in Back Bay, the address for the Prudential Tower; at 1 Winter St. in Downtown Crossing, and at 1364 Beacon St. in Brookline, according to a report on Friday from the Massachusetts Division of Banks.
....
The three locations will give Chase, the country’s largest bank, its first retail branches in Massachusetts.
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The Brookline location is the former Lady Grace, where Sweetgreen kicked the tires but decided not to open.
 
I'm surprised Sweetgreen hasn't opened a Coolidge Corner location. They seem to be taking over everywhere else.

Speaking of Chase, that's great they'll be in Boston, but you've got to imagine it costs a fortune to build de novo branches in a market they've not been in.

I wonder if they're taking the corner mall corner where Bath and Body Works was?

Also wonder where in the Pru they're going. Gucci is leaving and moving to Copley Place -- so perhaps right there on Boylston.
 
cjbski said:
I'm surprised Sweetgreen hasn't opened a Coolidge Corner location. They seem to be taking over everywhere else.

Speaking of Chase, that's great they'll be in Boston, but you've got to imagine it costs a fortune to build de novo branches in a market they've not been in.

I wonder if they're taking the corner mall corner where Bath and Body Works was?

Also wonder where in the Pru they're going. Gucci is leaving and moving to Copley Place -- so perhaps right there on Boylston.
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Has the Walgreens spot been replaced yet?
 
^ Brookline Bank slid down a few doors to take the bulk of the Walgreens space, such that their old space on Beacon is now vacant instead. But it's not all bank news in the area, thankfully. The Walgreens space was subdivided into three retail slots, with one on either side of the bank branch, and now houses an Oath pizza on the Harvard side and Allium Market on the Beacon side. Also, Friendly Toast was another 2017 failure-to-launch on Beacon across Centre Street from that new Chase location, but that space has since become the pub Hamilton. And the former Second Time Around is about to become the next location of topdrawer. Seems like the past 12 months in that area have yielded a net positive.
 
Looks Like Highball Lounge in the Nine Zero Hotel on Tremont is gone. The website redirects to this: http://www.bettersortsboston.com/

"Better Sorts Social Club Opening Fall 2018"

Apparently Highball closed on June 16th and Boston Magazine covered the changes: https://www.bostonmagazine.com/restaurants/2018/06/11/highball-lounge-close/

Better Sorts Social Club is “a glamorous cocktail-forward concept,” the press release reveals. It will debut in fall 2018, and as the name suggests—“better sorts” is another word for high society, the upper class, the aristocracy—tongue-in-cheek nods to Boston Brahmin culture are part of the concept. Stay tuned for additional details.
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I don't have my hopes up. Ironically pretentious is still pretentious. Maybe worse.
 
Lrfox said:
Looks Like Highball Lounge in the Nine Zero Hotel on Tremont is gone. The website redirects to this: http://www.bettersortsboston.com/

"Better Sorts Social Club Opening Fall 2018"

Apparently Highball closed on June 16th and Boston Magazine covered the changes: https://www.bostonmagazine.com/restaurants/2018/06/11/highball-lounge-close/



I don't have my hopes up. Ironically pretentious is still pretentious. Maybe worse.
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Yeah, that is too bad. I liked the Highball, even though I didn't go very often. This new name and concept are a big turnoff to me.
 
Hopefully it’s good...highball was solid. Very ny to me...can’t think of anywhere else like it in Boston. Big loss.
 
falcon42 said:
That's not how it works. Most of the Rite Aid leases were assigned. Some leases had assignment clauses which allowed the LL to get a little something. By no means were they doubling rent though. Most of the store closures were from the TENANT because of location of other stores in the area.
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Fair enough. I was just going by what the employees were told. It wouldn't surprise me if Walgreens corporate told their employees a story just to cover their own decision making.
 
navigator4 said:
If you go to Paris, you will see that Paul is the Dunkin' Donuts of France. They are everywhere-in airports, train stations, public spaces (the Eiffel Tower, Louvre). I do not know why it does not translate better in the US.
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I've seen Paul in Japan too--decent quick food. The one on Washington started out well--the salad nicoise was really good. But it quickly went downhill. Food wasn't ready to be picked up, portions got smaller, and waiter service went away. I really struggle to find somewhere with a decent sit down lunch in the area (Hillside, how we miss you).
 
You can keep your towers, this is the most exciting thing I've seen in a long time.
W2Xy6aj_d.jpg
 
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Glad to see the building with the erstwhile B&N finally getting going.

Also, what the hell is "cocktail-forward"? That new place "Better Sorts" sounds like it wants to be packed to the gills with obnoxious assholes.
 
Coyote137 said:
That new place "Better Sorts" sounds like it wants to be packed to the gills with obnoxious assholes.
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I thought of expressing a similar sentiment yesterday, and then recalled that some folks don't cotton to my brand of social criticism. Methinks "Better Sorts" would be better named "The Douche Chiller."
 
Beton Brut said:
I thought of expressing a similar sentiment yesterday, and then recalled that some folks don't cotton to my brand of social criticism. Methinks "Better Sorts" would be better named "The Douche Chiller."
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I actually typed the word “douchey” before deleting and changing it to “pretentious.” It’s absolutely going to be an obnoxious venue.
 
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