The New Retail Thread

I don't understand the point of that store. $200 doorknobs? It all seems like a big gimmick targeting the ignorant wealthy.

Edit: I think I jumped the gun with my comment. Looks like over the past few years they have refocused more around high-end furniture, linens, etc.
 
It's still strange though. They are 'a step above Pottery Barn' high-end, not Roche Bobois level high-end which is more Newbury St, no?
 
They've been in Back Bay before. Weren't they at Boylston and Exeter streets, in what had been Guild's Drug store?
 
^ Yes, they were in what is now the Tannery. I dont know why Restoration Hardware closed that location. It was busy and appeared to be successful.
 
Last edited:
So they shutter their store, have no presence in Boston for a year or two, then take a high profile spot like this? Interesting strategy...
 
Restoration was hard and the question was where.

Couldn't resist.
 
Sicilian said:
Restoration was hard and the question was where.

Couldn't resist.
Click to expand...

Hope they keep some hardware -- perhaps not $200 door knobs -- but definitely $68 door knobs

My wife has been having me scour the Boston area in search of good looking brass house numbers (Back Bay commission approved level of quality)
 
I remember when the building housed the Museum of Natural History. Judging from what's in Restoration's catalogue, the new store will have -- at least for me -- lots of nice stuff to look at but not buy.
 
Fred R said:
I remember when the building housed the Museum of Natural History. Judging from what's in Restoration's catalogue, the new store will have -- at least for me -- lots of nice stuff to look at but not buy.
Click to expand...

Fred -- you maybe junior as a poster of comments on the forum -- but through that memory (i.e. before the Museum of Science at Science Park) -- you have probably established yourself as the senior member of the forum at least as far as Boston experience and modern historical perspective is concerned -- Welcome

By the way -- do you remember when there were two of those kind of buildings on the same block (Natural History ad the original home of MIT)?

That earlier building was demolished to make way for the construction of the building commonly referred to as the New England Mutual Life
 
The Roger's building was torn down three quarters of a century ago.
 
Lurker said:
The Roger's building was torn down three quarters of a century ago.
Click to expand...

Lurk -- I was thinking that the "whatever its called these days'" (New England Mutual Life Building -- that replaced the Rogers) dated from the immediate post WWII like the Hancock with the Beacon

However -- From MIT official site -- "The old Rogers Building continued in use as the School of Architecture into the 1930s. In 1937 it was purchased by the New England Mutual Life Insurance Company and razed in 1939 to make way for their new home office. The name “Rogers” was reassigned to MIT’s Building 7 on Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge".

So you are real close -- as (2011 - 1939) = 72
 
Wegman's opening in Northboro -- perhaps an ideal fit for DTX

from the Herald article
http://bostonherald.com/business/real_estate/view.bg?articleid=1372931&srvc=business&position=2
Lots in store at new Wegmans
Cops brace for Mass. opening day crowds
By Thomas Grillo
Thursday, October 13, 2011 - Updated 14 hours ago

With throngs expected to descend on the first Wegmans supermarket to open in New England on Sunday, area police are bracing for thousands of shoppers eager to check out the biggest grocery store in the Bay State.

“Wegmans has a cult following, and their grand openings attract as many as 30,000 people,” said Lt. William Lyver. “We understand three busloads of people are coming out of Boston who originally hailed from upstate New York. We expect to be utilizing officers from Westboro and Shrewsbury to help with traffic.”

....a third of the 140,000-square-foot store is devoted to prepared foods.... a 300-seat cafe with a gas fireplace and wide-screen, high-definition TV. For shoppers who just want to eat, there’s pizza and sandwiches plus a chicken wing bar, hot and cold vegetarian dishes including minted green beans, curried rice salad and Bombay carrot salad, as well as Asian cuisine, Indian dishes, sushi and dim sum prepared by chefs while you watch....For shoppers who prefer to get food to go, there’s $5 rotisserie, Caribbean lime or lemon pepper chicken, and full meals such as grilled lemon garlic chicken breast with two sides for $6 or Italian-style pork chop and spaghetti for $8....William Congdon, Wegmans vice president, said the store is all about service and low prices. When shoppers enter the store, he said they’ll see lots of employees willing to help.....“We’ll have a tremendous number of employees ready to help you find what you need in the store or help you put a meal together if that’s what you need,” he said. “That’s our focus.”....On the all-important question of the bottom line, Congdon insists that Wegmans’ prices will meet or beat Market Basket and Walmart —....you will see signs that compare the item on the shelf to Stop & Shop and Price Chopper and shoppers will be amazed at the low prices,” he said. “When you see a beautiful building like this and low prices, it’s shocking to many shoppers, but that’s how we keep customers coming back.”
 
wasn't this supposed to be in Westwood Station? Then later in Burlington? How did it end up in Northboro instead?
 
Ron Newman said:
wasn't this supposed to be in Westwood Station? Then later in Burlington? How did it end up in Northboro instead?
Click to expand...

Ron they are planning for one in Burlington, I believe opening in 2013

From another Herald article:

Grocery war heats up
Wegmans moves in west of Hub, while Walmart looks for opening
By Thomas Grillo
Wednesday, October 12, 2011 - Updated 1 day ago

"Supermarkets with a long local history are facing their biggest threat yet as Wegmans and Walmart, successful chains that have built brand loyalty elsewhere, launch a fight for food dollars in Massachusetts.

Wegmans, the New York-based supermarket chain, will launch its first Bay State store in Northboro this weekend. Walmart plans to open its first Neighborhood Market store in New England in Somerville later this year. The new players, along with existing competition between supermarkets, growing grocery aisles inside discounters such as Target, could shift the region’s shopping habits, say retail experts.....

The 77-store chain has also lined up a second Massachusetts store near the Burlington Mall, scheduled to open in 2013"

Not sure about what happened to the Westwood Station
 
if there's going to be a Walmart Neighborhood Market in Somerville, it certainly won't open this year. I hope the rest of the article is better researched.

What happened to the Wegman's that was supposed to be built in Westwood?
 
What happened to the TOD that was supposed to house the Wegman's to be built in Westwood?
 
wasn't Wegman's the anchor for that whole development? Why did Wegman's pull the plug?
 
Ron Newman said:
wasn't Wegman's the anchor for that whole development? Why did Wegman's pull the plug?
Click to expand...

Ron Wegman's didn't pull the plug -- the bottom fell out of the project due to financial problems by the lender Anglo-Irish Bank

Although, I think the developers are trying to cobble somethig back together on a smaller scale

this is from the Herald in September

" New paths for Mandarin, Westwood Station project
Opportunity knocks
By Brendan Lynch
Thursday, September 1, 2011 - Updated 1 month ago

Anglo Irish Bank’s exit from the Hub development market — which continued yesterday as the troubled firm put the Back Bay’s Mandarin Oriental Hotel on the block — could kick-start the suburban Westwood Station project and make a bundle of building opportunities available on the cheap "
 
Faneuil Hall -- shopping center that attracts nearly 18 million visitors annually -- under new mangement

From the Herald this afternoon

http://www.bostonherald.com/busines...o_work_with_merchants/srvc=home&position=also

New Faneuil Hall landlord inks lease, vows to work with merchants
By Thomas Grillo
Thursday, October 13, 2011 - Added 10 minutes ago

The new landlord for Faneuil Hall Marketplace has pledged to invest money in the property and improve the mix of retailers in an effort to lure tourists and residents to the landmark.

“It’s an amazing property and we intend to restore it to the iconic landmark stature that it deserves,” said Michael Alpert, president of Ashkenazy Acquisition Corp., the New York company that closed on the acquisition of the 63-year ground lease for Faneuil Hall Marketplace today. “We are already working very closely with the merchants’ association and the Boston Redevelopment Authority to create an enhanced experience for everyone.”.... Improvements to the property are expected and Ashkenazy anticipates working closely with the city to reinvigorate the landmark marketplace, while paying homage to its historical significance and integrity, the company said"

Note anwer to question is who are these guys?

"Ashkenazy owns many other properties nationwide including Washington, D.C.’s Union Station, San Antonio’s Rivercenter Mall and Barney’s New York locations in New York and Beverly Hills."

Sounds like a good fit to me!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top