The New Retail Thread

When I ran the MS Climb to the Top, I saw Bain Capital had office space on the 50-somethings floors of the Hancock Tower. This was back in March. I only remembered their offices because out of 60+ floors that I climbed, the only carpeted section of the emergency stairwell was Bain Capital office space--they had 2 floors in the building.
 
Looks like the Shake Shack is coming to the Boston area:

http://www.boston.com/businessupdat...estnut-hill/VZiUx5PiQQj299e8iBYMVM/index.html

"Shake Shack, the New York City burger stand whose frozen custard has gained a fierce following, plans to open its first Massachusetts store next year at the Chestnut Hill Shopping Center.

Shake Shack will take over roughly 3,000 square feet in the Boylston Street space formerly occupied by the Rugged Bear children’s store, featuring its signature line of burgers, hot dogs, and frosty treats.

“With its proximity to Boston College, Chestnut Hill is a thriving community to bring Shake Shack,” said Randy Garutti, Shake Shack’s chief executive."
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While BostonNeedsAShakeShack should be happy, I'm a bit confused. I'm as big a BC homer as anyone, and the Chestnut Hill Mall is rarely if ever visited by BC students. If they had put it in Cleveland Circle, I could see this doing gangbusters, but really have to question the placement in a difficult-to-access mall on Route 9.
 
I find the choice puzzling too. Why not Coolidge Corner, or Back Bay, or Central Square, or Porter Square?
 
Have you guys eaten at Shake Shack? It's like $17 for the equivalent of a McDonald's #1. The target market is rich people, not budget-conscious students. The one downtown Manhattan location is next to Goldman Sachs' headquarters, which was a very deliberate choice...

But yeah, I agree, it's not like Boston lacks urban shopping areas for rich people.
 
dshoost88 said:
^^ I think you're wrong, Whighlander.

Why would Ann Taylor spend a fortune on their new E-block store just to move back to their original spot later? That seems stupid, let alone unnecessary excess spending. It also seems stupid to market their vacated space as the site of the new Microsoft Store.

Just saying.
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dshoot -- you are turned around

6zqVH.jpg


Look at the Body Shop in the picture -- it is in Block F on the map located next to the Sax corner of Centre Court where Boylston and Back Bay Arcades intesect

The old Ann Taylor where Microsoft is coming to is a smaller spot across Centre Court from the new Ann Taylor (advertising itself in the photo)
 
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AdamBC said:
Shake Shack, the New York City burger stand whose frozen custard has gained a fierce following, plans to open its first Massachusetts store next year at the Chestnut Hill Shopping Center.
Click to expand...

The news article is incorrect. It is going in to the Chestnut Hill Shopping Center, not the Mall. The Rugged Bear was located near the Legal Sea Foods in the Shopping Center. The Shopping Center is undergoing a major overhaul. The old Macy's Building (formerly Bloomingdale's) is gone and is being replaced by a multi-tenanted building which among other things will include, according to the Shopping Center's website, a National Amusements "state-of-the-art, dine-in deluxe theatre" opening in March 2013 and a Sports Club/LA, which "will be the Company’s first Jewel Box club."

The Jewel Box concept will artfully blend cutting-edge technology and state-of-the-art architecture to create an unrivaled fitness experience. The new club is being designed to ensure that the essence and amenities of our larger clubs are creatively integrated into the new eco-friendly, technologically advanced club.
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Given that the idea is to turn the Chestnut Hill Shopping Center into a Legacy Place type of center, the location probably makes good sense for Shake Shack.
 
dirtywater said:
The news article is incorrect. It is going in to the Chestnut Hill Shopping Center, not the Mall. The Rugged Bear was located near the Legal Sea Foods in the Shopping Center. The Shopping Center is undergoing a major overhaul. The old Macy's Building (formerly Bloomingdale's) is gone and is being replaced by a multi-tenanted building which among other things will include, according to the Shopping Center's website, a National Amusements "state-of-the-art, dine-in deluxe theatre" opening in March 2013 and a Sports Club/LA, which "will be the Company’s first Jewel Box club."



Given that the idea is to turn the Chestnut Hill Shopping Center into a Legacy Place type of center, the location probably makes good sense for Shake Shack.
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The location actually makes perfect sense for numerous reasons. Not to mention, I am sure they got a pretty good deal on the rent as perhaps the developers plan to use the lure of the State's first Shake Shack to help lease the remaining space in the new development. I can see tons of people grabbing food here before and after the movies not to mention the location is within an easy 10-15 min drive of millions.
 
Panera Breads open at corners of Stuart and Tremont streets across from W Hotel & Residences.

Boston-20120509-00023.jpg
 
I hope they were able to find the drug dealer who stood in the door way all the time a new location.
 
hey! he offered me some a few years back and when i just kept on walking he said "I knew you looked like a square!"

Who calls someone a "square" now a days... seriously?
 
Would rather see an ABP there, but Panera is better than nothing.
 
Ann Taylor's new digs. If I remember correctly, J.Jill used to be here. Ann Taylor completely revamped the store front and gave it a fantastic mall presence. This used to be a dark corner with those awkward oversized J.Jill doors.

2q0isfc.jpg
 
I don't have a photo, but now that most of the scaffolding is down, the newly restored former Louis Boston (soon to be Restoration Hardware) building looks great. It certainly needed the maintenance. They did an amazing job. The old crumbling facade looks virtually brand new again.
 
While it's sort of appropriate to house Restoration Hardware in a building that's been recently revamped, this building is so prominent and set off from the rest of the city that I sorely wish it had some kind of cultural or institutional use again.
 
Might have made a nice site for the Boston History Museum that they're proposing for the Greenway!
 
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