Shop Talk

Check Out Line: Penney pinching in Manhattan

Check Out J.C. Penney’s new store in Manhattan.

On July 31, J.C. Penney will open its first Manhattan store in the midtown area, promising to deliver trendy yet affordable items for New York’s notoriously savvy shoppers.

Penney is taking direct aim at rival Macy’s, whose flagship Herald Square store is a block away.

In fact, the department store chain, which signed the lease for the space in December 2007 just as the U.S. slipped into recession, hopes the store will give its sales a much-needed boost and help it snag some of the city’s higher-income shoppers, just when they may need it most. 

“I think they will be glad to save some money too, don’t you, especially if they are bankers?” Penney District Manager Pete Sadler said during a walk-through of the store ahead of its opening later this month.

The store, located inside the Manhattan Mall at 34th Street, occupies a space that once included a food court.

The 153,000 square foot store is smaller than some other J.C. Penney stores and stocks merchandise ranging from women’s clothing and accessories to home goods. It has a Sephora makeup boutique, and fine jewelry store and will even deliver to people’s homes for a $15 charge.

McQueen of the night

Sales are down, profits are off, but that didn’t stop discount retailer Target from throwing a big bash in Manhattan on Friday night to celebrate the launch of its latest designer collaboration – McQ by Alexander McQueen.

Timed to coordinate with Fashion Week and draw fashionistas in town for the shows, the bash took place in a huge downtown warehouse.

Drinks were free, hors d’oeuvres were passed, and rock band The Duke Spirit (pictured to the right) came to play.

But the biggest draw seemed to be the clothing line  — which was on sale at the party before being offered to the general public. 

Although the event started at 8 pm, by 8:15 pm there was a huge line for the dressing rooms.

By 8:30 pm, the line to try on clothes easily lasted an hour or more.

Some in line speculated that business-minded fashionistas were buying up the clothes with the intention of reselling them on eBay. (A quick search on the marketplace site showed that may actually be the case).

Rockin’ with AC/DC…even if you don’t know who they are

When Wal-Mart noticed its AC/DC  t-shirts were among some of its best-selling, the world’s biggest retailer realized some type of partnership with the rock band might make sense.

Now, as AC/DC prepares for the Oct 20 launch of its latest album, that partnership is coming to life — it goes far beyond shirts.

Wal-Mart, which was chosen by the band to exclusively sell the “Black Ice” album in its stores in the U.S., is setting up ”Rock Again AC/DC Stores” inside all of its 3,500 Walmart locations. They will be stocked with the new album, AC/DC clothes, DVDs, the band’s earlier albums, games, and an area to try out the new AC/DC Rock Band video game.

Wal-Mart is also making its presence known in Manhattan, an island currently Wal-Mart free. On Friday, it parked its ”Black Ice” truck in Times Square and set up  a stage so passers-by could try out the new AC/DC Rock Band video game.

Melissa O’Brien, a Wal-Mart spokeswoman, said the band appeals to everyone from 50-year-olds to 15-year-olds, and the retailer was watching to see if the AC/DC push would attract new shoppers to its stores.

At Times Square, 39-year-old Bill Voccia said he was ”definitely one of the band’s biggest fans.” A member of an AC/DC tribute band, he could not wait to get his hands on the new album. Voccia said he prefers to buy CDs rather than get his music online – a good thing considering AC/DC is among a handful of musicians who refuse to put their music on iTunes.

Juan Delaluz could also be described as a big fan. The 13-year-old was dressed in an AC/DC hat, an AC/DC t-shirt and AC/DC pin. Delaluz, who informed his teachers he would miss school on Friday because of the Time Square event, said he was one of the only ones among his friends who still buy CDs — everyone else listens to music on their iPods.

Wal-Mart takes Manhattan?

Wal-Mart is joining the Manhattan pop-up brigade.   Starting this week in New York City, the retailer will put up a temporary store in Times Square and have a truck roving around the city to celebrate the launch of AC/DC’s new album.    The rock band has chosen to exclusively sell its latest album, Black Ice, through the discount retailer in the United States, and Wal-Mart will also exclusively sell the AC/DC Live: Rock Band Track Pack video game.   This week, AC/DC fans — and curious onlookers — can visit the Black Ice truck to listen to the AC/DC album in advance of its release on Oct 20.   On Saturday night, at the Times Square MTV store, Wal-Mart and MTV will unveil the “AC/DC Rock Band store” and sell the first copies of the new album.   Wal-Mart joins a long list of retailers who have stormed the Big Apple,  setting up pop-up stores on an island where they have no permanent location.   Last month, Target set up temporary “bodegas” in Manhattan to show off its line of designer merchandise.

 (Reuters photo)

Nordstrom contemplates taking Manhattan

Upscale department store Nordstrom continues to have trouble finding a suitable site to open its first Manhattan venue.

Seattle-based Nordstrom said Thursday it wants to expand into one of the world’s most lucrative markets. But the high price of island real estate and lack of appropriate venues has hampered efforts, Nordstrom’s Chief Financial Officer Michael Koppel told analysts at the Goldman Sachs conference.

“A great location means a lot of top-line business, but a very high cost of occupancy,” Koppel said.

Also, “a great location usually doesn’t mean you get the kind of floor plate you like,” meaning Nordstrom would have to reconfigure an existing older building instead of new construction tailored to its needs.

“We’re still very interested, but want to be very prudent because it’s a big investment and we want to make sure we do right,” Koppel said. 

Nordstrom is reportedly looking for around 200,000 square feet in an upscale area with nearby public transportation. In May the company hired a retail real estate consulting and brokerage firm to help it find suitable a Manhattan location.

Nordstrom was reportedly interested in the former Drake Hotel on the northwest corner of 56th and Park earlier this year, but the building’s developer had financing troubles and the deal fell through.

Starbucks drops the axe — is your store next?

California, Florida and Texas — the states with the biggest populations and the most Starbucks outlets — are losing the most stores as the coffee chain slashes more than 600 stores in a bid to boost slumping U.S. results.

While big states are losing the most, few markets — even Starbucks’ hometown of Seattle — are immune.

The axe is coming down everywhere, from Manhattan’s cityscape and California’s beaches to the downtrodden Motor City and burghs in the U.S. heartland, according to a store closure list released by Starbucks.

Here’s a state-by-state list of closures:

Alabama 12 Arkansas 8 Arizona 1 California 88 Colorado 9 Connecticut 5 Washington, D.C. 1 Delaware 1 Florida 59 Georgia 13 Hawaii 5 Iowa 7 Idaho 2 Illinois 25 Indiana 23 Kansas 3 Kentucky 6 Louisiana 13 Massachusetts 7 Maryland 12 Maine 2 Michigan 18 Minnesota 27 Missouri 17 Mississippi 7 North Carolina 10 North Dakota 4 Nebraska 7 New Hampshire 1 New Jersey 5 New Mexico 4 Nevada 18 New York 39 Ohio 9 Oklahoma 15 Oregon 6 Pennsylvania 21 South Carolina 1 Tennessee 13 Texas 57 Utah 4 Virginia 5 Washington 19 Wisconsin 6 West Virginia 1

Are you losing your favorite Starbucks? And if so, where will you go to get your fix? 

(Photo: Reuters)