Sunday, September 07, 2008
Tailgaters hope to score more business
Jenny Kincaid Boone
Jenny reports on the latest news on the Roanoke Valley retail industry.
Recent stories
Photos by JARED SOARES The Roanoke Times
Jon Kurz is president of Tailgaters United, a Roanoke retailer that caters to collegiate sports fans. Tailgaters United has moved into a new location at Valley View Mall and hopes to eventually sell local high school athletic merchandise. Below are some of the rugs the store carries.
JARED SOARES The Roanoke Times
Tailgaters United's top-selling sports teams are reflected by five university-themed tents set up throughout the store. The schools are the University of North Carolina, Virginia Tech, West Virginia University, the University of Tennessee and the University of Virginia.
During football season, some retailers count on sales as much as a team counts on the quarterback.
Two Roanoke-area business partners are building a retail enterprise that targets specific kinds of spenders -- collegiate sports fans.
A year ago, Mark Rowland and Jon Kurz created Tailgaters United, selling hats, chairs, vehicle magnets, flags and other merchandise representing a variety of universities, including Virginia Tech and Virginia. They're tapping into a potentially lucrative customer base, with about 42 percent of tailgaters revealing that they spend more than $500 on food and supplies each year, according to tailgating.com. Also, 46 percent of people surveyed said they tailgate six to 10 times a season.
Kurz and Rowland started out with a $15,000 investment and a cart at Valley View Mall. During the holiday season, they operated a temporary store at Tanglewood Mall.
In February, the entrepreneurs widened their Valley View presence, moving the store to a retail space near Old Navy. Last month, they went a step further and shifted the business to a larger storefront across from Buffalo Wild Wings at Valley View.
The men met while working for Lowe's Home Improvement store. Both had a desire to turn a hobby into a career, and they decided to make their love of college sports at least a part-time livelihood. For now, they work full-time for different national retailers.
Rowland, a Virginia Tech fan, and Kurz, a graduate of West Virginia University, began the business with the idea of appealing to fans of various collegiate teams and in a way, uniting them with common merchandise.
"We love the traditions of the college game," said Rowland, 46, and a Roanoke County resident. "I think everybody speaks that language, no matter what team they follow."
"We don't want to be known for just Virginia Tech and West Virginia," he added.
Still, their top-selling sports teams are reflected by five university-themed tents set up throughout the store, said Kurz, 35 and a Salem resident. The schools are the University of North Carolina, Virginia Tech, West Virginia University, the University of Tennessee and the University of Virginia.
Look for the Tailgaters United brand to keep expanding. Eventually, Kurz and Rowland want to sell local high school gear and market items at Friday night football games.
And again, this holiday season, they're considering having a temporary store at Tanglewood.
Tenants sought for new office park
A $6.5 million office park is under way on Virginia 419, though it's still striving for tenants.
Six buildings are planned for this approximately 40,000-square-foot complex, named Olde Dominion Office Park and located near the McVitty Executive Center in Roanoke County. It will have an Italian design.
The parcel is a prime location for office activity, said the owner and developer, Lewis Jamison.
"I picked it because it was on [Virginia] 419. For the last 25 years, virtually every community that I have built has been on or very near [Virginia] 419. ... I think it's a great area," said Jamison, who runs Heritage Builders, a local company.
Structures Design/Build is designing and constructing the office park.
Already, DaProSystems plans to move into one of the approximately 4,000-square-feet office structures, which it will own. This company, headquartered on Williamson Road in Roanoke, provides public safety software and other services to the public sector, including police departments and colleges and universities.
As for the rest of the office park, each of the buildings, averaging 5,000 to 6,000 square feet, could house multiple tenants or a single business, Jamison said. He's negotiating with various businesses that have the option to lease, buy portions of a space or purchase an entire building.
DaPro is scheduled to move its offices there by the end of this year, Jamison said. A second building that's under construction is expected to be complete by February 2009.
Hoping to strike a chord on space
A downtown Roanoke eatery with a blues and jazz music focus is adding a new beat.
Blue 5, a restaurant open for more than a year on Second Street, needs more room for private receptions and dinner parties. Space on the eatery's mezzanine has been fitting for some groups, but it's not private enough for others. Plus, the eatery wants a larger space.
"We've got lots of requests for private functions," said Kerry Hurley, general manager of Blue 5 and one of its six partners. "We just can't take care of them."
The owners are renovating a 1,500-square-foot room directly underneath Blue 5, formerly used as storage. Once it's complete, which should be by late October, they hope to house sit-down dinner parties of at least 100 people.
This underground room, which patrons enter from the back of the eatery, is being transformed. The concrete floors will be replaced by hardwood coverings. There will be flat panel televisions on the walls and a bar at one corner of the room.
Hurley said the rental rates for the new space haven't yet been finalized.
And though the economy has strapped some restaurants, Blue 5 hasn't seen evidence of consumers scaling back on dining out budgets.
"We've had a great first year," Hurley said. "Roanoke has helped us be successful. We need to expand a little bit."
Sylvan makes a move
Sylvan Learning Center has a new location that the company says is more accessible to students seeking educational help.
In April, this national tutoring center relocated from Stephenson Avenue in Roanoke to 3634 Brambleton Ave. in Roanoke County.
It's the second local Sylvan center that's owned by John and Kathy McLeod, who also own HoneyTree Early Learning Center, a child care chain.
News from the Storefront blog at blogs.roanoke.com/storefront/
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