Sunday, December 16, 2007
Retail Roundup
The latest from The Ticker blog
New outdoors shops are coming
Several new and large outdoor supply and recreation stores are coming to a retail center in Roanoke County, where land is being cleared along Interstate 81.
Gander Mountain will take the anchor spot at this planned center near Hollins. This outdoors supply store, based in St. Paul, Minn., will open on April 22, said David Ewald, a spokesman for Gander Mountain. The store will measure 65,000 square feet, he said.
Another retailer, Camping World, which sells recreational vehicles and outdoors equipment, will open near Gander Mountain. The retailer, which works with FreedomRoads, a network of RV dealerships, also will sell RV campers, according to Doug Chittum, director of economic development for Roanoke County.
And Tennessee-based Tractor Supply Co., a retailer of farm and ranch supplies, plans to build a 45,000- to 50,000-square-foot store at the center, Chittum added.
"All of these are new retailers and kind of have a theme of outdoor sporting," he said. "It falls into the county ... and what we're trying to promote."
There still are two 4-acre tracts left to be filled at the site. Chittum said they likely will house restaurants.
Jo-Ann Fabrics
Jo-Ann Fabrics in Roanoke, on U.S. 220 near Wal-Mart, will close Jan. 24, according to the fabric and crafts supply retailer based in Ohio. The exact reasons for the stores's closing are unknown, though a spokeswoman for Jo-Ann Fabrics, Lisa Greb, said the store did not meet criteria required by the company to stay open. The retailer's lease at the space, which measures 12,600 square feet, ends Jan. 31.
The Roanoke area's only other Jo-Ann Fabrics store, located at Crossroads Mall, will remain open, Greb said. Some inventory from the U.S. 220 store may be shifted to the Crossroads location, though much of it will be liquidated, she said. There's a closing sale going on at the store.
The Jo-Ann Fabrics on U.S. 220 opened in 1992.
Richmond music store opens Roanoke location
Plan 9 Music's new store opened last month in Roanoke's Grandin Village. The shop at 1314 Grandin Road, the former space of Plantagenet Rose, relocated from Towers Shopping Center in Roanoke.
The music retailer, based in Richmond, said it was looking for a larger location where it could host musical acts and a stage. Plan 9 stores sell CDs, DVDs and records in various musical genres, though the majority is rock. The chain has six other Virginia stores and three in North Carolina. Last year, Plan 9 bought five former Record Exchange stores, including one that was at Towers.
New Verizon Wireless store now open at Towers
A Verizon Wireless store has opened on the upper level of Towers Shopping Center. It landed in the former location of Candles & Gifts, which closed last month.
From the Storefront
News from last week's Storefront blog at blogs.roanoke.com/storefront/
Fuddruckers in Salem has closed.
Christy's Apparel & Accessories in downtown Roanoke has a new Web site.
Find out where to find free gift-wrapping in the Roanoke Valley.
