Author Archives: Justine88

Posted on by

Mall a sign of renewed optimism for retailers

Column by Justine Griffin for the Herald-Tribune.

***

The future of the Mall at University Town Center project, a multimillion-dollar shopping mall that promised to bring high end brands to Southwest Florida for the first time, was almost dead in the water this time six years ago.

Plans to build the $315 million center stalled amid the worst recession several lifetimes. Key tenants Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus abandoned plans to open new stores here. Brick-and-mortar sales continued to plummet as national chains struggled to combat the ever-growing online shopping threat.

But that was then.

As the regional economy was finding its footing, Taubman Centers Inc. and Manatee County’s Benderson Development Co. resurrected plans to build the ambitious shopping center, breaking ground two years ago on a 276-acre parcel that would be home to the most upscale shopping mall between Tampa and Naples.

On Thursday, shoppers will walk through the doors to the 880,000-square-foot mall for the first time.

Read more here. 

Posted on by

APME Innovator of the Year 2014

The Sarasota Herald-Tribune was nominated for the Associated Press Media Editors‘ 2014 Innovator of the Year.

I lead the effort and helped produced a video to convince APME voters why the Herald-Tribune deserved the award.

Check out the (shortened) trailer here:

 

And here’s the full five-minute pitch:

And my favorite, the Dick Vitale teaser:

 

Posted on by

Opening the only locally owned boutique in the UTC Mall

By Justine Griffin for the Herald-Tribune

Jackie Zumba strolled down the center aisle of the Mall at University Town Center one night, taking a break from the ongoing work and construction in her new boutique.

Zumba, a 27-year-old retail entrepreneur in Sarasota, marveled at the expansive — and expensive — storefronts of the many national and international retailers that will open alongside her store next week.

“I look at all these beautiful stores and think, ‘Wow, I’m in the big leagues, now,’ ” she said. “Even though it’s been really stressful, this is such a great opportunity for me.”

Zumba owns Jackie Z Style & Co., the only locally owned boutique opening inside the new mall.

The store also will be the only store that’s not a department store to sell multiple brands.

Making the move from Main Street in downtown Sarasota to the $315 million mall has been anything but easy.

Read more here.

Posted on by

The downtown question mark

By Justine Griffin for the Herald-Tribune

SARASOTA – Some local business owners and chain stores are flocking to University Parkway and Interstate 75 to be a part of the buzz surrounding the new Mall at University Town Center.

Others want to avoid it completely.

The only certainty is that Southwest Florida’s retail scene is undergoing a potentially seismic shift.

How downtown Sarasota, poised before the Great Recession to be the shopping and dining epicenter of the county, fares once the dust settles is still anybody’s guess.

Sarasota-Bradenton is the only place in the country getting a new, enclosed mall this year.

The mall arrives as the region’s existing players are being forced by a host of forces to think outside the box to remain relevant.

Westfield Group’s Southgate mall property, for instance, is becoming an outdoor complex called “Westfield Siesta Key.”

Sarasota Square mall is being renovated to fit a new 21,000-square-foot H&M apparel store and is courting other future tenants.

More retail seems to just keep coming.

“Shopping patterns are going to change, though we don’t know exactly how just yet,” said Jeff Green, a Phoenix-based retail analyst who is familiar with Southwest Florida’s offerings.

“Unfortunately, though, it is clear that downtown is one of the areas that will be hit the hardest.”

Read more here.