Big retailer is eyeing OKC & Tulsa

[Gene]

Yes, I was like 7 when that happened. Thank you for the clarification. I loved Safeway when I was a kid ;-)

Same here. 33rd and Blvd in Edmond where Mardels is. I still think about going there for comics and MAD magazine. When they went away, we started shopping at Foodworld, which later became Ray's Superthrift. Edmond is pretty much owned by Walmart at this point.

[Larry OKC]

I hope it is a Fry's. A manager told me at one of the Dallas area stores YEARS ago that they were going to be opening up one in OKC "soon".

[bchris02]

Same here. 33rd and Blvd in Edmond where Mardels is. I still think about going there for comics and MAD magazine. When they went away, we started shopping at Foodworld, which later became Ray's Superthrift. Edmond is pretty much owned by Walmart at this point.

The entire OKC metro is pretty much owned by Wal-Mart. That's why the grocery selection here continues to be the worst anywhere in the US except the most isolated, rural communities.

[bchris02]

I hope it is a Fry's. A manager told me at one of the Dallas area stores YEARS ago that they were going to be opening up one in OKC "soon".

That was probably before Newegg and Amazon cut to the marrow of the electronics superstore business model.

[amberda]

An REI employee in Austin told me last summer that they were planning to open a store in OKC. He didn't have details and of course I haven't seen or heard anything about it since so who knows.

[Mississippi Blues]

An REI employee in Austin told me last summer that they were planning to open a store in OKC. He didn't have details and of course I haven't seen or heard anything about it since so who knows.

I don't know why, but it seems like every store that isn't in OKC has employees that hear they'll be opening in OKC soon.

[amberda]

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. 'They all say that.' I even wondered if he was just saying it to sell me the membership.

[CCOKC]

When I was at the Denver store in June I asked about a store in okc. The answer I got was that they base their decisions on how many members are in a certain area. So if you really want a store here you need to back it up by purchasing a membership.

[SoonerDave]

The entire OKC metro is pretty much owned by Wal-Mart. That's why the grocery selection here continues to be the worst anywhere in the US except the most isolated, rural communities.

Except for the giant Crest at SW 104th and May, the Homeland at SW 104th and Penn, the SuperTarget grocery on Memorial Road, the Homeland on N. May....


....point is that, yes, Wal Mart has a big presence, but its too extreme to say only alternatives are "most isolated rural communities." Couldn't tell you the last time I bought groceries at a WalMart.

[bluedogok]

That was probably before Newegg and Amazon cut to the marrow of the electronics superstore business model.

Fry's in Austin doesn't seem to suffer from that issue, Newegg was my second option after Fry's and most of the tech people that I knew felt the same. I wish we had them up here in Denver, we have Micro Center which is good but it isn't Fry's.

[bchris02]

Fry's in Austin doesn't seem to suffer from that issue, Newegg was my second option after Fry's and most of the tech people that I knew felt the same. I wish we had them up here in Denver, we have Micro Center which is good but it isn't Fry's.

I think a MicroCenter would be good for OKC as well. I am not sure if this city has a large enough tech market to support a store like Fry's, however. Austin is the tech capital of Texas and also happens to be the smallest market with a Fry's. They used to also have one in San Antonio but I think it closed. It would be nice if OKC had something besides Best Buy, but this definitely isn't the only market with this problem. CompUSA, Circuit City, PC Club, Ultimate Electronics all fell one by one leaving many cities with nothing left but Best Buy. What keeps stores like Fry's and MicroCenter in business is they are selective with their locations. If they start getting too carefree with their expansion, I wonder if they would end up just like CompUSA and the rest.

[Just the facts]

The entire OKC metro is pretty much owned by Wal-Mart. That's why the grocery selection here continues to be the worst anywhere in the US except the most isolated, rural communities.

Aparently it isn't just the grocery stores Walmart is keeping out. I am actually a little depressed reading the list of stores you guys don't have. I never realized how much a of retail desert OKC is. I banned my wife from buying anything at Walmart.

[ljbab728]

Obviously, according this article, retail in OKC is really heating up.

http://www.oklahoman.com/article/3865510?embargo=1

Ruth's Chris Steak House is still cooking, and Costco, Cabela's and Main Event are still looking.

But the most intriguing part of Price Edwards & Co.'s midyear retail property market summary report is what it doesn't mention.
“There are several more that are not prepared at this time to announce their intentions,” Price Edwards teased.

Jim Parrack, senior vice president and retail specialist, wouldn't budge when pressed.
Oklahoma City retail development is hot, in other words. Sizzling even, speaking of Ruth's Chris — although no deal has yet closed on a location for the national upscale steakhouse. When it comes off, it'll be a cut above the rest.
Retail vacancy declined to 9 percent at midyear from 10.2 percent at the end of 2012, with nearly 200,000 square feet of space absorbed and increased occupancy in six of seven submarkets tracked, Price Edwards reported.

Newer shopping centers are nearly full, with those built since 2000 more than 95 percent occupied, “and our overhang of big-box space is in essence gone,” the firm said.

[bchris02]

Aparently it isn't just the grocery stores Walmart is keeping out. I am actually a little depressed reading the list of stores you guys don't have. I never realized how much a of retail desert OKC is. I banned my wife from buying anything at Walmart.

Agreed. This is a huge weak point about OKC, one there really isn't any way to dance around. It's a quality of life issue. Nobody expects OKC to have a Nordstrom, IKEA, or Louis Vuitton, but it should have the basic retail people in towns a quarter its size take for granted. It's mind-numbing the type of things I've had to adjust to not having in a city of 1.3 million people.

The good news is a ton of retailers are currently probing into the OKC market. My hope is that within the next few years things will change significantly in this area. When I lived in Little Rock in 2008, that place was a huge retail desert. It was sad compared to OKC and didn't really have much that Fort Smith didn't have. In the five years since its improved sevenfold and now I would say Little Rock probably even has OKC beat. That really shows that this kind of thing can turn around pretty quickly if the right hand is dealt.

Unfortunately, until something is done about the liquor laws, retail in the city will never see its true potential.

[bluedogok]

I think a MicroCenter would be good for OKC as well. I am not sure if this city has a large enough tech market to support a store like Fry's, however. Austin is the tech capital of Texas and also happens to be the smallest market with a Fry's. They used to also have one in San Antonio but I think it closed. It would be nice if OKC had something besides Best Buy, but this definitely isn't the only market with this problem. CompUSA, Circuit City, PC Club, Ultimate Electronics all fell one by one leaving many cities with nothing left but Best Buy. What keeps stores like Fry's and MicroCenter in business is they are selective with their locations. If they start getting too carefree with their expansion, I wonder if they would end up just like CompUSA and the rest.

I think a Micro Center would be prime for OKC, not too big (although it would be nice if the Denver store was bigger) in comparison to Fry's. The cost of entry for a Micro Center would be a lower hurdle, especially going into an dark store. Up in Thornton there is the former main store, warehouse and HQ of Ultimate Electronics, a huge dark lot there. Sportsman's Warehouse is in front of it.

[bchris02]

I think a Micro Center would be prime for OKC, not too big (although it would be nice if the Denver store was bigger) in comparison to Fry's. The cost of entry for a Micro Center would be a lower hurdle, especially going into an dark store. Up in Thornton there is the former main store, warehouse and HQ of Ultimate Electronics, a huge dark lot there. Sportsman's Warehouse is in front of it.

They have a store in Kansas so I guess it wouldn't be unthinkable. Are those stores expanding though? These days I rarely hear of new electronics superstores opening period. Even Best Buy has stopped their mass expansion and have even had to close some stores. I would love for OKC to get a MicroCenter or Fry's, but I am not sure how it would happen.

[bluedogok]

Not sure if they are expanding or not but at some point I would think they need to expand at some point and into markets without a Fry's for competition would make sense for them.

The only Best Buy that closed in the Denver area was the one that I went to by the rental house, I have one across the highway from me now after we moved to the new house. Over expansion was probably their issue and debt load was the anchor. I know the Fry's in Austin and the MC here are always more crowded than any Best Buy that I have seen and MC has a much smaller store.

[soonerguru]

I think a MicroCenter would be good for OKC as well. I am not sure if this city has a large enough tech market to support a store like Fry's, however. Austin is the tech capital of Texas and also happens to be the smallest market with a Fry's. They used to also have one in San Antonio but I think it closed. It would be nice if OKC had something besides Best Buy, but this definitely isn't the only market with this problem. CompUSA, Circuit City, PC Club, Ultimate Electronics all fell one by one leaving many cities with nothing left but Best Buy. What keeps stores like Fry's and MicroCenter in business is they are selective with their locations. If they start getting too carefree with their expansion, I wonder if they would end up just like CompUSA and the rest.

I'm not familiar with MicroCenter, but perhaps they would fare better if they weren't publicly traded.

[Snowman]

Not sure if they are expanding or not but at some point I would think they need to expand at some point and into markets without a Fry's for competition would make sense for them.

The only Best Buy that closed in the Denver area was the one that I went to by the rental house, I have one across the highway from me now after we moved to the new house. Over expansion was probably their issue and debt load was the anchor. I know the Fry's in Austin and the MC here are always more crowded than any Best Buy that I have seen and MC has a much smaller store.

I think Best Buy's issue was a combination of over expansion, wider acceptance/improvements in online shopping in recent years and digital distribution of music/games/video. Given how much space they still have with things that seem to be a declining market, unless they plan on acting the previous CEOs rumored plan to do smaller stores, I could almost see trying to reposition them self more like a target than a pure electronics store in the future.

[Pete]

Oklahoma City retail is hot
BY RICHARD MIZE richardmize@opubco.com
PUBLISHED: JULY 24, 2013

Ruth's Chris Steak House is still cooking, and Costco, Cabela's and Main Event are still looking.

But the most intriguing part of Price Edwards & Co.'s midyear retail property market summary report is what it doesn't mention.

“There are several more that are not prepared at this time to announce their intentions,” Price Edwards teased.

Jim Parrack, senior vice president and retail specialist, wouldn't budge when pressed.

Big box-type retailers looking for space “have sworn everybody to secrecy,” he said. They are “names that people would recognize. People will be glad if they come.”

Would-be newcomers are always looking, he said, but the numbers and intensity of site selectors reflects activity higher than it's been in 10 years.

Oklahoma City retail development is hot, in other words. Sizzling even, speaking of Ruth's Chris — although no deal has yet closed on a location for the national upscale steakhouse. When it comes off, it'll be a cut above the rest.

[CaptDave]

Of all these stores, give me REI and a nice grocery store like HEB/Central Market or Trader Joes's.

I think there is a great location for Trader Joe's/Central Market on Penn north of 150th. There is a large open field that could easily accomodate a nice store. You could even push the storefront to the sidewalk and have parking in the back. I think there are enough rooftops within their desired radius to make it viable. The right type of building would change the character of that stretch of Penn dramatically. It just needs a developer (and city building code) with a vision other than acres of parking on the streetside and a strip center at the back.

[bchris02]

^^^ Unfortunately I feel it is wishful thinking to even think H-E-B will ever come to OKC. They aren't even in DFW with their regular stores. It would be nice though.

Trader Joe's is a niche store and doesn't compete with Wal-Mart so I think it's likely eventually.

[BoulderSooner]

Ruth's Chris to classen curve

[BrettM2]

Ruth's Chris to classen curve

Confirmed or your guess?

[BoulderSooner]

Confirmed or your guess?

not "confirmed" but more than a guess