Becky's Hallmark (downtown) closing

[TheTravellers]

Heard from my wife that they're closing, not sure why or when. Major bummer for lots of downtown folks (but apparently not too many since they probably wouldn't've had to close if there really lots of folks going to it, but not sure if the closing is financial)

[Pete]

Aren't they in First National Center?

I think there has been a Hallmark store downtown continuously since at least the 70's.

[Of Sound Mind]

Aren't they in First National Center?

I think there has been a Hallmark store downtown continuously since at least the 70's.

They were before their move to their current location a few years ago. Definitely a loss.

[Anonymous.]

Pass by this often, never see anyone in there except for the occasional 'grab a card for mothers day' situations.

Honestly I feel as if Hallmark is a dying store already. Online media(s) are king now.

[shawnw]

This stinks, but seems like an opportunity for one of the other local shops to pick up SOME of the slack with some cute and seasonal, non-hallmark cards.

[Of Sound Mind]

Honestly I feel as if Hallmark is a dying store already. Online media(s) are king now.

The owner said as much in the NewsOK article. Even so, it's been handy having it there to pick up a card quickly for someone, especially sympathy cards (which aren't quite as effective via online media).

[SoonerDave]

Hallmark has done a fairly credible job keeping their business going, but it doesn't take a rocket (or maybe business) scientist to realize that the "greeting card era" is just about gone. Over the short-term, Hallmark has tried to stem the losses by offering things like custom recordable cards, musical chips, stuff like that, but I believe that's merely postponing the inevitable. I think Hallmark recently shuttered a plant up in the KC area if I'm not mistaken.

With places like Walgreens selling Hallmark cards these days, I have a really tough time seeing how any of the individual Hallmark card/gift shops like this one survive. Went to one over on I-240 and Penn and they have all their high-markup items up front, eg gifts, frames, Yankee Candles, and the cards all in the back.

[zookeeper]

More retail lost downtown, while we finance with "incentive packages" new retail at Chisolm Creek. She should have requested the same kinds of incentives to expand into the new century with new products and more offerings. Of course, that's only for corporate fat cats who really don't need the "incentives." Hell, who's Becky? Just an Oklahoman who's losing her family business. Who cares when we can have another big sporting goods and outdoors megachain big box store and partly financed with city (taxpayer) money?

[SoonerDave]

More retail lost downtown, while we finance with "incentive packages" new retail at Chisolm Creek. She should have requested the same kinds of incentives to expand into the new century with new products and more offerings. Of course, that's only for corporate fat cats who really don't need the "incentives." Hell, who's Becky? Just an Oklahoman who's losing her family business. Who cares when we can have another big sporting goods and outdoors megachain big box store and partly financed with city (taxpayer) money?

So Chisholm Creek is responsible for people not buying greeting cards anymore?

[zookeeper]

I guess you missed this:
She should have requested the same kinds of incentives to expand into the new century with new products and more offerings.

Do you support all these giveaway incentive programs for big box stores?

[TheTravellers]

I think the big thing that's making my wife and her co-workers sad is that there's just no replacement available for it, no Walgreens just down the street that you can go to instead, it's just lost. FWIW, I still like greeting cards, no damn glitter, though, ever, ever, ever!, and no musical or corny ones, but some are still pretty cool (the Papyrus ones, as well as some at B&N). But then again, I'm ancient...

[zookeeper]

By the way, I'm not going to debate this over and over in multiple threads. It is what it is. Some of us see it as government intrusion into the marketplace that support the big chains over local business that could use just a tiny portion of the $3.5 million. It angers me so much that many of you call yourselves "conservative" that it just blows my mind. You all obviously don't believe the "invisible hand" of the free market works ---- without government help. No more. My blood pressure can't take it. You all are right, okay? Nobody would come here and profit from Oklahoma City without our handouts. Gotcha.

[SoonerDave]

I guess you missed this:
She should have requested the same kinds of incentives to expand into the new century with new products and more offerings.

Do you support all these giveaway incentive programs for big box stores?

Giveaway incentives? Framed in all that wife-beating hyperbole, there's obviously no correct answer to that.

Do I support the consideration of reasoned incentive packages for which a business and a city perform mutual due diligence and find a benefit in both directions for waiving certain taxes or other fees? Of course. Carte blanche, every time? Of course not.

to expand into the new century with new products and more offerings.

What, specifically, were the "new products and more offerings" she was wanting to deliver? I missed that part.

Bigger, thicker greeting cards?

Internet-connected music boxes?

USB-enabled Yankee Candles?

The point, zoo, is that - believe it or not - I'm there with you to a degree, at least in spirit, when a city makes a deal to one vendor while another vendor goes wanting. It's why the Bass Pro offering downtown was such a bad deal back in the day. But to extend this particular case - a business owner trying to bolster a fundamentally dying business model versus a new, in-demand retail offering, with considerable employment, tax, and revenue potential...I'd be cutting off my nose to spite my face to unilaterally and pre-emptively say that was a bad deal. It would be like someone trying to put the kibosh on, say, an electronics manufacturer because a store selling CB radios and tube televisions was having a tough financial time.

Ultimately, these two things aren't related. It's an understandable emotional response, to be sure, but Chisholm Creek isn't the reason this greeting card store is dying, and the greeting card store isn't why the city is considering (but apparently not yet approved?) an incentive package to this new retailer.

[zookeeper]

Giveaway incentives? Framed in all that wife-beating hyperbole, there's obviously no correct answer to that.

Do I support the consideration of reasoned incentive packages for which a business and a city perform mutual due diligence and find a benefit in both directions for waiving certain taxes or other fees? Of course. Carte blanche, every time? Of course not.



What, specifically, were the "new products and more offerings" she was wanting to deliver? I missed that part.

Bigger, thicker greeting cards?

Internet-connected music boxes?

USB-enabled Yankee Candles?

The point, zoo, is that - believe it or not - I'm there with you to a degree, at least in spirit, when a city makes a deal to one vendor while another vendor goes wanting. It's why the Bass Pro offering downtown was such a bad deal back in the day. But to extend this particular case - a business owner trying to bolster a fundamentally dying business model versus a new, in-demand retail offering, with considerable employment, tax, and revenue potential...I'd be cutting off my nose to spite my face to unilaterally and pre-emptively say that was a bad deal. It would be like someone trying to put the kibosh on, say, an electronics manufacturer because a store selling CB radios and tube televisions was having a tough financial time.

Ultimately, these two things aren't related. It's an understandable emotional response, to be sure, but Chisholm Creek isn't the reason this greeting card store is dying, and the greeting card store isn't why the city is considering (but apparently not yet approved?) an incentive package to this new retailer.

And I was throwing the Hallmark store out as just an example of losing retail that's nice to have downtown. It was half in jest. But, now that I think about it..

Municipal government is needed to fund the things the private sector cannot. We fund our city with tax dollars. Seeing this ever expanding encroachment into rebating $3.5 million to Big Retail while Mom & Pop pay full freight? It's wrong. I'm out now, I really hate to see how this Republican, conservative city has hoodwinked the taxpayers into paying for so many things that the private business has the money to pay for anyway. It's just. getting. out. of. hand.

[DoctorTaco]

I've worked downtown for two years and I had no idea there was a Hallmark here. Where was it? In the tunnels? I get my hair cut in First National so I feel I'd have seen it if it was there. But I stay out of the tunnels on principle (and because of all the C.H.U.D.s).

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that the fact that you can always be downtown yet not know the store existed has a lot to do with their demise.

[SoonerDave]

And I was throwing the Hallmark store out as just an example of losing retail that's nice to have downtown. It was half in jest. But, now that I think about it..

Municipal government is needed to fund the things the private sector cannot. We fund our city with tax dollars. Seeing this ever expanding encroachment into rebating $3.5 million to Big Retail while Mom & Pop pay full freight? It's wrong. I'm out now, I really hate to see how this Republican, conservative city has hoodwinked the taxpayers into paying for so many things that the private business has the money to pay for anyway. It's just. getting. out. of. hand.

Zoo, can you explain why you don't see the tremendous net benefit to the city for this? You keep talking about the "taxpayers paying for so many things," but keep in mind the city and state have treasuries and investments that take taxpayer dollars and invest them to get a return...if the city sees a net return in the real-world benefit of jobs employing our people, commerce feeding the economic engine, more opportunity for goods and services to be sold and bought, and to realize that net return on $3.5 m is (drastically) better than you can get right now on most "conventional" investments, why is it such a hoodwink?

The fact that mom-n-pop Hallmark store is dying is just an emotional grab. Yes, its sad. I hate it for that person and that family. I hated it when some friends of ours tried their hand at running a donut shop several years ago, and it didn't work out. There was no tax incentive for them. It sucked. It isn't fair. But if we collectively decide to sit on our hands on the opportunity to do at least some things because there exists the absence of absolute fairness in all things, nothing in any society will ever get done.

[Of Sound Mind]

Part of that store's demise can be attributed to the taxpayer-funded, grossly mismanaged, never-ending Project 180 improvements that take WAY too long to complete any given phase.

[Jesseda]

AHHH MAN. I love the owners of beckys. They use to own the store in moore, the owner Tom is wonderful guy, we use to go in often to the one in Moore, My children collected all those loud singing holiday plush animals and toys since pretty much birth. After we lost our home in the tornado Tom as a surprise to all of us gave my children most of the singing animal toys that they lost. When Tom closed the moore location last summer We made it to beckys only one time this past year to visit him since they are not open on weekends and I work mon-fri it was hard go.

[Dennis Heaton]

I still send "real" cards to family and friends. I used to send e-cards to internet friends, but not so much anymore. "Real" telephone calls are fading fast: "Real" letters are on the decline; and just about everything else we used to do before the technological age took off full speed ahead. Oh well...Life Is Good.

[BBatesokc]

My wife shops there often as she works downtown and I've been in many times. I think the demise is a combination of location, hours of operation and overhead - that's a pretty big store to occupy a downtown storefront and you've gotta sell a heck of a lot of $4 birthday cards just to make ends-meet.

Sad to see it go. Hope it just sit there vacant. Its a very visible spot though, so I bet its occupied soon.

[OSUFan]

Part of that store's demise can be attributed to the taxpayer-funded, grossly mismanaged, never-ending Project 180 improvements that take WAY too long to complete any given phase.

Has project 180 done any work on the street outside the Hallmark store?

[TheTravellers]

I've worked downtown for two years and I had no idea there was a Hallmark here. Where was it? In the tunnels? I get my hair cut in First National so I feel I'd have seen it if it was there. But I stay out of the tunnels on principle (and because of all the C.H.U.D.s).

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that the fact that you can always be downtown yet not know the store existed has a lot to do with their demise.

I believe it's on Main St. next to the parking garage entrance or exit, think it had a buffalo out in front of it...

[TheTravellers]

Has project 180 done any work on the street outside the Hallmark store?

Yes, I believe so, looks like phase 2, since it's on Main St. between Broadway and Robinson. J-R story here, but you have to be a subscriber, might give more info: Fate of Becky?s Hallmark sealed: Downtown store to close its doors | The Journal Record

[shawnw]

You know, it's a shame they couldn't wait until after the Century Center is populated. I suspect they'd have a non-trivial bump in businesses once there were hundreds more workers right across the street.

[TheTravellers]

Last day for Becky's is tomorrow, huge sale, sad...