Wednesday, July 19, 2000
Industry notes: Retail
Tower Place welcomes new tenants
By Lisa Biank Fasig
The Cincinnati Enquirer
That sound at Tower Place at the Carew Tower could be the rustle of boxes and makeup cases unpacking, as some new tenants settle into the downtown mall.
• Jeni Lee, a new cosmetic store concept by local professional makeup artist Jeni Lee Dinkel, will take over the old Perfumania spot, on the skywalk. The store, to open in early September, will be Ms. Lee's second, following a location in New York.
Joe Price, former Reds pitcher, is executive vice president of the venture.
• Dino's For Men clothing by late September is relocating from Kenwood Towne Centre to the Tower Place skywalk, between the atrium and Saks Fifth Avenue.
• 5th Elephant, a contemporary home decor and gift shop, is scheduled to open in September in the old Walls of Fame next to Dino's.
The openings leave one spot left vacant on the skywalk — the former Metabolife.
Mall management also is working with a tenant to occupy the former J. Riggins spot, on the street level of the mall near the atrium. J. Riggings closed last summer after its parent filed for bankruptcy.
Information about Tower Place can be found at Towerplace.com.
Pet adoption site wins recognition
Looks like more than one Hyde Park business is the cat's meow to an online peer.
A couple weeks ago, Natcloset.com, the online showroom for accessories store Nature's Closet, was chosen by Snap.com as “one of the most popular Live Directory sites in its category.” Now it looks like freetoAgoodhome.com, also based in Hyde Park, earned the nod from Snap.
Like Natcloset, freetoAgoodhome.com was deemed “among the best sites on the Web.”
Entrepreneur Andy Wilson founded freetoAgoodhome.com, at 1343 Michigan Ave., last year. The site is dedicated to pet adoption, finding lost pets and placing found pets with their owners.
The site is not a retail location, though it does link to online pet stores, offers lists of breeders, trainers, vets and shelters. Users can post descriptions of animals found or lost, which can be categorized by ZIP code and animal type. Birds and small animals also can be listed.
Benefit resale chain to open in Deer Park
The Discovery Shop, a high-end resale chain operated by the American Cancer Society, is scheduled to open Friday at 4081 E. Galbraith Road, Deer Park.
Unlike a lot of secondhand stores, Discovery Shop does not consign. Instead, all merchandise is donated and donations are tax-deductible.
Resale stores are not a new venture for the cancer society. It opened its first resale stores 30 years ago in California. Roughly 100 of the stores operate now.
The cancer society is accepting merchandise for the store. All proceeds go to funding cancer studies, programs and services of the society. For information: 891-1600.
Advance Auto Parts opens 7th area outlet
Advance Auto Parts, seller of auto parts and accessories, opened its seventh area store last week in Springfield Township.
The store, at 10925 Hamilton Ave. employs about 10 people.
Two more Advance Auto stores are scheduled to open in Lebanon and Lincoln Heights over the next six weeks.
Advance Auto Parts, primary trade name for Advance Stores Co. Inc., is a wholly owned subsidiary of Advance Holding Corp. and is based in Roanoke, Va.
Online store of the week
Online furniture store Furniture.com has been forced to take some unpopular measures as it — like other online retailers — tries to reduce costs in an increasingly competitive online market.
The Framingham, Mass.-based e-tailer had released 29 workers, trade magazines reported, and said it would let go of another 80 in order to get a new round of financing.
But the biggest blow for consumers is the elimination of its free delivery service.
Furniture.com used to offer free shipping on orders of more than $100 — an important incentive. It has begun charging a flat fee of $95 anywhere in the U.S.
Still, Furniture.com offers a broad variety of furniture from makers across the country. Furniture.com also offers penalty-free returns within 30 days of delivery.
Insurer discrimination alleged
More disabled going to work
PNC plans to sell mortgage company
Industry notes: Retail
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