urbanMSP

Will Uptown’s new stores and restaurants bring ‘more people and vibrancy’?. https://www.startribune.com/a-more-ecle ... 600195763/

Some interesting info in this article: uptown area apartment vacancy is around 4%, uptown theater will be open “by next March”, and Southpond is working with Ann Kim on a 10,000 square foot market concept in 7 points (I believe in the soon to be redeveloped portion)


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I don't see how H&M leaving could be spun as anything but a negative. If the neighborhood can't support a popular store that sells affordable, trendy clothes geared toward young people, what even is Uptown?

^ I can provide another perspective for this as a young person. When people come to Uptown, they want an urban experience and local flavor rather than a big-box store you can find in most suburban malls (which also offers more convenient parking and more stores). On top of that, H&M is a dinosaur in fast fashion, which is itself an industry many young people have soured on. Young people who come to Uptown and/or the folks who choose to live in Uptown are there because they want to be in the city, not a generic shopping mall flipped inside out. I can't say I know what could take the space of the H&M since the layout is conspicuously best-suited for a big-box store, but I don't think the de-mallification of Uptown is a bad thing. I think, if anything, Henn-Lake is being purged of old school retail and could now start to look more like the much more vibrant LynLake.

As someone who has bought most of his dress shirts from H&M over the last few years... I had no idea there was one in Uptown. So it probably has less to do with their target demo and more to do with urban indoor malls being a terrible place to put your store.

I think it could just be that we are not in the same exact demographic group! I am just speaking from my experience as a person in their early twenties (who used to live in the Uptown area and frequented LynLake more than HennLake for the reasons described above). It is also worth noting that the H&M had ample street signage and could only be accessed from the entrance on Hennepin, so I don't know that your hypothesis holds.

The point is that H&M is a popular and useful store for people in the demographic that has typically defined Uptown. If it leaves, what's replacing it? And how does that make Uptown a more appealing neighborhood?

People keep talking about Uptown as being in a transition from destination retail to shops that cater more to the local community (notwithstanding, of course, the new 2,500-seat theater being built, nor the destination entertainment concept that's opening in a shopping mall). And now because H&M is a chain store that also exists in suburban malls, we might as well get rid of it too.

That's just wild.

What clothes store isn't a chain? And have you considered that the reason H&M is in so many malls is because people like to shop there?

I will go through this point by point:

-H&M is certainly popular. However, consumption patterns change, and our city's retail scene will inevitably follow. Fast fashion is increasingly online-- Shein, a Chinese company that has no physical presence in the US, now takes home 40% of the US fast fashion market share. Its competitors, including H&M, have declined in popularity as a result. The size of the fast fashion pie itself seems to be shrinking. There's less data on this, but the investment firm UBS predicts that fast fashion brands will see revenue declines between 10 and 30% in the next decade. Personally, none of my friends shop at H&M, Forever 21, and Zara, but several use Depop regularly.

-While I cannot tell you exactly what stores will take H&M's place, it would be extremely fatalistic to presume that whatever comes next will not be appealing as well. Per your own admission, you shop at H&M and didn't even realize the location on Hennepin existed (let alone shop there yourself). It couldn't have been too much of an amenity to you personally, or the community at large. Maybe something better will follow. Re: the transition from destination retail to stores that "cater more to the local community", I agree with you-- I've seen that verbiage before and I think it's inaccurate. I think what they really mean are stores/entertainment that are FROM the community rather than generic national chains. I'm not saying we "might as well" get rid of H&M because it's also in malls. But its departure reflects changes in consumption patterns and its presence never served me (or you). Maybe Uptown's survival hinges on it offering what a mall cannot.

-Clothing stores that aren't chains: boutiques, local designers, vintage stores, thrift stores? MartinPatrick3 isn't a chain. In fact, most of the clothing stores in North Loop aren't chains (save for a few that have opened recently due to increasing property values). Why couldn't Uptown aspire to be similar but targeted towards a younger, more countercultural, less upscale market?

-As I noted above, H&M does indeed attract many shoppers. Many people also use JiffyLube, but that doesn't mean there needs to be one in the middle of Uptown. Business turnover does not warrant this level of hysteria. Uptown remains a large concentration of people, so from an economic standpoint there will always be demand for local services, entertainment, retail, etc. Yes, it is going through a bit of an awkward phase right now, but with patience and a bit of imagination, it will be remade.

You’re focusing on H&M specifically. I’m talking about the bigger picture. Even in the unlikely scenario that H&M leaves and is replaced by a MartinPatrick3 equivalent, is that actually a good thing?

If anything it’s doubling down on the retail trends we’re supposedly trying to move on from.

I just think a neighborhood is more interesting if geared more toward young people rather than rich people, and having a popular if unextraordinary clothes store is a net positive for an area like Uptown.

Chain stores in Uptown often get the blame for its "death," but it actually is kind of weird that other cities seem capable of having commercial districts that mix chain with independent stores but we can't seem to do that. I'm quite certain most folks in Minneapolis - and even in Uptown - are not anti-chain.

So it actually does say something that Uptown can't keep them around. And even if they're not the right chain for the area (North Face and Columbia probably aren't given what they sell and how often people shop for that type of stuff), it does make you wonder why we can't seem to find what chains do work.

Uptown's failure and LynLake's success sometimes gets boiled down to LynLake having fewer chains than Uptown. But if you look at LynLake, the secret to its success seems to be having many food/drink options, a few services, and not a whole lot of retail. Uptown actually seems to have a better mix overall, but it doesn't seem to be working. Hennepin between Lagoon and Lake has to be one of the most depressing blocks in the entire southwest quadrant of the city.

I think a big problem is that it's very easy to own a car in Uptown (and in Minneapolis in general). MOA, Southdale, and Ridgedale are all only 20 minutes away and allow shoppers to visit more than just H&M. Online shopping is also a much bigger thing now and is probably the biggest game-changer for car-free people. That's not to say Uptown doesn't deserve clothing shops, but chain retailers can't apply the mall financial formulas expecting the same success.

I'm also pretty certain that there was a moment in time (when Apple, North Face, et. al.) were opening up stores that the rents that retail landlords were asking got severely out of whack.

I will once again say that Uniqlo would be the perfect "chain" uptown tenant.

I will once again say that Uniqlo would be the perfect "chain" uptown tenant.

Uptown goodwill is my dream! I like buffalo exchange but I don’t want to have to go way south on Nicollet for a cheap thrift store


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Thrift/shoe store Urban Jungle is expanding from Seven Corners to Uptown, in the old North Face location.

Thrift/shoe store Urban Jungle is expanding from Seven Corners to Uptown, in the old North Face location.

Speaking of thrift/vintage stores - that’s some welcome news


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Thrift/shoe store Urban Jungle is expanding from Seven Corners to Uptown, in the old North Face location.

Speaking of thrift/vintage stores - that’s some welcome news


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That is indeed great news, and perhaps a first clue on the extent to which rents are resetting in the area? North Face to Urban Jungle is a fairly large swing in retail character of a building.

I've always thought we'd have to see some actual foreclosures and/or major debt re-structuring on buildings before rents can economically be lowered and let the area start to claw its way back. Maybe that is starting to happen.

Owner of Granada Theater in Uptown Minneapolis sued by bank over loan debt
'In late March, the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office held a foreclosure sale for the property. Premier Bank won the bid and paid $2 million for the property, though the transaction hasn't officially happened yet. The $2 million foreclosure sale was subtracted from Hoskin's total debt load and he currently owes more than $1.3 million on the note plus $193 that accrues daily.'
https://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/ ... k-for.html

I just hate to see these old theaters get gutted from their original use… now the uptown is going to be gutted too…

Many bags of Thai rice as well as signs of renovation are visible in the vacant commercial space on lake and Bryant that was most recently Mucci’s



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New proposal for 2916 grand ave s. It will replaced a few single family homes. It will included 3 and 4 bed room units
https://lims.minneapolismn.gov/download ... f%20Report