Sears Brings Big-Box Concept to So. Cal. Week In Review
Sears, Roebuck and Co. is joining the retail renaissance in Southern California’s Inland Empire.
The Hoffman Estates, Ill.–based retailer is bringing its new Sears Grand concept to Rancho Cucamonga, where it will open a 180,000- square-foot mega-store on Halloween.
Sears, even though it won’t say it, appears to be coming up with a concept that is the company’s answer to Wal-Mart Super Centers, where families can find everything— from food to band saws to halter dresses—under one roof.
However, Sears does not appear to be going full bore into groceries. Instead, the company will carry mainly pantry items.
When it opens, the Rancho Cucamonga store will be the only one of its kind on the West Coast and the fourth in the chain. The first Sears Grand opened near Salt Lake City in October, and another opened in the Chicago market on April 3. The company plans to open a Las Vegas unit on July 31, said company spokesperson Cheryl Lambert.
“These are considered to be pilot stores in that each one we open, we learn what works and what doesn’t and implement those changes in the new stores,” she said, adding that Sears expects to plan the future based on the activity of five pilot stores.
The one-level Rancho Cucamonga store will be more than twice the size of a regular Sears store.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has set the pace for big-box retailing with its Super Centers. It opened its first California unit last month in La Quinta. Each store, at more than 200,000 square feet, carries groceries as well as hard and soft goods. Wal-Mart spokesperson Peter Kanelos said the company plans to roll out about 40 Super Centers in California over the next three to four years.
Sears is not commenting on its future plans for Sears Grand. One Wall Street retail analyst said it’s too early to tell what the retailer will do with the concept.
“This is their off-mall strategy,” said the analyst, who wished to remain anonymous. “I’m not sure if they are sure of what the final merchandise mix will be and how much apparel will be in these stores. It’s still early in the game.”
Sears Grand will be located off Interstate 15 and Foothill Boulevard and will anchor the 300,000-square-foot Foothill Crossings center across the street from the 1,000,000- square-foot Victoria Gardens, a new open-air mall set to open at about the same time.
Victoria Gardens, being developed by Cleveland-based Forest City Enterprises, will also bring a new shopping concept to the Inland Empire. It is a groundbreaker not so much because of its open-air format but because of its retail focus on the higher-end stores that the region is used to. Among those signing leases are retailers Coldwater Creek, Ann Taylor Loft, Guess?, Hollister, J. Jill, Talbots, Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn and Strasburg Children in addition to Macy’s, Robinsons-May and the J.C. Penney Co. Inc. The Inland Empire has become a prime target for retailers. Real estate prices are well below those of regions to the west, and that has brought many distribution and warehousing operations to the area. It has also brought extraordinary housing growth and plenty of young families.
“The Inland Empire is under-retailed,” noted Jack Kyser, senior economist for the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. “It didn’t slow down, not even during this last recession. A lot of people will be watching Victoria Gardens and Sears Grand. The [developers] are trying to get more unique retailers out there, and it will be interesting to see how it factors out.” —Robert McAllister
