Will there be enough shoppers to go around now that The District at the Tustin Legacy is open?
Some wonder.
“The proof is in the pudding,” Jeff Axtell says.
Axtell is project manager for Phoenix-based Vestar Development Co., which is developing the mall with New Hyde Park, N.Y.-based Kimco Realty Corp.
So far, sales at stores that are open are better than expected, he said, though he didn’t offer up numbers.
“What that tells me is there is a demand for more,” Axtell said.
The 1 million-square-foot shopping center competes with Irvine Spectrum Center and The Market Place in Tustin and Irvine.
TJ Maxx, which has a store at The Market Place, said sales were better than expected at the District, according to Axtell.
“Costco opened up and did unbelievable right out of the gate,” he said.
Costco also has a store two miles away at The Market Place.
Whole Foods is opening a 65,000-square-foot store Aug. 29 and is expected to draw bigger crowds.
The District, a “lifestyle” mall with entertainment such as bowling and movies, serves Tustin, Newport Beach and Irvine, Axtell said.
The District hopes to lure Newport Beach shoppers with stores they won’t find at Fashion Island.
The mall is hoping to set itself apart from its closest rival, The Market Place.
Axtell said he believes there are enough shoppers to go around.
The city did studies to make sure the demand was there, he said. In about five years, 10,000 more residents will move into the area, he said. The redevelopment of the former Tustin Marine base includes housing as well as The District.
The mall plans to play up events.
Kimberly Daskas, marketing director for The District, spent six years as marketing director for Fremont Experience in downtown Las Vegas. She’s also done online marketing.
The mall plans to host music on its outdoor stage. Daskas said she’s working with Las Vegas-based Bogus Productions to book bands.
Plans also call for fashion shows, comedy and karaoke, she said.
The mall’s official opening is set for this weekend. The first 100 shoppers each day get swag bags.
Glabman Blowout
Fourth-generation family furniture retailer Glabman Furniture is having a big sale at its Costa Mesa store before closing it. The company plans to open another store in a new spot with an updated theme and look.
“We’re moving toward high-end interior design,” President Brian Glabman said.
Glabman Furniture has four stores in Southern California, all of which are set to reopen with the new design. The stores could see a new name. They’ll include a “green room” with eco-friendly furniture.
The company was started in Chicago by Glabman’s great grandfather in 1899. Many of Brian Glabman’s cousins and uncles are involved in the furniture business as manufacturers and upholsterers.
Honda Dealer Push
The Southern California Honda Dealers Association, which includes several dealers in OC, has beefed up its local advertising.
“Car dealers are portrayed so poorly,” said Bill Piercey, president of the 57-member association and owner of five dealers including Honda World in Westminster.
“Sometimes it’s deserved,” he said.
In general, dealers are big community givers and often are cities’ largest generators of sales tax, Piercey said.
Figuring out how to stand out was the question, he said. The association’s board interviewed ad agencies and narrowed it down to two. One was a more traditional agency, the other more risky, Piercey said.
The dealers decided to take a risk and hired Secret Weapon Marketing in Santa Monica.
Secret Weapon has just two big accounts and only plans to take on one more. Its other big account is Jack in the Box.
“Honda is unusual,” said Pat Adams, managing director of Secret Weapon Marketing.
The dealers haven’t advertised as a group for 12 years, he said. The U.S. arm of Japan’s Honda Motor Co. does national advertising.
The campaign: “Honda Helpful.” The effort includes TV ads that show Honda dealers who are so helpful that by the end of the commercial the buyer takes advantage of them.
Forty-eight of the 57 dealers in the association have adopted the blue polo shirts worn in the commercials, Adams said.
The idea behind the campaign, which began at the end of January, was to differentiate Honda dealers in the minds of buyers and gain their trust.
It’s not known how effective the campaign has been. Early anecdotal consumer research has been positive, according to Adams.
Piercey said he’s unsure if results can be measured. But the campaign has gotten the dealers attention, he said.
“I think it will take a while to see,” Piercey said. “We have to do the things we say we’re going to do.”
