www.roanoke.com

In my retail roundup column in today’s Business section, I reported that Dave Johnson, the owner of Mill Mountain Coffee & Tea, confirmed recently that the coffeehouse’s downtown Roanoke location will move by the end of this year.

To the left is a picture of the coffee retailer’s future digs, a building at 117 Campbell Ave. that most recently housed an antique shop.

A city building permit filed this week reveals that renovations soon could begin there.

Earlier this month, when I first reported that Mill Mountain’s retail space at 112 Campbell Ave. would be coming up for lease, several of you weighed in about what that news could mean for this local coffee chain.

Now that Johnson has confirmed the shop’s move, I’d like to know your thoughts. What works about Mill Mountain’s current location, and what features would you like to see in its new spot?

Six years ago, Julie File had amassed a large collection of children’s clothing that was practically new. Family members had purchased apparel for her two children, Lauren and Alex, but much of it was slightly worn or new.

"I had oodles of things I was saving for no reason," said File, a Roanoke County resident.

File rounded up some friends, combined their new and used teenage and children’s clothing, toys and home décor, and started a week-long consignment sale that now is held twice yearly, in October and in March.

She named it Lauren’s Friends & Alex, after her children. Lauren now is 15 and Alex is 8.

This month’s sale began last Saturday inside the former Sofa World building on Electric Road in Roanoke County. It lasts through Sunday.

This weekend perhaps is the best time to shop. On Saturday, all items will be 50 percent off, and on Sunday, everything will be discounted 75 percent.

Prices range from $1.99 to $250, and the variety includes name-brand apparel, toys, baby equipment and furniture.

File, who rents the retail space for a month and a half, begins collecting items on consignment three weeks before each sale starts. Consigners receive 55 percent from the sale of their merchandise, she said.

At the end of the week, consigners can take back the items that are not sold. File donates the remaining merchandise to Total Action Against Poverty, a non-profit Roanoke organization.

Check out the announcement for this sale here. Also watch this Web site for more information about the March sale.

Orvis will shut the doors at its outlet in Salem in late January, and a closing sale will begin there soon.

In February, this mail-order catalog company and retailer with a distribution center in Roanoke announced that it was closing its two outlet stores in the Roanoke Valley, which included the Salem store and one at 31 W. Campbell Ave. in downtown Roanoke. The downtown Roanoke outlet closed in March, and its remaining merchandise was shifted to the Salem store.

Orvis, a chain that sells fly-fishing and other outdoor gear and apparel, at the time had not set a closing date for the Salem location.

James Hathaway, a spokesman for Vermont-based Orvis, said Wednesday that the company is closing the Salem outlet because of uncertainty at the West Salem Plaza, a retail center that has been for sale. Several businesses have moved from the plaza at West Main and Fourth streets because of worry that it will be sold for a new development.

But in March, Hathaway said Orvis’ Roanoke Valley outlets were not performing up to expectations. However, this is not reflective of a larger trend at the company’s other outlets. Orvis has continued to open outlet stores across the country, he said.

Hathaway said Orvis is offering jobs at its local distribution center on Blue Hills Drive to the 11 employees at the Salem store. The Roanoke distribution center opened in 1987.

Soon, an out-of-business sale will begin at the Salem outlet. The company wants to liquidate all of its merchandise there, Hathaway said.

The only other Roanoke retail location for Orvis, at 19 Campbell Ave. in downtown Roanoke, is thriving and will remain open, he said.

To learn more about Orvis, visit www.orvis.com.

Here is some news at Valley View Mall.

• Fancy That has opened at the District at Valley View, to the right of Barnes & Noble. This is a gift and home décor shop that hails from Lynchburg. The owner has operated the same store in Lynchburg since 2003.

• Some renovations are taking place in a vacant spot beside Panera Bread at the District at Valley View, adjacent to the mall. But the mall has not announced any more retailers for the District. So far since last year, the stores and restaurants that have opened there are Panera Bread, Abuelo’s Mexican Food Embassy, Carrabba’s Italian Grill, Barnes & Noble, and Fancy That.

Keep checking back here for updates.

The final word is out. Cheeburger Cheeburger will open on Oct. 22 at Tanglewood Mall.

The 1950s-style restaurant chain's opening has been delayed more than a month, and finally, it will deliver on its promise. The restaurant is taking up a 2,410 square foot space beside Stein Mart, fronting Tanglewood's west end, according to the mall.

If you like hamburgers, milkshakes and related fast food fare, this is your place. The hamburgers served here come in at least four different sizes, including the 20-ounce Pounder Burger.

Check out Cheeburger Cheeburger’s menu here.

The chain, based in Florida, has about 60 locations nationwide. Its other Virginia locations are in the Richmond area and in Williamsburg.

Cheeburger Cheeburger’s debut will add more flavor to the dining options at Tanglewood. The only restaurants currently inside the mall are Chick-fil-A, K&W Cafeteria and Applebee’s.

If you’ve ever eaten at a Cheeburger Cheeburger restaurant, let me know what you think of it.

The Roanoke Valley is losing a furniture and home decor store.

The Bombay Co., which has a location at Valley View Mall, announced that it will close its U.S. stores.

The furniture retailer, based in Texas, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last month. The winning bidders, through a joint venture, recently announced plans to liquidate the retailer’s U.S. inventory. First, though, U.S. Bankruptcy Court must approve the move, which could happen next week.

Bombay’s Canadian stores will remain open.

Look out for closing sales at Bombay locations, and some may start as early as next week, according to the company.

Here’s some good news. The company said Bombay stores will remain open through the holidays.

Another barbecue restaurant is coming our way, and this time it will land in Salem.

Dickey’s Barbecue, a Dallas-based chain, will open a restaurant on Nov. 19 at 1419 West Main St., according to Rebecca Carter, a spokeswoman for the company.

The space slated for Dickey’s is near some other new businesses, including the second location for Firehouse Subs. Also, down the street is the second local spot for Henry's Memphis BBQ at 1122 West Main St.

As of February, Dickey’s had 67 restaurants across the United States and 48 others were in construction. Dickey’s also will open an eatery in Lynchburg on Wards Road in December, Carter said.

You can check out Dickey’s menu at www.dickeys.com.

I received questions from two readers about pictures of coats featured with my article in today’s newspaper about retailers discounting cold weather apparel. They asked where to find these coats locally.

I thought I’d share the answer with blog readers as well.

The coats are from L.L. Bean. A reader asked about the one pictured here. The other was a blue coat.

I could not find prices for these coats at www.llbean.com, but you can check for yourself or contact L.L. Bean for more information.

Send any other questions my way!

Thanks goodness it’s Friday.

In honor of the end of the week, let’s take a look at some early advertisements, considered top secret, for the most popular Friday for shopping of the year—Black Friday.

Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving that marks the start to the holiday season. This is the day when stores run serious door buster deals for everything from apparel to computers and televisions.

In recent years, some Web sites have learned of these advertisements early and published them. They're at it again this year.

If you’re eager to plan your shopping course of action now, check out these Black Friday Web sites.

www.blackfriday.info/ads/
https://bfads.net

So far, the sites only post the expected sales at Sears and Ace Hardware, which both have Roanoke Valley locations.

By entering your email address, you can be alerted as other store deals pop up.

Here are some of the savings already posted:

Sears:
Hitachi 42" 720p Plasma HDTV - $599.99
BoFlex Extreme Home Gym w/Leg Developer - $699.88
Kenmore Washing Machine - $199.99
CR Quiet Glide Chest & Cabinet - $199.98

Ace Hardware:
Portable DVD Player with 7" LCD Display - $59.99
Digital Photo Frame with 7" LCD Display - $49.99
Black & Decker Workmate X-Frame Workbench - $14.99
Dance Mania Plug-n-Play Video Game - $29.99

Let’s talk about Black Friday. I admit. I have joined the super shoppers on Black Friday, setting out one year for a 5 a.m. Wal-Mart sale on a digital camera.

What do you think about the Black Friday sales? Do you hit the stores for deals early that day? Spill your story here.

If you purchased Banquet chicken or turkey pot pies recently, check the package label.

Certain ConAgra-made pot pies have been linked to salmonella outbreaks in 31 states. These products are carried by some Virginia grocers, including Kroger and Food Lion stores, which are in the Roanoke Valley. Most stores have pulled the foods from shelves.

Consumers should discard Banquet brand pot pie boxes with a P-9 printed on the side of the package. You also can request a refund from ConAgra or some grocers.

For more information, visit www.conagrafoods.com or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at www.cdc.gov/.