Books-A-Million to close store at Blacksburg’s First & Main shopping center
Roanoke Times file photo by Jeanna Duerscherl
Books-A-Million will close its Blacksburg store at the First & Main shopping center in two weeks.
The closure is a big blow to First & Main, which has struggled to attract and keep retailers since it opened in 2008. You might remember that Walmart wanted to build there, but Blacksburg won a court battle to keep it out. A movie theater was also part of the plans, but it was never built.
Books-A-Million is the largest tenant at the shopping center, with nearly 16,000 square-feet. When it’s gone, 40 percent of the shopping center’s 130,000 square-feet will be vacant.
My calls to the Birmingham, Ala. book seller weren’t returned Monday, so it’s unclear why the store is closing. Mark Shrader, co-owner of Bull & Bones Brewhaus and Grill at First & Main, said the bookstore didn’t appear to attract much business. A look at the book company’s financials shows that it lost $2.9 million on sales of $106.4 million during the 13 weeks that ended July 30.
In other news about the shopping center, a high-end children’s clothing store has signed a lease for a 1,200 square-foot store next to Coldwater Creek, according to Sheryl Simeck, a spokeswoman for The Rappaport Companies. Wells Fargo hired Rappaport (they also own and manage Towers Shopping Center in Roanoke) to manage and lease the property when the bank took it over in November.
September 13, 2011 - 9:40 AM
If it weren’t for Bull and Bones and Sal’s, this place really would be deserted. Loft doesn’t seem to do much business and neither does Coldwater Creek or Talbots…but they also close at 7pm which seems silly when the restaurants in First and Main and even local malls are open so much later.
Books A Million seemed to be the one ‘anchor’ store that might stick around…pretty sad to see it go. I’m hoping that the gym proves to be a success. It would also be nice to have a real ‘spa’ in the center, as was originally proposed. Nothing like that in BBurg these days.
BOM should have stayed in C’burg – they had a loyal following there.
no comment
They definitely should have stayed in C’burg. The parking at F&M is terrible for trying to get something within a short distance of the retailers, and the new store was also smaller than the old one. Granted, their old location was in a dump of a shopping center, but they were obviously doing better there than they did at F&M.
I know for me, we didn’t go to BAM nearly as often when they moved as we did previously. Parking was a major factor, selection was the other…since it seemed like they cut back on their offerings when they moved.
That’s probably the death-knell. Yet another failed shopping center in this town. Not that I’m surprised.
The parking is one of the biggest problems with First & Main. Most of the parking for that end of the center is around back, so people are discouraged from going in the first place, and if you’ve ever had to park there at night, it’s just a little bit creepy.
Bad design (probably forced by the town), plus the fact that outdoor shopping centers rarely do well for long anyway, plus the legal issues and the town’s apparent hostility to the project (the Wal-Mart and Sonic debacles), plus the recession, all add up to failure.
Do you know what children’s store is coming? Could it be a Janie & Jack?
Well, at least Steger Creek is still open! As long as they’re there, I’ll still be going to First & Main on a regular basis. I also shop at Loft, and they’re usually always busy when I’m there. But I’m incredibly sad to see BAM leave. I’ve heard Barnes & Noble might want to take that spot, though — wouldn’t that be great to land that AND a Starbucks???
@Meghan: Thanks for asking because I apparently forgot to include the name in the blog post. It’s called Piccolini. The wife of the man who owns Sal’s Italian Restaurant at First & Main is opening it, but I haven’t been able to talk with her yet.
Yes, that’s what we need, another Starbucks!
Appropriate considering the Easy Chair coffee shop in the University Mall announced that it was closing its doors today, as well.
If only we could get Trader Joe’s to come… I’m confident they would thrive.
@Oscar: A reporter in the Christiansburg office is working on getting information about Easy Chair. When we have some more information I’ll post it here.
Chalk up another on for the Blacksburg Town Council and the whole “not in my back yard crew”. If Walmart were allowed to build, the whole south end retail would have been thriving. Walmart is building some beautiful stores as of late that blend in with the community.
Blacksburg doesn’t want big business, so why did they build the big outdoor mall. Not very smart. Better to build in Christiansburg, where everyone has to go for most shopping anyways, and the taxes are cheaper. Not to mention you would not have to deal with the Blacksburg Town Council. I love Blacksburg, but honestly, this town is only successful and growing because of VT football.
Sorry…Easy Chair killed its self. Plenty of foot traffic in that area due to students and a bustling gym…yet when ever I wanted a coffee or latte after a workout they were closed. Who opens a coffee shop at 9am and closes at 2 on the weekends??
Bring in Nordstrom’s and PF Chang’s and I’ll go. I would settle for a Kohl’s, though. LOL.
Now if Fresh Market were to come as they were suppose to First and Main would be bustling.
Sorry to see BAM close, but the only time we ventured in was when we were visiting Bull & Bones or Sal’s. I hope the restaurants continue to do well amidst the empty storefronts.
Too bad they didn’t build an upscale shopping center in Roanoke years ago.
I am sorry to see BAM close and would love to see another bookstore move in. A Starbucks would be great. I love small businesses but, sorry to say, it is the “brand names” that draw people in. It’d be great to see these storefronts full, no matter what businesses move in. Best wishes to Piccolini and continued success to my favorites: Loft, Steger Creek and Talbots!
Fresh Market would be a nice addition, and the BAM storefront may be the only one in the entire F&M development remotely large enough to support one. But, I still think even that may be too small. I read an article a while back saying their average store size is 20,000 SF, and the BAM site is only 16,000, including the storage areas. Plus, they’d still have the abysmal parking issue to deal with. I believe the site layout was decided upon by the designers/architects as something to encourage foot traffic, which was supposed to be largely generated via the theater and the box site, to all the smaller storefronts. But, with the 2 anchor parcels still empty, plus several vacancies within the center anyway, it just never has taken off. One of the original leasing plans shown on the Fairmount website actually showed a Fresh Market (later removed from the plans) at one point, along with a Beamer’s Steakhouse (never opened), Classic Image Spa (now closed altogether), Dunkin Donuts, and several other eateries, retail sellers, and services. Probably more than half of what was showed in the last leasing plan available on their site never happened, including the outparcels.
Bad timing was a big part…they started building right as the economy was starting to tank, so they opened a high-end center with high-end rents in a recession. Add in the business-poor climate put forth by the council decisions and fights with Walmart and Sonic…and the fact that Regal re-built their mall theater at the time that the F&M theater was being planned (probably why that never got built), and it was just a recipe for failure. And it’s sad too. It’s a site with a lot of potential, but most of it simply hasn’t, and may possibly never, be realized. It’s a major aesthetic upgrade from the previous run-down buildings and feral cat colonies that dominated that stretch of town…but it’s become yet another mostly empty retail center.
Amanda – has there been any recent word on what’s happening with the OLD Books-A-Million site in Christiansburg? (Marketplace Shopping Center) At one point it was supposed to become a Sam’s Club but that fell through. We could REALLY use some new retail to fill what is a great location but is currently just an eyesore.
@Keith: Here’s the story that ran last year about Sam’s Club scrapping their plans to move there. I’ve put in a call to the Christiansburg planning and zoning department. They will know if anything new is in the works.
@Keith: Just heard back. Nothing has been filed with Christiansburg for the Marketplace Shopping Center.
The Marketplace is almost entirely empty now. The only tenants I know of now are Office Max, C&P Pets, and Jo-Anne Fabrics. I think everyone else has moved or closed. There might still be a hair dresser or something on the side closest to Applebee’s, but the outparcels are really the only thing doing any substantial business now.
And to think, just a few years ago it was still relatively healthy. They had Dollar Tree, BAM, Tractor Supply, Goody’s, Office Max, Play it Again Sports, El Rodeo, Big Lots, etc…and people actually went there regularly. It’s been in a declining state of physical condition for really the past decade, at least, as the storefronts have not been kept up by the property owner. The manager of Play it Again mentioned that the roof leaked and any time they had a hard rain, water came into the storage area through the back door, so they had to keep merchandise elevated to prevent water damage. The inside of the old Goody’s was infested with mold and rotten ceiling tiles the last time anyone inhabited the space, which if I remember right was either a roving book or furniture discounter.
It’s unfortunate that we are going to have yet another eyesore in the C’burg/Bburg area, with First and Main and Marketplace empty. I do think the locals in the Bburg area probably hurt the development since the Wal-Mart and Sonics was vetoed out.
It’s funny that they were all up in arms about a Wal-Mart but then we have a Kroger (a publicly traded company as well) that’s about the size of a small super Wal-Mart on its own. Seems like we traded the old hotel site that was vacant and shady looking for a new site that might go the same way if things keep going they way they are. I do recall seeing on the original retail space blueprints that there was supposed to be a Fresh Market and a Gold’s Gym, I guess that never panned out.
It’s unfortunate the NIMBY folks destroyed a potential economic contribution to the Town of Blacksburg. I agree with the other poster who said that the only thing helping out Bburg is VT football. If the VT does leave the ACC and goes to the SEC though, it would have been nice because those SEC folks will pay good money for a good time in a college football town, I’ve seen it!
All this negativity. No one commends those restuartants and shops that are succeeding. While some are still settling out the legal details of what they were promissed, they are forging on with their plans. Bull n Bones is packed all the time, and offers great specials/events. Ditto for Sake House and Sals. Blue Ridge is offering classes, sold out festivals, and more while expanding their offerings. These are a few I have noticed, and sure others are striving to improve their businesses. I wish the best for them all.
Parking is not an issue like it is downtown…you walk less than 1000ft at the furthest point to a business. Far less if one was at the mall or big box parking lot. I may walk little further on a game day, but try going downtown on a game day. Lights are always on in the lots as of the past few times I have been there at night.
Yes, BAM will leave a void, but little talk of 3 businesses to open in the next 30days? It may have taken a while to see the tide turn and interest to be there, but it’s happening. Remember, these folks where fought out in the economic storm with out shelter. They persevered and are surviving…I would not have wished to have gone through that…frightening for sure.
Blacksburg lost not just one business but two this week and I frequented both. In the wake of this, I heard many folks asking ” wish I could have done something ” . The answer is simple. These place you love and congregate at, whether it be coffee shop, bar, gear shop, or what not speak to you because they form community. If you really value them, support them. Both by spending money there but also by not casting negative outlooks their way via stories and comments. They are your neighbors in this beautiful area and should be treat as such.
BAM was our favorite bookstore and the only reason we went to that shopping center. It used to be great to get something to eat at Salad Creations next door and then hit the bookstore. Both gone!
And I do blame the town. Parking is a pain when you have kids but the layout of the shopping center parking isn’t kid friendly. But then B’burg really cares most about students and football fans. Families? Heck, they can go shop in Christiansburg!
I would really love to have a Fresh Market at F&M site. It would save me a trip to Roanoke I take almost every weekend. I am looking forward to the Children’s store.
BOM with the coffee shop was the only reason to go to this shopping center. Another restuarant or clothing store is not going to bring people in. I dont know why people are complaining about the parking. its a great design and looks much better than a typical strip mall. Walking around the corner of the building is no further than walking even a quarter of the way into the parking lot of the Walmart, at the most. There is a sea of parking right on the side if people have a phobia about walking around a corner.