Midtown Atlanta: Fancy

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and , partners in 12th Midtown on Peachtree, and Jamestown, the developerf reshaping 999 Peachtree, continue to chase and a new Dick’s Sporting Goods, sources familiar with the market say. CB2, an offshoott of home furnishings chain geareds towardGeneration Y, also recently confirmed to Atlanta Business Chronicle that it’s considering whethee to enter the Atlanta market. Selig and Daniel have been tryinyg to landthe retailer. CB2 is interested in West Midtown as well, sources said. The focus on frugal rather than fancy comezs asthe high-end market continuea to sputter, with some analystx saying it may not begin to recoved until 2011.
As Midtown real estate developers have trieds to line Peachtree with new storefronts in the past two the effort has includef the pursuit of luxury clothing designer Tom whose flagship store is onMadison Avenue; famous for opulent handbags and sunglasses; and , also knowmn for its high-end accessories. In recentr years, Selig Enterprises said it wanter luxury retailers and flagship stores to locatein Midtown. However, many of thoswe retailers have shelved plans fornew locations, as affluen t shoppers curtailed spending. Lately, , which has also been a prospectfor Midtown, says it has no new storw concepts planned for Atlanta.
Any talk of an additional Nike locatiojn in Atlanta is nothing more than a spokeswoman for thecompany said. Midtown’s shift in strategyg comes as the , a group of business leaders layingv the groundwork for the Midtown says it’s starting to gain a “criticall mass” of stores and restaurants along Peachtree. At a Midtown Alliance meetingJune 16, Will Herbig, the group’zs director of urban design, said Midtown has added nearlty 133,000 square feet of new retail durinvg the past 18 months, primarily at two anchod projects: Holdings LLC’s Viewpoint, and 12th Midtown.
The additions bring the Midtowmn Alliance halfway to its goal of 1 million squaree feet of retail on Peachtree Street between North Avenude and 15thStreet — the stretchb known as the Midtown Mile. Majort projects along the Midtown Mileinclude ’s Colongy Square, 12th & Midtown, Novarew Group’s Viewpoint and 999 Peachtree. “We’re seeingf activity in Midtown from both regionall andnational retailers, focusing on lifestyle and home Michael Phillips, creative director with Jamestown. Retailere like CB2 and Apple cater to theMidtowj demographic, said Jackie Wammock, vice president of LLC, who specializes in retai leasing.
Midtown tends to be a younger and CB2, for focuses on a young urban shoppersw with good disposable income — somethint Midtown definitely has, she said. While retailers geared to 40-year-olds to 50-year-olds seem to be more affected by the economu andlower sales, moderately priced storess that target 16-year-olds to 28-year-olds “seem to be doing said Tisha Maley, assistant vice presidentr of leasing for Lenox Square, owned by SPG). Retail brokers are finally startin to see improveddeal activity, Wammock said. “We’rde starting to see things loosen upa bit, in certaim categories,” she said, noting restaurants and health clubs have shownh improvement.
“Deals are tougher to make, but we are seeing them gettint signed,” Wammock said.