chicagok

definitely an attention grabber ad. concept could work with different "people" with different images showing the range of retailing available. great thought.

an interesting retail concept. just buy "something" and go. most retailers would like their customers to at least feel comfortable enough to stay and look around. that's usually how one increases the dollar amount spent per person and thus increase profitabilty. i remember elliotts from being across the pantlind hotel. the emphasis was on a "wall of magazines." they seem to carry everything in print. now the impression i get is one of tiredness.

i spent part of the afternoon today shopping part of downtown. it was cold and few people on the street. i have not been downtown in over twenty years as i no longer live here. there are plenty of restuarants/ coffeeshops available. quite a diverse selection. i was roaming the streets around 2pm so lunchtime was over, but most of the places had a few customers. this forum has put up the need for more retail. i don't see that many good retail sites left. the big places - the old herp's and steketee's have been converted to non retail. the space next to the men's store on ottawa has the window filled with messy desks of the business within. who wants to deal with a business that doesn't care what its image is? there are several new office building without retail space. if a retail company wanted to enter downtown there wouldn't be many good sites. i walked monroe. little bohemia was interesting and i made a purchase. they have a lot of offbeat items. the bead selection is huge. i personally don't know what all the beads are used for, but people were perusing them. the low tables the beads were set on weren't very customer friendly. the selection of merchandise was vast - clothing, home furnishings, gifts, books. the retailer in me would like to see better space definition, but the atmosphere works. i also made a purchase at elliotts. the place looks dirty, unkempt, and not well organized. i don't understand retailer's who don't take an "outsider" look at their store and realize occasionally their environment needs a fresh coat of paint and a refocusing on what their actual business is. i would have purchased more at elliott's but they were unfamiliar with some of the magazines i was looking for. the gram's new building has me stumped. the only visually signing i found as to what this new building was to be were a few small signs on the monroe street side. i say i'm stumped about the building because i think an organization building a new cultural attraction could have used the construction fencing in a visually stunning fashion to make a bold statement that a new creative force was coming onto to the scene my idea for a quick fix is a need to focus on the store windows. there are the public announcement of what lies within. could there not be a outreach between kendall school of design and the local merchants. maybe a program could be developed that would match students with a retailer to develop a street image. the students could get class credit and real life experience with a client. a contest with a cash prize for the best concept could be put together. well, enough of my ramblings.

great vision by cordish. looks energetic and vibrant. doesn't mention residental development however. will the place continue to work after the glow is off and the place is busy at night only when there is an event at the new arena/hall?

i think the idea of this group of interested people coming together to flesh out ideas is great. i'm spent my 30 year career in retail in chicago/detroit and rizzo is correct. the public's perception becomes reality in relationship to parking. if the "front door" is within sight, it's not to far away. if the "front door" can't be seen, it's too far away. the folks from the suburbs just have different perceptions than those of us who live in urban areas. i haven't lived in GR in thirty years. my father's health has brought me here repeatly in the last three months. i'm currently spending two weeks - the longest period of time since my college days. i'm looking forward to rediscovering downtown. i would pass through the intersection of jefferson and fulton on my way to/from st. mary's and it looked interesting. haven't been on monroe yet. judging from my discussions with family members, a lot of people are going downtown. but they go downtown for a specific event - a griffin's game, a hospital/doctor visit, a social occasion at a hotel, something at the devos center. the problem is they go downtown for that event and then leave afterwards without venturing far. some events happen at night. they sometimes go to a downtown restuarant before/after the event. shopping doesn't enter their mind. nor is the shopping located close to the events or they don't want to lug a shopping bag to the event or the retail businesses are closed when they are downtown. the days of downtowns being regional shopping centers are over. downtowns have to cater to the people who live or work there. increase the population and the retailing will follow. the other alternative is to give the public what they can't get elsewhere. this takes a talented group of merchants who are great salesmen, not cashiers. i'm looking forward to seeing what going on downtown.

we have several bar louie's in chicago. considered a hip hamburger joint with booze.