KristenL

Just wanted to let you know that the space where my store was (Venti) has been leased. It is going to be a wine, cheese, gourmet grocery that rents bicycles as well. A girl from Easley is opening it. That information came from Hans (the building owner) so it should be accurate. I know you guys like to stay in the loop so here is the one tidbit that I have. And no...my website isn't up yet. It has taken longer than anticipated (didn't quite realize how much was left to do...there was a lot of merchandise to add). When it does launch (www.ventiweb.com) I'll let you know so you can tell all your friends When I reopen the physical store you will be among the first to know as well. Thanks again for all of your support. When that new business opens, support it! (<-- the wine/cheese/gourmet/bicycle store...I don't know what it will be called) Local businesses are good! The right mix of local and national retailers (ones who aren't already in Greenville) will be good as well IMO.

I agree that a mix of retailers would be of benefit everyone. The rent on Main St. is already high. Yes, it would probably go up even higher when bigger fish come in but locally owned stores with strong sales should be able to adjust to that through increased revenue gained by an increase in people who are downtown to shop...not just to eat out and see the river. I do not think we need stores we are already have that are in every mall in the country though. I believe we would be better off with stores we don't already have in the area (i.e. Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Crate & Barrel, etc.). I still think it will be a little while before national retailers come downtown due what is going on with Woodruff Road. Corporate retailers will see that as a better fit and more of a sure thing...especially with the economy like it is right now. If they put a location on Woodruff they will then study to see if the population and their local customer base is high enough to support opening an additional store in the area. Once you get a nationally recognizable retailer (one who everyone has heard of) in a space downtown who is succesful at that location others will follow. The average retail sales per square foot downtown are not high enough yet to bring them there. If they were, getting one in would be a non-issue. Those figures allow them to differentiate between a sea of possible places to put locations throughout the country and give a degree of certainty to the locations that they choose. National retailers have higher overhead and they need high retail sales per square foot to be successful.

I apologize that you were made to feel uncomfortable....I don't think it was intentional. That is obviously not what we strived for. We tried to let people shop and assist them when necessary . They were just keeping an eye out on things and trying to make themselves accessible to the customer at the same time which is part of their job. Shoplifters RARELY look shifty. We have rolled back video cameras and watched normal looking people who you would never ever in a million years think would do such a thing...blatantly steal. One time there were two very nicely dressed couples that came in together during the dinner hour. They looked like they could be your next door neighbors. They were extremely friendly. The man with them stole a creamer from a serving set. After they left we noticed it was missing. We looked back at our footage and there he was putting it in his sportscoat. We have had people of every age, color, and walk of life shoplift at one point or the other. MOST of them you would help out on the steet if they asked you in the middle of the night...they look normal and they usually act normal too. Like the old saying..."appearances can be deceiving". You can call the police, file a report and give them video footage, etc. They can't really do anything in the aftermath. I can't recall a single incident where anyone we caught shoplifting was ever caught afterwards and prosecuted. If they were then we weren't notified. Law enforcement is too busy to take the time to track down petty thiefs (understandably so). You can't do much about shoplifting other than to try to prevent is BEFORE it happens (unless you are a big corporate store with paid security who has the authority to detain people). If an employee makes a mistake you will get sued (not to mention that it is unsafe for an employee to confront someone). Yes, you can call the police when they are still in your store if you see it happen. The chances are probable that the person will be gone by the time they get there. Our manager worked for several stores at the mall for years before he came to work for us. They are told never to confront anyone. But they are taught to "overservice" them as a security measure. Ever noticed how many people in a mall store will ask if you need help, need a dressing room, or if you are doing ok...repeatedly. If not...go out there to Express or Victoria's Secret and check it out.

I own Venti. We are going online only for a while. Ventiweb.com should be up and running by the end of the weekend if all goes as planned (I am running a bit behind due to the transition). I closed the store because I had a baby and I need to be able to spend time with him. It extremely difficult to run a retail store 7 days a week and be there for his needs as well. It was a difficult decision because of our customers and employees but it is something that I really feel is the right thing for my family. I may reopen it in the future. I hope you all will still support Ventiweb.com (it is still a local business) and tell your friends too! I don't post on this board, but I do read it occasionally. It is a great way to get insight into what is going on and more people should take a look at it. It is a valuable "business tool". On a side note. There was a mention of retail not being open late enough downtown. At one time we stayed open until 9:00 pm M-Sat. We shortened it to 7:00 during the week and 8:00 on the weekends. Many of the retailers close because after a certain hour you get groups of people (especially on the weekends) and a lot more shoplifting and rowdiness because people are geared up for a night out. There are also packs of unsupervised kids/teenagers on warm weekend nights. The sales are a lot lower during the later hours so most stores have decided it is not worth the trouble. There is also a "dead period" between 6-7. It is a transition between daytime downtowners leaving and people who are coming downtown arriving for the evening. That seems to be why many of the retailers shut it down at 6:00. I think it is a shame, but from a business perspective I understand. Daytime until 6:00 and weekends are the peak sales hours.