Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Bits & Bites

Temporary Original Penguin and Carol's Daughter stores at Lenox Square
Invicta, a watch company, will open new stores in Lenox Square, North Point Mall and Mall of Georgia.  Hollywood, Florida-based Invicta Watch Group sells watches generally priced around a few hundred dollars, making them close competition in price to the likes of Fossil and Seiko.  In Lenox Square, Invicta will be located in a portion of the former Ed Hardy on the lower level of the mall, near Urban Outfitters.  I'm unsure of the exact locations the retailer will occupy within North Point and Mall of Georgia.  All three stores are slated to open later this fall.  Atlanta seems to be a popular place for timepiece retailers given the recent renovation of Tourneau at Lenox Square and the additions of OMEGA and HUBLOT at Phipps Plaza.

Beauty products retailer, Carol's Daughter has closed on the main level of Lenox Square and can currently be found vending their goods from a kiosk in front of their former store.  As I hinted at last month, Carol's Daughter is said to have been forced out of their space to make way for UGG Australia, who will open later this year as a part of the mall's renovation.

Original Penguin closed their  lower level store at Lenox Square and relocated to the second level of the luxury wing.  With all the sales promotions the store has, the store seems destined for a permanent closure sooner rather than later.  For now, the store is in a temporary space next to Pure during which time their "new" store will be built out.  Later this summer Penguin will  reopen in the former Shabby Chic store, on the other side of Pure. 

The Bilt-House, a clothing and accessory boutique, will soon close their original Buckhead location on East Paces Ferry, and reopen not far away on Paces Ferry Place.  The local boutique will open adjacent to Portofino restaurant and across from Labels consignment boutique.  I'm told the relocation should be complete later this month.   The Bilt-House relocation follows the recent relocation of Peridot, also originally on East Paces Ferry, to its new store on Roswell Road. 

Which Wich? Superior Sandwiches is opening its 12th metro Atlanta location and 7th by local franchisee Gary Birnberg later this year at Canton Marketplace.  The fast casual sandwich shop started in Dallas, Texas in 2003 and today has grown to over 230 locations with 100 more in the works for later this year. 

Tamar Telahun, owner of Therapy coffee shop on Briarcliff Road, hopes to open Food Therapy in a space adjacent to her existing business.  Food Therapy would open in place of the short lived Everbest Market and would offer Mediterranean cuisine.  Telahun has requested a special land use permit (SLUP) which would allow her to extend the would-be restaurant's operating hours from 12:30 am to 2:30 am.

Birmingham, Alabama-based Zoës Kitchen is planning yet another Atlanta area location.  The fast casual Mediterranean eatery joins Corner Bakery Cafe, Pollo Tropical and Chipotle Mexican Grill at a new project in Alpharetta.  The new restaurant will open near the intersection of Haynes Bridge Road and North Point Drive, just off GA 400.  Zoёs began to expand significantly outside its home state in the late 2000s. Zoёs first entered Atlanta in 2009 with a location at Peachtree Battle, and has since grown to a total of seven locations in Georgia, most recently in Emory Village. Today the chain is nearing 100 locations in only 15 states. Last month Nation's Restaurant News named Zoёs one of the Top 50 Breakout Brands of 2013.

Guy Wong has plans for a super affordable eatery in Home Park.  Rickshaw Kitchen Stand is scheduled to open by mid 2014 and will be in an existing building near Georgia Tech.  The restaurant will serve traditional Asian street food at silly cheap prices.  In case you missed the recent news, Guy  is also planning new restaurants in Decatur and Inman Park in addition to the upcoming Yum Bunz on the westside.  A little birdie tells me Guy has another concept up his sleeve that would also open next year and as with his other recently announced projects, would shadow the growth path of Ford Fry.  

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Why would Simon force Carol's Daughter out but they let that hideous Pure Denim stay open?

Atlantan99 said...

@Anon,

BRILLIANT question. I wish I had a good answer. Take it Tish! ;)

Thanks for reading the site and for the comments.

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