SoulCycle and Flower Child Looking to Join The Shops Around Lenox

The Shops Around Lenox has reportedly inked deals with three new tenants including two first-to-market businesses.  

In the coming months, women's apparel retailer South Moon Under will open in the center along with SoulCycle, an indoor cycle fitness facility and Flower Child, a new concept from the creator of True Food Kitchen.

[VIDEO] Locally Filmed "A Bad Moms Christmas" Releases First Trailer and It's Hilarious

A Bad Moms Christmas, which started filming last month, has already "wrapped," and has a trailer out!

The comedy, which is the sequel to the 2016 film Bad Moms, was filmed locally in metro Atlanta. (Bad Moms was filmed in New Orleans.)  "Best friends Amy (Mila Kunis), Kiki (Kristen Bell) and Carla (Kathryn Hahn) deal with more stress during the holidays when their respective mothers come to visit."

Sycamore Partners Attaches Itself to Staples for Nearly $7 Billion

Private equity firm Sycamore Partners plans to acquire Staples for $10.25 cash per share, a 12% premium over its share price on Tuesday, before reports surfaced that the transaction was close to be being completed. The deal, the largest ever for New York-based Sycamore Partners, is valued at about $6.9 billion.   

Rize Pizza's Rapid Growth Continues With Planned Dunwoody Restaurant

Rize Artisan Pizza, a new Delaware-based pizza chain that opened their first ever location this past fall in Poncey Highland and added a second location shortly afterwards in Sandy Springs, is already planning a third unit.  The new Rize is planned for a new freestanding building in Dunwoody Village. 

Rize Artisan Pizza on North Highland Avenue in Poncey-Highland

Bits & Bites [Atlanta Commercial Real Estate News]

Struggling Macy's is doubling down on its new outlet division Macy's Backstage, with plans to add even more stores to the as yet unproven concept.  The first three Macy's Backstages in metro Atlanta opened earlier this spring inside full-price Macy's stores at Gwinnett Place Mall, Cumberland Mall and Town Center at Cobb.  More recently, Macy's Backstage stores were added to The Mall at Stonecrest in Lithonia and Southlake Mall in Morrow.  Most recently, Macy's announced that it will add a Macy's Backstage store to Northlake Mall in Tucker.  The store is expected to open in mid-to-late August. The opening of a Backstage at Northlake furthers the idea that Macy's is invested in the mall with no plans to close when the mall is revamped in the coming months/years.  Macy's Backstage, which the company has created in an effort to take on the likes of T.J. Maxx and Marshalls, is also meant to drive more traffic to the main line Macy's store.

[UPDATE] Metro Diner Makes a Quick Exit in Roswell: Closed After 8 Months

Florida-based Metro Diner, which opened their first metro Atlanta location this past fall in Roswell, has closed.  The restaurant, which replaced Coldbrew's Sports Bar & Grill (which closed last April) occupied an end-cap location in the "880 Holcomb" center on Holcomb Bridge Road.

Chuy's Chooses Alpharetta For New Restaurant

Austin, Texas-based Chuy's plans to open a fourth metro Atlanta location next year. The Tex-Mex joint entered the Atlanta market in the fall of 2011 with a location in Dunwoody and added a second location in Kennesaw in early 2014.  A third location debuted this past February in Akers Mill Square near Cumberland Mall.

The new Chuy's at Akers Mill Square 

Harry's Pizzeria Plots Phipps Plaza Premiere

Miami Florida based Harry's Pizzeria plans to open its first Atlanta area location at Phipps Plaza in Buckhead.  The restaurant, which according to permits filed with the City of Atlanta will be 2,531 square feet, will occupy suite 1096B. 

According to the Phipps Plaza site plan, suite 1096B is the space previously occupied by Yebo Restaurant & Bar. Before Yebo, Latitude Food & Drink occupied the space and before that, it was The Grape, a wine bar.  The space is quite small, but provides great visibility from Peachtree Road and also the possibility of offering outdoor dining, which Harry's plans to do.  

Harry's, which calls themselves a "Neighborhood American Pizzeria," features Neapolitan style pizza, served in six slice, eleven inch pies.   

 A special pie at Harry's: Radicchio with caramelized onion, dates & mozzarella

Bits & Bites [Atlanta Commercial Real Estate News]

Su's Chinese Cuisine at Ansley Square was shut down last week by The Fulton County Department of Health and Wellness Environmental Health Services.  The restaurant, located around the corner from Ansley Mall on Piedmont Avenue, has a track record of seesaw health scores: they fail miserably, then improve, then fail again the next time. This past August 10th, they scored 57, then two weeks later on August 26th, they scored 93. A sign posted on the restaurant's front door reads: "We're closed for remodeling. Sorry for the inconvenience."  

Hilton Plans "Extended Stay" in Kennesaw

Three new Hilton Hotels are coming to Kennesaw.  

A new dual-branded Hilton hotel is expected to begin construction soon in Kennesaw. The hotel will carry the Home2 Suites by Hilton & TRU by Hilton flags, and is to be built at 2700 and 2975 Ring Road.

 

Summer Brings Sub Zero to Select Sites

Provo, Utah based Sub Zero Nitrogen Ice Cream plans to make its Atlanta debut later this summer.  The ice cream & yogurt company has signed two franchise agreements in metro Atlanta with plans to develop at least four locations.

[BREAKING NEWS] Amazon Goes Shopping - Buys Whole Foods Market

Amazon is buying Whole Foods in a deal valued at $13.7 billion.  

Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) said Friday it plans to acquire Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ:WFM) for $42 a share in a deal valued at $13.7 billion.  Whole Foods co-founder and CEO John Mackey will remain CEO of the grocery store chain after the deal closes, and the store will continue to operate under the Whole Foods umbrella.  The deal is expected to close in the second half of this year.  

Enterprise Parks Itself in Chamblee UTBAPH

Renovations are underway in Chamblee to turn a former Pizza Hut into a new Enterprise Rent-A-Car location.  The Pizza Hut, located at 5577 Peachtree Boulevard, closed this past November, and plans to reopen soon in an "in-line" location a few blocks south.  

The vacant building left behind after the closure of a freestanding Pizza Hut is known as an UTBAPH (Used To Be A Pizza Hut), with an entire website dedicated to chronicling UTBAPHs around the world.  

Bits & Bites [Atlanta Commercial Real Estate News]

Barkers Red Hots plans to close on Windy Hill Road in Marietta on Friday June 23rd. Glenn Robins and his wife Vivian started Barkers as a downtown Atlanta, Georgia pushcart in 1984. Barkers Red Hots closed in 1995 and remained closed until Glenn and Vivian reopened their beloved operation in 2007 as a quick service restaurant on Windy Hill Road in Marietta. Since reopening, Barkers Red Hots has racked up a slew of awards, including “Atlanta’s Best Hot Dog.”  The pair added a second location on W. Crossville Road in Roswell in 2011, but it closed in late 2014.   One might have thought the halo affect of the nearby SunTrust Park might have helped the Windy Hill operation, but alas, that seems not to have been the case.

[ALERT] 5 Seasons Brewing Has Closed in Alpharetta

"We got an offer we couldn't refuse." 

Owners of Alpharetta's 5 Seasons Brewing announce the restaurant's closure.

Dunwoody's Village Burger Ventures to Tucker For New Location

Local burger joint opening in Tucker.

Mandolin to Open in Place of Maya in Sandy Springs

New restaurant to replace Maya in Sandy Springs. 

Planned Perimeter Exchange Project to Cash in on Former Bank Property

Click photo to enlarge 

Large mixed use development planned for Dunwoody.

Lululemon to Shutter Ivivva Store at Lenox Square, Nearly 40 Company-wide

Ivivva plans to close their only retail store in Atlanta.

[Report] North DeKalb Mall May Finally Bag Costco

A rendering of what the North DeKalb Costco may look like 

Costco Wholesale at North DeKalb Mall reportedly back on track. 

Bits & Bites

The new Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken in Chamblee 

Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken on Peachtree Road at Broad Street in Chamblee is now open.  The restaurant quietly opened late last month, and is the third franchised unit in metro Atlanta from the Memphis-based chain. Previous locations have opened in Peachtree Center downtown and on Roswell Road in Sandy Springs.  A fourth metro location that I previously reported was planned for Belvedere Plaza in Decatur has apparently been "shelved" indefinitely.  The local franchise group continues to search for additional metro locations.  

Famous Toastery Plans to Pop Up Outside the Perimeter

New to market eatery coming to Suwanee

Empire South Ventures South for New Location

New retailer coming to Virginia-Highland

Kula Revolving Sushi Bar Opening First East Coast Location in Atlanta

Revolving sushi bar coming to town

Outback Steakhouse Thinks North Point is "Just Right" For New Restaurant

The new North Point Outback should look similar to this 

New Outback coming to North Point