Dick's Sporting Goods plans to bring their new "Warehouse Sale" outlet store to metro Atlanta. The store, one of a handful the company has in the works, is slated to open later this year in Towne Center Prado in Marietta. The new 36,538 square foot store will open in place of Stein Mart, which shuttered all of its stores last year after initially filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The Dick's outlet will join existing anchors Publix, Barnes & Noble, Petco, Ross and Party City in the center.
Although the sporting goods retailer has not yet updated its website to reflect the Marietta location as "coming soon," it is already listed as a tenant in the site plan for the Marietta shopping center on the website of property owner SITE Centers. The Warehouse Sale website indicates there are currently twenty stores open with another one, excluding the Marietta store, listed as "coming soon."
Amazingly, many of the store listings also reference what retailer the Warehouse Sale store replaced. The Marietta store would seem to be at least the third former Stein Mart that the company has backfilled. Other retailers mentioned as prior occupants of new Dick's Warehouse Sale stores are Burlington, Ross, Neiman Marcus Last Call, Babies "R" Us and Toys "R" Us, among others.
The Warehouse Sale locations offer "deep discounts on customer-favorite apparel brands," with many items offered at 70% or more off retail prices, according to Dick's. According to online research and photos/videos of existing Warehouse Sale stores, the majority of the store's merchandise seems to be athletic footwear and apparel with little to no other sporting goods. This recent article from Retail Dive talks more about the off-price concept, the plans for it, and the company's prospects moving forward.
The Coraopolis, Pennsylvania-based sporting goods retailer currently operates ten traditional stores in the greater metro Atlanta area including those in Kennesaw, Alpharetta, Tucker, Buckhead, Buford, Cumberland, Dunwoody, Peachtree Corners and East Cobb. Additionally, the company's Kennesaw store is paired with a Field & Stream and its Cumberland store is paired with a Golf Galaxy, both niche concepts it also owns.
While some of the company's Atlanta area stores were built for them such as the Dick's at Tucker Meridian near Northlake Mall, many, like the new Warehouse Sale store, were backfills of prior retail or grocery tenants.
The Cumberland Dick's/Golf Galaxy occupies a portion of a former Sears store, East Cobb occupies a portion of an old kmart store, Dunwoody occupies a former Sports Authority and the Peachtree Corners store occupies a portion of an old Kroger. The Buckhead, Buford and Kennesaw locations were all former Galyan's, a competing sporting goods chain it acquired in 2004.
Dick's is the latest traditional retailer to test outlet stores as a way to liquidate damaged, returned, seasonal or otherwise surplus merchandise.
ToNeTo Atlanta reported in March 2019 that Best Buy was bringing their outlet store to Atlanta with a store in Kennesaw. The store, which replaced a former hhgregg, carries primarily open box, returned and clearance appliances and related merchandise. Originally the store was only open on weekends, but is today open more generous hours seven days a week.
This past December we also reported that Lowe's Home Improvement was bringing their "Outlet" to the greater metro Atlanta area with a store in Morrow. The store, which occupies a one time Linens 'n Things, carries "scratch & dent" merchandise that, like Best Buy, is largely appliance focused. The store opened with and maintains typical retail hours seven days a week.
The new Dick's Warehouse Sale store should open later this spring in Marietta. It remains unclear though for how long it will remain open, as industry speculation is that the company does not sign long term leases for its off-price stores. Of the initial five Warehouse Sale stores that the company opened last June, three - those in St. Peters, MO, South Hills, PA, and Brookfield, WI - have already closed.
Have you ever been to a Dick's Sporting Goods Warehouse Sale store? Are you excited for the opening of Dick's Sporting Goods Warehouse Sale in metro Atlanta? What retailer do you think does "outlet shopping" best?
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