HYPERLOCAL NEWS HUB BY THE UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS DEPARTMENT OF JOURNALISM
More Than a Year in the Making: Grand Opening of Urban Outfitters
Slideshow by Daniel Wilkerson/MicroMemphis reporter
New Retailers Brings in Bands and Crowd for Grand Opening
By Daniel Wilkerson/MicroMemphis reporter
March 24, 2011
March 24, 2011
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Urban Outfitters opened its doors to the public with parking lot performances by four local bands.
Eldorado & the Ruckus band member Esgi Greer says they were honored to be asked to play for the grand opening of Urban Outfitters and says he thinks the store will attract people to shop and eat at Cooper-Young's unique restaurants. Greers’ band was among the four asked to perform for the event. Also performing were Jonathan McLeran, Youniverse, and Orcale & the Mountain. “It’s kind of a blend of our collective differences…. We like to call it a pissed-off Bruce Springsteen,” says Travis Cantrell,about his group Youngiverse. Owner of Gary’s Antiques, Gary Wright, looked on from across the street as the bands readied to perform. MicroMemphis spoke to Wright when the store was still under construction, and he had hoped then that the trendy retailer would mean more business for him. “I’ve seen a lot of traffic over there today… a lot of people coming out with really small bags,” say Wright.He admits that he's seen more traffic in his store today. “The traffic will probably die down…this is the grand opening,” says Wright. Wright can’t help but look across the street as he’s helping his customers look through collectables. |
“One person said they saw a pair of cut-off jeans that had a sticker price of $99 …. that shows you nothing’s wrong with the economy when you can go get those same jeans at a second-hand store for 99 cents,” says Bob Galleher, a long-time Cooper- Young resident and friend of Wright’s.
Owner of the Urban Outfitters building, Charlie Ryan was at the grand opening for the new store. The retailer signed the lease with Ryan in February of 2010. "It's been a long year," says Ryan. |
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Urbanites Converge on Cooper-Young to Prep New Store
By Lurene Kelley/MicroMemphis editor
Mannequins, clothes, and hip,young people are already filling up the new Urban Outfitters. It's not open yet, but that's the point. The corporate headquarters has sent an open team of about twenty employees to prep the store and train new Memphis employees.
Team members from Urban Outfitters across the country are here for a one-week period until the store opens. Operation leads Trevor Drake and Alison Getty say it's important to bring in a team of employees already working in other Urban Outfitters to get the 'aesthetic' and operation of a new store right.
Drake, from the Urban Outfitters in Atlanta, says they are laying out the store so it not only looks cool but becomes a place where people want to shop, hang out, read, and listen to music.
The store opens Thursday, March 24th at 10:00 a.m. There will be a mini-music festival that evening from 5-9 p.m. with five local bands playing.
Mannequins, clothes, and hip,young people are already filling up the new Urban Outfitters. It's not open yet, but that's the point. The corporate headquarters has sent an open team of about twenty employees to prep the store and train new Memphis employees.
Team members from Urban Outfitters across the country are here for a one-week period until the store opens. Operation leads Trevor Drake and Alison Getty say it's important to bring in a team of employees already working in other Urban Outfitters to get the 'aesthetic' and operation of a new store right.
Drake, from the Urban Outfitters in Atlanta, says they are laying out the store so it not only looks cool but becomes a place where people want to shop, hang out, read, and listen to music.
The store opens Thursday, March 24th at 10:00 a.m. There will be a mini-music festival that evening from 5-9 p.m. with five local bands playing.