Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 16, 1994 TAG: 9403160173
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Sandra Brown Kelly
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Kweller and husband, Ken, own Kwellers' Ethan Allen Home Interiors on Virginia 419 near Tanglewood Mall. They also now own a $9,000 computer and CD-ROM unit that allows a customer to see any of several thousand fabrics on a variety of chair and sofa styles.
It's a way for customers to discover that an informal plaid doesn't look so hot on a Victorian camelback sofa, or that a print sofa can keep company with a plaid chair.
Anyone who has ever selected sofa fabric from a swatch, even a large fabric sample, knows that the finished product can look nothing like what was imagined. Computer programs such as the Interiors Plus system designed for Ethan Allen eliminate the guesswork, plus encourage shoppers to experiment with some bolder choices.
You can ``explore possibilities,'' said Kweller, which is how she explains the time she has spent playing on the machine when no customer was around.
The use of computers to show off fabrics and styles is a growing trend in home furnishings. For example, Rowe Furniture Co. of Salem has Rowe Show Me machines in its three company-owned gallery stores and also offers the computer program to the retailers that carry its lines.
Computer programs are aimed at making shopping easier, but something similar would be nice for keeping up with the comings and goings of retail businesses on Roanoke's City Market, where deals can come undone in the blink of a banker's eye.
That's apparently what happened with Bill Gaul's plans to buy Phoenix - The Earth Store. Gaul, who owns Burger in the Square and Three Li'l Pigs Barbeque inside the Market building, had hoped to take over the shop before its closing sale ended. But by the time his plans were made public in a newspaper article March 4, they had been scrubbed by a lack of working capital.
The Phoenix is being reborn in Palo Alta, Calif., said owner Gayle Nester.
So what is going into the 2,195 square feet Phoenix occupies on Roanoke's Campbell Avenue?
Owner David Saunders won't say.
Actually, Saunders said he is talking with prospective tenants for that space, for the corner spot that formerly was the Blue Muse restaurant, and for the Salem Avenue space that housed Galapagos Island Imports Inc. The annual rent, Saunders said, is $15 a square foot.
Also negotiating with prospective tenants is Bonnie Jackson, who is closing her Patina women's apparel and gift shop on Campbell to concentrate on a similar store on Virginia 419.
Jackson said she has met with two separate restaurant operators who are interested in the space. She and her husband, Ron, also are trying to decide what to do with the 2,000 square feet on the building's upper level. Until a month ago, they had offices there but have moved them to the other store, near Tanglewood Mall. The former office area might be suitable for housing, as one large apartment or two smaller ones, Jackson said.
And if you want the whole building? It was listed for sale until recently at $650,000.
Other retail odds and ends:
Heironimus department stores are ending their relationship with The Wohl Shoe Co., which leased the Roanoke-based chain's shoe departments. Heironimus will begin operating its own shoe departments April 3, said Larry Drombetta, president.
Drombetta, who personally bought the new stock, promises more brand names, including Liz Claiborne, Dexter, Bass, Bostonians, Rockport, Nicole, 9 West and Aigner.
Why is there a security guard at the front door of the Talbots clothing store on Starkey Road in Roanoke County? Because a November robbery still has management uneasy.
What does the ``sold'' sign mean in the window of On The Rise bakery? That it's sold out of bread, not that the business has been sold, said owner Steve Hartman.
Staples Inc., a Framingham, Mass., office products retailer, confirmed Tuesday that it will open a store at the Virginia 419 location where Richmond-based Office America is conducting an inventory liquidation sale. But there likely will be several weeks between operations. Staples expects to be there in 60 to 90 days, a spokeswoman said. Office America expects to be gone in about 45 days.
by CNB