Heart of the City (Center) pt 8

**My troublesome penchant for procrastination (a nasty habit that I implore all who suffer its existence to heed this anecdote as a cautionary tale) has cost me dearly. Even starting this humble memoir, nearly two years ago, was not enough time to finish and enact the change I so desperately sought before the February 4th, 2009 Columbus Dispatch’s front page headline announced the imminent demolishing and redevelopment of the City Center property and space. It is a failure that will weigh heavily in years to come and will certainly project a critical eye on the tentative plans and production, but I refuse to allow this staggering defeat to defeat me in total. So, though with a heavy heart, I posit these, the final two installments of my Heart of the City (Center) articles, if for no other reason than to show what could’ve been in light of what was and what will be…

It’s been many months since I last promised unveiling what stores I would have making up the shopping experience of City Center’s rebirth. I’ll admit that at the time, I had few choices and certainly used the time in between to mull over most of them, substituting a few and selecting a few more. In total, I have only 5 suggestions to render, however, these will serve as the benchmark for what other stores should bring to the table when being considered for occupancy. There are themes at work with these selections, ones that differ heavily from what most shopping centers offer, or even from what City Center itself boasted in its earliest inception: Versatility and Unity. For too long, shopping experiences catered to one consumer faction or the next, but few have truly embraced the possibilities that all social, economic, racial or gender groups do offer. With these themes in mind, City Center will be the premiere shopping center for all people, bridging gaps that have been intentionally avoided for years.

Versatility:
Specifically in this climate of economic recession, consumers are looking for products with multi-functionality and the shopping establishments should do no less. The following stores pull ranges from day wear to night wear, urban to formal, plus sized to trendy, in an effort to appeal to shoppers that often have been at odds.

Express – After restructuring their men’s clothing line, from the signature brand, Structure, Express has made immense strides in outfitting the modern form, both for men and for women. Their implied style, invokes a spirit of trendy dynamics with smooth aesthetic that presents a unique wear-ablity in the workplace, as well as during a night on the town. While a truly talented fashionista could find jewels galore here, they make it easier for even the most slovenly schlub to clean up well.

Man Alive – Believe it or not, Man Alive was my very first job in fashion retail and I have to admit, even back then I wasn’t really a purchasing supporter of the urban design sense the Eastland Mall site was built around. But a few years later, on a trip to St. Louis, I found a Man Alive store that carried suits, business attire and to a great degree, a sense of dignity that I hadn’t fathomed the chain could muster. As a young African-American male, I’m imploring my fellow black men to take note! While there’s nothing “wrong” with urban-wear, it should not be the crux nor the pinnacle of your fashion sense. Having a store that caters to both sides of the fence, I hope it carries with it the fashionable sensibilities that will teach its patrons how to wear both with pride.

Torrid – I must admit that my taste in women is rather influenced by the Renaissance, favoring the curve a bit more than the line, and it’s with great pride and a sneaking flash of satisfaction that fashion has come to embrace those of more significant proportions, offering the same senses of drama and flare afforded their slimmer sisters. Torrid, a store that came completely under the radar initially, offers much for the fuller figure without the look suffering blandness or being down right ridiculous. The line is a bit more modern than ruling party Lane Bryant (who is more than welcome to come play as well), giving younger generations of plus-sized women something to look forward to in their shopping and stylistic experiences.

Unity:
There have been stores that have arrived to the shores of Columbus, boasting a prestige and value attached to their names, affecting people, if only for a time, simply because we now “have one.” But these stores, in general, offer little to the average consumer, nor do they have an influx of new product that would increase consumer traffic or even justify their product price points. These two stores below do both, offering in some cases an exclusive edge to appeal to both residents and out-of-towners, brand name recognition with celebrity attachments and high turnover in community oriented events and fundraisers.

Niketown – With the bevy of ways to describe the unifying aspects that Niketown, for the sake of brevity, I’ll try to only honorably mention a few standouts that really resonate with me. By having a Niketown, Columbus would stand as the only other locale for the shop other than our mid-western big-city, big sister, Chicago. And with exclusivity being the base of its product culture, it can function as an attraction for both out-of-towners as well as local patrons, while still allowing commercial health for competing sports shoe and apparel franchises. Nike even sponsors Ohio’s own sports figure champion, LeBron James, bringing an immensity of star power to the fold (while Cleveland could make an argument for placement there, we ARE the capital city…!) – imagine him headlining a project that beckons for people to donate gently used tennis shoes to suffering third world nations, and for their efforts get a moment with “King James” himself…and maybe a discount on their next pair.

RocaWear – There are few who don’t recognize the clothing label spinoff from hip-hop mogul, Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter’s Roc-a-Fella Records imprint. Gracing the ad pages of Vibe Magazine to GQ, from holding quarter on the racks at AJ Wright to Macy’s, RocaWear has grown tremendously like its rapping headmaster, and would bring along a curiously subtle, though quite prolific presence, indicative of the man himself. Jay-Z has taken strides to improve the world that many have simply fallen victim to and his exemplary vision has trickled down, in one part, culminating into RocaWear’s “I Will Not Lose” campaign that celebrates others who have overcome adversity to make change for the better. Hosting the store in City Center, an honor vested currently in New York alone, would ring a sense of global awareness to the denizens of Columbus, boldly shouting that in spite of our past struggles with dealing with the world’s strife (see Heart of the City (Center), pt 6), we will not lose either.