There might still be no H&M in Charlotte (despite stores in Winston-Salem and Raleigh), but that might not matter as much soon: The retailer plans to start offering online shopping here soon.
You might have heard about this before, but H&M reaffirmed its plans Wednesday in its earnings release. CEO Karl-Johan Persson said in his statement that, "Online sales will be launched in the autumn in the U.S., the world’s largest online market."
Robust sales in the U.S. and Asia helped power H&M to a strong quarter, with $750 million worth of profits. Worldwide, H&M is one of the biggest apparel retailers, with 2,575 stores.
Locally, the Facebook group "Bring H&M to Charlotte" is still gathering new posts. Now that Charlotte is about to get its first Whole Foods, anything is possible. H&M is also opening its first stores in Estonia and Indonesia next year, so if you find yourself in that neck of the woods, you can catch the grand openings and bring some clothes back to Charlotte.
Thursday, June 21, 2012
H&M this year? Online, at least
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17 comments:
I still don't know why they won't take the old Borders at Northlake Mall.
Ely, where do you think would be the most attractive locations to place a H&M?
Is there enough shopping traffic for an Uptown location, right along Tryon?
Would a H&M location thrive more around Ballantyne or Birkdale Village?
Does it fit more of a Northlake Mall style?
Interested in your opinion...
Hi Buck. I've heard that H&M was interested in locations at SouthPark, but couldn't find a large enough contiguous space they liked there. I don't think there is enough traffic for an uptown location yet - no major retailer has been willing to put up a standalone store there, and I don't see a new entrant being the first. But I could be wrong. There is still a large space in the Metropolitan that used to be a Home Depot store (right under Target) that I often hear mentioned as a possibility. I think it would either be that or a mall - but wherever they put one, it would be a huge draw.
Where do I begin. First, I follow H&M on twitter and every time someone inquires about a store in places like Charlotte they say you can buy online this fall. Buying online is no consolation for the convenience of being able to try on clothes in person. So whop de doo about buying online. Who cares. Second, they’ve recently opened or announced stores in trendy cosmopolitan cities like Jacksonville, Winston-Salem and Huntsville, AL. With moves like that, the novelty of these stores has seriously worn off. Pretty soon having one in your city will be as exclusive as having an Old Navy. It’s a huge slap in the face that they’re in places like Winston and not Charlotte. But given their saturation, the malls in Charlotte would be better served chasing a store like Zara instead now.
Ely, has the old Borders space at Morrocroft been a consideration?
Putting H&M in uptown would be the catalyst to making it a retail destination. Just need someone to make the jump.
Why H&M isn't in the Charlotte market is beyond me. It's kind of funny though that lil old Winston-Salem, which Charlotte looks their nose up to, has an H&M along with a Whole Foods that's been there for 15 years, and Charlotte doesn't have either yet, although the Whole Foods is on the way.
H&M is overrated. It's kind of like when Charlotte got Urban Outfitters. Similar concept, but now they are everywhere, and the only people that shop there are 15-year old girls, and middle aged women who still think they are 15-year old girls. Better served trying to get Uniqlo here. Much better quality and much, much nicer stuff.
H&M must be a part of the anti-Charlotte bias. It's crazy that the bustling metropolis of Huntsville, AL and Winston-Salem have one (or will anyways) but the QC is no where near having one.
Winston-Salem is full of old money, an artsy kinda of place and a definite college town. Who knows if those were draws or not. But like someone else mentioned, maybe its b/c there's too much competition already in a saturated Charlotte market? Who knows but hey H&M is a short 1hr 15minute drive to Hanes Mall in WS. Take a day trip on a weekend and go there and enjoy yourself! Pick up some Krispy Kremes and tour Old Salem while you there too. Lots of history that was restored and not destroyed the way Charlotte loves to do.
H&M just opened in Houston a city of 5 million. I think it is just finding the right spot. Southpark their first choice probably has no space. Some of these European retailers don't know how to roll something out in such a big nation as ours. IKEA is now just in the nations biggest markets and it took them years.
Hanes Mall is a regional destination that's convenient to I-40 which was probably attractive. It probably wasn't so much the demographics that brought them to W-S but the mall itself and it's record of success.
Anon @10:05 AM, very well put!!
I guess the one positive thing to consider is that Winston-Salem is only an hours drive away. There are plenty of people living in large metros like Atlanta and Dallas and many of the northern cities that have an hours drive to their closest H&M store given how big those cities are.
H&M and URBN are totally different concepts..
H&M offers "lower prices" items, that are well designed. URBN offers higher priced items, and mix the selection with already reconcilable brands like Levi's and Penquin. URBN is more of a lifestyle brand offering, clothes, home goods, furniture, music, books, etc.
I'm from DC where there are a lot of H&M locations and was very excited when I found out they were opening in Raleigh, however since they opened I have never been impressed with that location. I hope whenever they come to Charlotte they do a better job.
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