Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Anybody else here concerned that shops and restaurants opening up in the Seaboard Station in Downtown Raleigh aren’t getting enough customers to stay out of the red? I went into the Capital City Grocery today to pick up a few things after work and there were more employees in there than customers! It seems like a nice place too. I know that the Logan’s Nursery and Seaboard Wine Warehouse have been there a long time and have a good customer base, but I can’t help but feel that the few “pioneers” who have opened up boutiques and dining establishments in the new commercial spaces are struggling right now. I know that area will take off in the next few years, and that more condos are planned to be built there which should help, (I’m sure one day that location will be a gold mine) but that is still a long ways off when it comes to paying the expenses of running one of these places in the meantime.
buy almost all my groceries at Capitol. I, too, am concerned that they will bite the dust before everyone discovers that they are there. Since the city does not allow any directional signage, many people pass close by on Peace Street and have no clue there is a nice neighborhood grocery a spit away. My neighborhood, Historic Oakwood, has a list serve and there has been heated debate on the market. Some people complain that it does not have every single thing they want and stay open 24 hours a day. Of course, they are comparing it to stores five times the size, but let's not let logic get in the way of an opinion. I LOVE the market and the stores and restaurants around it. I plan on stopping by after I finish this message!
Running a locally-owned grocery must be difficult.
Quote:
Originally Posted by House Lady
buy almost all my groceries at Capitol. I, too, am concerned that they will bite the dust before everyone discovers that they are there. Since the city does not allow any directional signage, many people pass close by on Peace Street and have no clue there is a nice neighborhood grocery a spit away. My neighborhood, Historic Oakwood, has a list serve and there has been heated debate on the market. Some people complain that it does not have every single thing they want and stay open 24 hours a day. Of course, they are comparing it to stores five times the size, but let's not let logic get in the way of an opinion. I LOVE the market and the stores and restaurants around it. I plan on stopping by after I finish this message!
I too, try to shop there whenever possible, even though Cameron Village is somewhat closer to me. Especially since Capital Grocery is much easier to get in and out of than Harris Teeter could ever be! But I, too, find some things I need that Capital doesn't have, and therefore end up eventually taking a trip later on to Harris Teeter or Costco to get it.
Capital Grocery does have a suggestion box you can write down items you need that they don't have. I do hope they take those suggestions seriously, if they want to stay in business. I know it's a small store, but it looks like they do have room inside to add more shelves of food if they really wanted to. (To start with, they could take up some of the space they're currently using for wine, since there's already a wine store in Seaboard. Cut down on the redundancy.)
I hope more neighborhoods near to downtown other than Oakwood get together to support them. Mordecai, Glenwood/Brooklyn, Boylan, Woodcrest, etc could add needed customers. Hopefully eventually more people will realize that place is there.
I admit, I am Peace Street quite a bit, and have never seen it. Next time I am in the area, I will have to look for all these shops.
It's at the Seaboard Station redevelopment. It's the huge brick buildings behind Sunflower's Sandwich Shop and the Shell Station, where Peace meets Halifax/Salisbury/Wilmington streets. Next to Logan's garden/landscaping shop.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I live downtown and...
But I, too, find some things I need that Capital doesn't have, and therefore end up eventually taking a trip later on to Harris Teeter or Costco to get it.
