metro
05-06-2005, 11:48 AM
Boutique to bring style to Bricktown
By Tom Lindley
The Oklahoman
It was a tiresome plea that became the mantra for my two daughters' teen years.
"We've got to drive to Dallas to shop," they would say.
"For jeans?" I would respond in disbelief before pointing them in the direction of the mall.
Bernard Davis arrived in town too late to do me much good, but maybe it will bode well for the parents of other seekers of popular brand- name and private-label jeans.
By the end of the month, Davis will be selling private-label jeans and other trendy apparel in Bricktown at prices more befitting the Oklahoma prairie than the New York skyscraper the stores in Dallas want to charge.
Wearers of high-end, brand-name jeans pay an average of $120 a pair, with some going for as much as $200. Davis says his special line of denim will range in price from $60 to $80.
"It's not like the demand isn't here," Davis said of Oklahoma City. "It's just that we haven't had the supply."
Davis may or may not be offering a good deal, but what makes his arrival noteworthy is that Fire Fly will be the first contemporary fashion boutique to set up shop in lower Bricktown.
Although the 1,600-square-foot slab of polished concrete Davis' shop will occupy doesn't compare to many of the deals Bricktown mastermind Randy Hogan has pulled off, this is an important first step for downtown's mixed-use center.
"It's like we're grabbing a brass ring," Hogan said. "We've felt retail was something we had to earn. First, we had to get the foot traffic."
A shopping desire
As much as tourists and the locals like to eat, there is a sense that ultimately Bricktown also must quench their desire to shop.
With that in mind, Hogan stood on the sidewalk Tuesday morning trying to pave the way for the long-awaited coming of boutique retail by trying to persuade a local banker to relocate an automatic teller machine under construction in front of one of Davis' store windows.
Davis, naturally, wants to show off his private label jeans to the world. What good is an automatic teller if customers never get a chance to see the merchandise?
"It's huge," Davis said of the ATM, which looked a lot bigger in real life than on a sketch Davis was shown a while back. "Even worse, it's yellow."
It's now Hogan's problem to solve.
Nonetheless, it's a nice problem for a developer to have -- retailers clamoring for space. It wasn't that long ago that few people had a grasp of the big picture, much less the urge to start a land run for such a tiny spot of ground in lower Bricktown.
Davis and his partners staked their claim on the belief that Bricktown has a bright future as a mixed-use urban lifestyle center.
It is a concept that Davis, who was born in Oklahoma City, has had success with as a retailer in Dallas' West End shopping district, and one he has familiarity with having lived much of his life in Europe, where most people work and play not far from where they live.
With foot traffic of about 6 million people a year, Bricktown is headed in the same direction. It's anchored by Bass Pro Shops on one end and two arenas and a convention center on the other. Davis likes the thought of being caught in the middle, not far from a 16-screen theater. It will get even better when condominium living arrives across from the fountain, along the banks of the canal.
The plan doesn't stop with selling jeans to older teens. Davis and his partners are close to completing arrangements to lease space on the ground floor of the Sonic Building, where a combination denim store and martini-type denim bar catering to members of the over-30 crowd who want to show off their branded jeans is planned. A glass door will separate the two.
Inside the bar, fruity-tasting alcoholic stick drinks will be the specialty, not the dry martinis of my parents' generation, all of which will make an interesting contrast to whatever is taking place across the canal at Toby Keith's new restaurant and music hall.
However, Davis senses there will be no incompatibility issues.
"We all get the same media today -- MTV, the Oscars, magazines, which means we have the same desires to get the same things," Davis said.
Besides, all you have to do is look around to realize that jeans never go out of style.
Write me: P.O. Box 25125, Oklahoma City, OK 73125 Fax me: 475-3183
Call me: (405)936-0175
E-mail me: tlindley@cox.net
By Tom Lindley
The Oklahoman
It was a tiresome plea that became the mantra for my two daughters' teen years.
"We've got to drive to Dallas to shop," they would say.
"For jeans?" I would respond in disbelief before pointing them in the direction of the mall.
Bernard Davis arrived in town too late to do me much good, but maybe it will bode well for the parents of other seekers of popular brand- name and private-label jeans.
By the end of the month, Davis will be selling private-label jeans and other trendy apparel in Bricktown at prices more befitting the Oklahoma prairie than the New York skyscraper the stores in Dallas want to charge.
Wearers of high-end, brand-name jeans pay an average of $120 a pair, with some going for as much as $200. Davis says his special line of denim will range in price from $60 to $80.
"It's not like the demand isn't here," Davis said of Oklahoma City. "It's just that we haven't had the supply."
Davis may or may not be offering a good deal, but what makes his arrival noteworthy is that Fire Fly will be the first contemporary fashion boutique to set up shop in lower Bricktown.
Although the 1,600-square-foot slab of polished concrete Davis' shop will occupy doesn't compare to many of the deals Bricktown mastermind Randy Hogan has pulled off, this is an important first step for downtown's mixed-use center.
"It's like we're grabbing a brass ring," Hogan said. "We've felt retail was something we had to earn. First, we had to get the foot traffic."
A shopping desire
As much as tourists and the locals like to eat, there is a sense that ultimately Bricktown also must quench their desire to shop.
With that in mind, Hogan stood on the sidewalk Tuesday morning trying to pave the way for the long-awaited coming of boutique retail by trying to persuade a local banker to relocate an automatic teller machine under construction in front of one of Davis' store windows.
Davis, naturally, wants to show off his private label jeans to the world. What good is an automatic teller if customers never get a chance to see the merchandise?
"It's huge," Davis said of the ATM, which looked a lot bigger in real life than on a sketch Davis was shown a while back. "Even worse, it's yellow."
It's now Hogan's problem to solve.
Nonetheless, it's a nice problem for a developer to have -- retailers clamoring for space. It wasn't that long ago that few people had a grasp of the big picture, much less the urge to start a land run for such a tiny spot of ground in lower Bricktown.
Davis and his partners staked their claim on the belief that Bricktown has a bright future as a mixed-use urban lifestyle center.
It is a concept that Davis, who was born in Oklahoma City, has had success with as a retailer in Dallas' West End shopping district, and one he has familiarity with having lived much of his life in Europe, where most people work and play not far from where they live.
With foot traffic of about 6 million people a year, Bricktown is headed in the same direction. It's anchored by Bass Pro Shops on one end and two arenas and a convention center on the other. Davis likes the thought of being caught in the middle, not far from a 16-screen theater. It will get even better when condominium living arrives across from the fountain, along the banks of the canal.
The plan doesn't stop with selling jeans to older teens. Davis and his partners are close to completing arrangements to lease space on the ground floor of the Sonic Building, where a combination denim store and martini-type denim bar catering to members of the over-30 crowd who want to show off their branded jeans is planned. A glass door will separate the two.
Inside the bar, fruity-tasting alcoholic stick drinks will be the specialty, not the dry martinis of my parents' generation, all of which will make an interesting contrast to whatever is taking place across the canal at Toby Keith's new restaurant and music hall.
However, Davis senses there will be no incompatibility issues.
"We all get the same media today -- MTV, the Oscars, magazines, which means we have the same desires to get the same things," Davis said.
Besides, all you have to do is look around to realize that jeans never go out of style.
Write me: P.O. Box 25125, Oklahoma City, OK 73125 Fax me: 475-3183
Call me: (405)936-0175
E-mail me: tlindley@cox.net