Von Maur

[Plutonic Panda]

Just so I can verify, you actually inspected the material and found it to be of higher quality than previous occasions, correct? I'm just making sure because your post makes it sound like you think that just because something is expensive that it is high quality.

No. It just seemed like they are carrying higher cost clothing than I previously though(and I could be wrong). I probably should've specified.

[Plutonic Panda]

Just so I can verify, you actually inspected the material and found it to be of higher quality than previous occasions, correct? I'm just making sure because your post makes it sound like you think that just because something is expensive that it is high quality.

BTW 9 times out of 10 you get what you pay for.

[catch22]

BTW 9 times out of 10 you get what you pay for.

I disagree. In the past several years, overall product quality (not just in Dillard's but everywhere) has diminished while prices have remained flat or even increased. Very rarely does one get what they pay for now.

[jn1780]

BTW 9 times out of 10 you get what you pay for.

My experience with clothing is that your paying just for the name brand. Everything is made by the same group of kids in Indonesia or some other third world country, but now Im getting Off topic. Lol

[Plutonic Panda]

I disagree. In the past several years, overall product quality (not just in Dillard's but everywhere) has diminished while prices have remained flat or even increased. Very rarely does one get what they pay for now.

My experience with clothing is that your paying just for the name brand. Everything is made by the same group of kids in Indonesia or some other third world country, but now Im getting Off topic. Lol

Yeah you're probably right. That is getting to be an outdated "truth". lol

[anthonyokc]

I wouldn't be surprised if Von Maur gave GGP a little "kickback" for that space. Business dealings can be more underhanded than you think!

[Rover]

I wouldn't be surprised if Von Maur gave GGP a little "kickback" for that space. Business dealings can be more underhanded than you think!

Huh? Not sure what payments you are talking about, but if VM gave a premium to get a space, that certainly isn't underhanded. Now, if VM is a public company and the owner of the space is someone in VM who influences the location and therefore diverts money from the shareholders, that is different. Not sure what you are saying though.

[zookeeper]

I wouldn't be surprised if Von Maur gave GGP a little "kickback" for that space. Business dealings can be more underhanded than you think!

Doesn't make sense. GGP actually owned the Sears store at Quail Springs, it was part of the Sears sale of some mall stores to General Growth. If there was a kickback paid to GGP for the space to screw Sears, GGP was letting themselves get kicked.

[progressiveboy]

It is good to see upscale department stores take notice of OKC emerging and raising the bar! This is a great start but there is still work to be done. Von Maur should do well in QSM, and perhaps change the marketing mix of stores for the mall.

[stlokc]

Von Maur is a perfect fit for QS, and definitely several steps up from Sears. But if you think this is really upscale, you'll be disappointed. I work near one and it's more of a dressed up Macy's then anything else. If you look at their list of locations, it's a lot of small towns in Iowa and the Midwest. It's not Nordstrom or Sak's. That doesn't mean I'm not happy about it but it's arrival doesn't mean OKC has arrived on the upscale scene.

[zookeeper]

For what it's worth, in the Neiman Marcus Wikipedia entry it says "The company is headquartered in the One Marcus Square building in Downtown Dallas, Texas,[1] and competes with other department stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Barneys New York, Lord & Taylor, Nordstrom, Von Maur and Bloomingdale's."

Von Maur was also listed in the luxury category of a recent poll for Retailing Today.

To be honest, I had never heard of Von Mauer until that mass shooting in Omaha a few years back. But apparently somebody considers them on par with luxury retailers. They're often referred to as the "Nordstom of the Midwest".

[progressiveboy]

Von Maur is a perfect fit for QS, and definitely several steps up from Sears. But if you think this is really upscale, you'll be disappointed. I work near one and it's more of a dressed up Macy's then anything else. If you look at their list of locations, it's a lot of small towns in Iowa and the Midwest. It's not Nordstrom or Sak's. That doesn't mean I'm not happy about it but it's arrival doesn't mean OKC has arrived on the upscale scene.

True, however it is good for OKC since Saks, Nordstrom or Neiman's are not interested in opening there. Again, this is a "start" for OKC along with Nordstrom Rack as retail is starting to get better in OKC

[bchris02]

Von Maur may not be Nordstrom or Saks, but its certainly better than anything currently in the market from what I hear. This is kind of like when Little Rock got Parisian before they got bought out by Belk, which was a huge blow for them since Parisian was the only upscale store in the market. OKC will now finally have an upscale department store even if its not as upscale as Nordstrom, Neiman's, etc.

[progressiveboy]

Von Maur is a perfect fit for QS, and definitely several steps up from Sears. But if you think this is really upscale, you'll be disappointed. I work near one and it's more of a dressed up Macy's then anything else. If you look at their list of locations, it's a lot of small towns in Iowa and the Midwest. It's not Nordstrom or Sak's. That doesn't mean I'm not happy about it but it's arrival doesn't mean OKC has arrived on the upscale scene.

Well, personally I have never stepped foot in a Von Maur, so I have nothing to really compare it with. According to Wikipedia, it's description of the department store chain is an "upscale" speciality department store that competes with Nordstrom, Bloomingdales and Lord and Taylor. It has a live pianist performing during regular store hours and it offers free gift wrapping, free shipping. These are just some of the features offered in their signature flagship stores. They have recently expanded into Atlanta and Louisville so they are also expanding in the South hardly small towns.

[SoonerDave]

I feel bad for Sears. They've tried and tried and things just aren't working out. There's no room for a large general retailer as a mall anchor anymore. They really had a little of everything where Penney's and others left that behind a long time ago.

No disrespect, but Sears hasn't "tried" in thirty years. And that's precisely their problem. Now they're simply an appendage of K-Mart.

Walk into one of their stores today and its like walking into a time machine back to about 1982. They even smell the same.

Sears either refused to or had no clue how to adapt to an evolving market. Ironically, they were in a good position to make that transition as a catalog retailer, but failed to understand how to leverage that position going forward. I think a properly managed Sears could have transitioned themselves into an early generation Amazon, but they were too tepid in their move to a non-brick-and-mortar market. They opted rather to stand on the value of their brand names and stale stores, so when the quality behind those names eroded and better alternatives at better prices emerged from other vendors, Sears was left with precious little to distinguish itself other than its name.

While I realize relatively speaking their store at 44th and Western is successful, it wouldn't surprise me at all to see an announcement from them that they're shuttering it in particular (or the balance of what's left in general). They've already sold/licensed the Craftsman name to Ace, and seems to me when you start selling off assets, the candle's wick is just about gone.

[redrunner]

Von Maur may not be Nordstrom or Saks, but its certainly better than anything currently in the market from what I hear. This is kind of like when Little Rock got Parisian before they got bought out by Belk, which was a huge blow for them since Parisian was the only upscale store in the market. OKC will now finally have an upscale department store even if its not as upscale as Nordstrom, Neiman's, etc.

By the looks of their inventory of apparel it's not even as upscale as Macys or Dillards, at least for the men's dept. The only designer brands that stand out are Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein. I appreciate the piano and interior design but how this is considered on par with Nordstrom baffles me. OKC is not gaining anything more upscale the Macy's or Dillards.

[redrunner]

Von Maur is a perfect fit for QS, and definitely several steps up from Sears. But if you think this is really upscale, you'll be disappointed. I work near one and it's more of a dressed up Macy's then anything else. If you look at their list of locations, it's a lot of small towns in Iowa and the Midwest. It's not Nordstrom or Sak's. That doesn't mean I'm not happy about it but it's arrival doesn't mean OKC has arrived on the upscale scene.

Pretty accurate statement.

[bchris02]

I have never understood why Tulsa and Birmingham can support a Saks but OKC supposedly cannot, other than lazy market researchers who simply rely on Wikipedia for their market data and don't take into account the sprawl of OKC.

[Rover]

By the looks of their inventory of apparel it's not even as upscale as Macys or Dillards, at least for the men's dept. The only designer brands that stand out are Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein. I appreciate the piano and interior design but how this is considered on par with Nordstrom baffles me. OKC is not gaining anything more upscale the Macy's or Dillards.

Von Maur is a slightly upscale chain. Most department stores carry a great deal of the same stuff. They definitely are a step up from JCP and that ilk, but don't particularly distinguish themselves with high end house brands, etc. They are a nice anchor and do well in cities like ours...pretty fashion safe or conservative. They display well and their stores are usually stylish, but not "forward" stylish. They should spend a decent amount on remodeling and raise the image of QSM a bit. They usually go into the better malls/areas in small to midsize cities. If they are taking the entire Sears area it will be a bigger flagship store for them.

This is a nice addition, a nice upgrade, but doesn't signal OKC "arriving".

[CaptDave]

Home

This is upscale. The Pagani parked outside when I was last there was pretty cool too.

[ljbab728]

Von Maur may be on the way.

Oklahoma City will consider incentives to bring Von Maur store to Quail Springs Mall | NewsOK.com

[bchris02]

Von Maur may be on the way.

Oklahoma City will consider incentives to bring Von Maur store to Quail Springs Mall | NewsOK.com

I thought Von Maur was already a done deal at QS?

Nonetheless, its about time OKC has a more upscale department store.

[MDot]

Von Maur isn't the most upscale store, but it's a big step in the right direction. I hope it will get the attention of Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, etc. The Nordstrom Rack will probably garner more attention from Nordstrom than Von Maur though.

[bchris02]

Von Maur isn't the most upscale store, but it's a big step in the right direction. I hope it will get the attention of Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, etc. The Nordstrom Rack will probably garner more attention from Nordstrom than Von Maur though.

Agreed. I am sure under normal circumstances Tulsa would get a full-line Nordstrom before OKC would, but being that Tulsa already has Saks, and the market likely isn't large enough for both Nordstrom and Saks, its possible they could open in OKC. It would require either the construction of a new upscale lifestyle center or the departure of one of the anchors at Penn Square i.e. Penney's. I really don't see either in OKC's near future.

[MDot]

Agreed. I am sure under normal circumstances Tulsa would get a full-line Nordstrom before OKC would, but being that Tulsa already has Saks, and the market likely isn't large enough for both Nordstrom and Saks, its possible they could open in OKC. It would require either the construction of a new upscale lifestyle center or the departure of one of the anchors at Penn Square i.e. Penney's. I really don't see either in OKC's near future.

I'm sure they could expand Penn Square to make room if Nordstrom ever got the hots for a full-line store in OKC. An upscale lifestyle center would be more preferable at this point, but I doubt that is likely to happen anytime soon.

A Saks would be a great addition too, but at this point I'm just dreaming for stores of that class locating to OKC.