Homestyle Retail Developers Create a Unique “Homestyle” Theme in a Shopping Center Setting at the Arboretum of South Barrington

Homestyle Retail Developers create a unique “homestyle” theme in a shopping center setting at The Arboretum of South Barrington. Susan H. Fishman

t’s one of those things that makes so much sense, you wonder why you nev- Ier thought of it — a shopping center that caters to the affluent customer who is looking to spend money on her home. The Arboretum of South Barrington is a The Arboretum of South Barrington in development partnership between South Barrington, Illinois, is scheduled to open fall 2007. Michael Jaffe, president of Northbrook, tion off the market. Parties finally “People have been trained to do their Illinois-based The Jaffe Companies, and reached a settlement about 18 months super-regional shopping at IKEA from Scott Lucas, president of New Paradigm ago, which allows for the Arboretum all over the Chicago area,” Jaffe notes. Development Partners, LLC, of Nashville, development to be built on the entitled And since the site is just a block off of Tennessee, who both separately worked and zoned commercial property. Gold- the Interstate 90 tollway (unlike the oth- on the Deer Park Town Center and Gene- man Sachs’ unit, Archon, bought the er lifestyle centers in the Chicago area, va Commons lifestyle center. The Arbore- property catercornered from The Ar- which are not near highways), it has the tum will be developed as a 560,000-square- boretum and is building a Target-an- ability to draw from a huge trade area. foot, upscale, open-air lifestyle center, fea- chored, 400,000-square-foot power cen- The design of the center will have the turing fashion apparel and trend-setting ter. And a 12,000-square-foot arena is typical lifestyle components, with path- restaurants, plus a unique offering of what under construction on the nearby for- ways and public areas, as well as an em- developers are calling “homestyle tenants.” mer Sears tract, which will also be filled phasis on moving people in an inviting The center will be distinguished by an em- with other regional retailers. and safe pedestrian-oriented fashion, a phasis on retailers specializing in quality “We describe it as an infill or backfill key element for the developers. home furnishings, home accessories and intersection,” notes Jaffe. “It’s extraordi- “We will have convenient parking, home-related goods and services. narily well situated between the exist- but at the cost of parking spaces and “We’re not just looking at furniture ing lifestyle and apparel pods that al- some square feet, we’re creating public stores, but everything else you can think ready exist. We’re about 9 miles from plazas where people can meet and greet of for the home — grouping them to- Algonquin Commons to the west, Deer- and hang out,” Jaffe notes. “This is one gether in a beautiful, lush, inviting envi- park Town Center to the north and of the most affluent suburbs of Chica- ronment amidst restaurants and other Woodfield Mall, one of the biggest malls go, and it doesn’t have a town center, so things,” says Jaffe. “We’re hoping and in the country, to the east. So we’re per- we want to address that.” expecting to also be able to offer kitchen fectly spaced from those other centers The look of the center is based upon and bath stores, counter stores, lighting that have already proved their numbers.” some of the oldest shopping centers in stores and fabric stores. And the recep- In scouting potential locations, Lucas tion has been tremendous. It just seems R graphed where the furniture demand was e n like this is one of those ideas that peo- d e

strongest and looked for sites all over the r i n ple get right away.” United States. The Arboretum location g c o Located at routes 59 and 72 in South stacked up as one of the great potential u r t e

Barrington, Illinois, The Arboretum of s

locations for this type of development. y o South Barrington, which is scheduled to “It’s one of the Number 1 available f L e open in fall 2007, has already been long sites in the country for potential furni- e R i

in the making. Developers pursued a c

ture sales, based upon demographics and h a tract at this strategic intersection for 4 r studies of where furniture dollars are d Site plan for The Arboretum of South s o years, noting its adjacency to the four- spent,” says Lucas. n Barrington. The 560,000-square-foot & way interchange at I-90 and its ideal The average household income with- open-air lifestyle center will A s s

spacing between Woodfield Mall, Deer o

in a 5-mile radius of the site is $91,583. c

emphasize retailers who focus on i a

Park Town Center and Algonquin Com- t The Arboretum also benefits from being e the home: home furnishings, s mons. But decades of boundary disputes . located right up Interstate 90 from home accessories and other and recent litigation kept the intersec- IKEA’s Schaumburg store. home-related goods and services. the Chicago market, specifically Lake Currently in the letter of intent consumers, to shop in an environment Forest, designed by renowned architect, process with several tenants, the Ar- where there were high amenities and con- Benjamin Marshall. boretum has slated roughly 250,000 feet sistent quality throughout, as well as “We’re adapting it, but it will be a of space for fashion retailers and about smaller-scale structures. That was com- highly stylized Tudor style,” says Jaffe. 300,000 square feet for homestyle ten- bined with emerging trends in the home “We want it to look like it’s been there ants. The home concept was originally furnishings industry — a lot of retailers a long time.” brought to life by Lucas, who had some were emerging in that genre, but there Developers have expanded the Ar- familiarity with the furniture industry, was also what I would call a brand aware- boretum site to 80 acres from an origi- but really immersed himself in research ness of the emerging furniture industry.” nal 60 acres and are currently in the pre- to help understand who the furniture The home concept may be emerging, development phase. Leasing is looking players are, who’s moving, who’s not but Jaffe believes there will be other cen- promising, and the site is getting a great and how they interrelate. ters like this in the near future. reaction from both upscale apparel and “I started to look at the international “We think this will be a template for home-related retailers, according to Jaffe. home furnishings marketplace and at- other homestyle centers around the coun- But knowing that the apparel industry tended their convention, which is held try,” he notes. “The challenge, as you try has cyclical periods, Jaffe and Lucas re- in High Point, North Carolina, every to become relevant in the retail landscape, ally honed in on the home market. year,” Lucas says. “We knocked on doors is to distinguish your center and make it “What came clear to us was that with and found people very interested in our necessary for — and meaningful to — the low interest rates and the biggest hous- idea. We learned about their industry consumer. The presence of this grouping ing boom ever in the country, and with and their needs and showed them op- of stores for the home, and the ability for all the home improvements going on, this portunities we saw.” the affluent shopper to avoid having to was a great time to take some of the at- In his research, Lucas noted a variety travel to downtown Chicago and other tributes of lifestyle centers that we know of trends in the home furnishings in- places, is being widely and hugely well re- people like — pedestrian friendliness, great dustry both on the consumer side and ceived so far, and we expect, if anything, landscaping, convenient parking — and the retailer side. for the momentum to pick up.” SCB make them work for people who sell “There was a stronger preference things for the home,” says Jaffe. among consumers, particularly affluent