What's on the Consumer's Mind

Locals have started to ask questions. The economic questions have been related to Vicksburg Ms retail and restraunts markets. For a pattern is now emerging. Now u would think that a port like Vicksburg would be bursting with the retail and restraunts business. The reality is that this market has weak economics in those areas. It's strong suit is only in the gaming industry and new boat is coming in october. Most locals aren't even interested the gaming market at all. Now what causes the closures of retail and restraunts. Now this has been going for sometime now. Several culprits could be the causes: high taxes,high property taxes,inventory taxes. There is a real lack serious competion. When Walmart moved in some of the tranplants are blaming Walmart for downtown's demise. But honestly the local downtown businesses angered the locals. High prices on thier own goods for example. Now some of those of those downtown business are struggling. A few closed becouse of crime. Now the locals are still hostile toward Downtown Vicksburg becouse of the shoddy treatment they got. Now the mayor has been doing his best to revalitize it but he should should realize that are locals who are hostile. Everytime 'downtown' is memtioned it only angers the locals becouse they're sick of hearing it and the fact a majority of this shopping market shops at the better migh end malls in Madison,Ridgeland and Flowood. Becouse the matra now for Vicksburg is "town that doesn't have anything." That's a fact. Overall the weaknesses in retail could contributed to the fact that someone in the local chamber of commerce told NO to businessees who wanted to come to the RiverCity to do business. Now this NO could foster a real negative image in the much broader business community beyond the MS River.Last year and this year two restraunts turned down the RiverCity for business: Quizno's and Ruby Tuesday. Costs of commercial real estate and the fact this town has major service issues with the public. But this town business leaders major mistake wasa to block competition which in the end hurt thier own sector that helping; they even thought gambling boats could boost thier business. Never happened.

Here's a story that hasn't really honestly been reported throughly. But it has gotten the locals perturbed. Real perturbed. The buzz has been over why Vicksburg Ms is building more new hotels. In fact a Quality Inn,Marriot are popping up right behind a Holiday Inn here on Clay Street. Another buzz I heard but I haven't heard anymore about is the fact a Windham Wyngate hotel on the Interstate has run out of money. Now I don't know how true that is. But that information rumormill in this cliquish community still works. Now the gripes over the building of more hotels is growing louder. Now the local civic and commerce leadership hasn't been straightforward about why these hotels are going up. No explaination in the local papers. Nothing. Word that I have been is hearing is racetrack but the local leadership hasn't made anything public. What does the local leaders have to hide? What are they afraid of. But the crys against the hotels are esclating.

Now that it has been established that CBL's "Board" wants to vote to close the thier small Pemberton Mall property, this board could face real hard objections. There are four anchor stores: Dillard's, Belks,JC Pennys and Bookland which is a subsidary of Books-A-Million. Now what if these stores profit margins are strong in this marketplace. Further this "board" could've angered the CEO's and Regional VPs of these retailers becouse their stores are showing profitablity in this marketplace. These anchors would be the ones who give the REIT CBL Associates real pain for infringing in thier marketplace. Now are these retailers force to share thier profits with CBL? I can tell you that CBL Associates hasn't got tv broadcast coverage. Yet the online journalists who follow retail are the ones who have been following CBL as well. In my own Google news searches I would learn that CBL has been renovating one of their larger malls; or they're getting a new anchor store in larger metro malls. Now I can tell the Mall properiter R.W. has been quiet too about any new retailers moving into her marketplace. She hasn't made any public annoouncements at all on her mall property but she was instremental in closing down the ten stores.

Yesterday I went to the bleak Pemberton Mall. A source of mind told me that the "Board" of CBL either has ruled on closing on the mall or delayed it. But the other rumor beside closing the mall has been the Mall owner was going break the mall up and try to make a small lifestyle mall out of it. Now back in January of this year,CBL's VP of Investor relations announced they had plans for the mall. But here it is summer and CBL hasn't made no such public announcemnts in the newspaper. Now ten of the stores that were closed over two years ago supposelively "breached thier contracts" becouse of the crimes that took place. But most of the local retailers have complained about CBL's lax security. Here's something else I uncovered last year I did a Google search and I found they had projected their property to generate profit. Would you believe that report was wrong. Becouse the local shopping market has shifted radically toward Madison and the Jackson metro market. CBL has only displayed laxiety in competiting with the higher end malls in Madison. Worst CBL's public relations has only let this troublesome mall open to rumors in the community. Now has this REIT displayed the same behavaior toward their property in Winston Salem NC? By the CBL Associates is having problems too in thier own backyard in Tennassee becouse a Dillard's store closed in thier mall due to competiion in Murfeesboro. I beleive it's time to due a report on the Mall owners for the consumer sake. And one more thing: How much more retail bankruptcies can a Real Estate Investment Trust absorb before its own bottom line is affected? How much does unused rental retalier tenant space affect the cost of a Real Estate Investment Trust? Especially when their property leases and rental are high? does that high lease costs chase away a potential retailer from a marketplace?

Just think how much money parents would save every year if more school districts around the country would just implement school uniforms.

Alexis that is real interesting. I sent u an email with an investor mag link on the state of Shopping malls. I found the information by accident but I figure u,Cheryl,Neil,Liz and Charles Payne may find interesting. The artticle deals with the state of Real Estate Investment Trusts albeit Mall Owners. Here's what I learned about CBL Associates of Chattanooga,Tn and five other mall REITS: they're in deep debt. The article was written by firm out of Colorado and CBL the largest REIT of the Southeast is having issues with filling retail space. I wrote this earlier in Cheryl Casone's blog. Afterall you focus on the retailers thier earnings. Why not examine the Real Estate Investment Trusts who owns mall. I can tell you that CBL Associates who moved into the Vicksburg Ms Marketplace twenty something years ago--thier once vibrant mall here is now here in decay and they haven't filled up thier rental space. But CBL Associates mall probmems are all across the country. They even shut a mall down in Colorado; I learned that in a WSJ article here online and they have place another mall in Winston-Salem,North Carolina in peril. That's mall fate is as uncertain as their small Pemberton Mall property here. Within this Investment artcle it's not CBL Associates that's in trouble. 5 or 6 REITS are facing the same problems. I wonder if they're problems are related to mortgage and the credit crunch. Less rental space means less shoppers. I honestly believe it's time to have these RIETS look at as news subject.