Hi Dylan,
< RAIN is going to be in the Cherry Creek Mall, and while Cherry Creek is a rather upscale neighborhood, this Denver Pavilions region sounds like a great location for the tourist type unit.
I've often argued that RAIN doesn't spend enough time analyzing their future locations, so I wonder if they are blowing it here... Obviously they can't all be Disney locations, but it seems like some of their site selection represents a lack of understanding the markets they enter. >
Having been a fairly long-time resident of the Denver area, I think Cherry Creek Mall is still probably a better choice, or at least it was when RFC originally decided on a Colorado location. The downtown area that Denver Pavilions will be in has been in an economic decline for probably 10 years. Trendy upscale places like Banana Republic have opened there only to close a few years later for lack of business. The downtown area seems to be reviving now and will hopefully do well with these megabusinesses moving in. BUT, it still needs to prove that it can draw and keep tourist traffic and business. Also, there are quite a few restaurants in the downtown area already, and if and when RFC's novelty wears off, it would have a lot of competition for dining dollars in that area, especially since downtown is a more adult entertainment area (as in expensive, yuppie entertainment, not XXX entertainment :-)) than family entertainment area.
Cherry Creek Mall, on the other hand, has much less store turnover and a wealthy customer base to support it.
I am becoming more convinced that the new Park Meadows shopping mall area at the south end of Denver would be a better location for an RFC, though. There is a lot more tourist traffic from all up and down the front range of Colorado in that location. RFC could probably do ok with a restaurant in both locations, or in both locations plus downtown, but it would do best in Park Meadows. Park Meadows didn't exists at all 2 years ago when RFC was looking for its Colorado location. I wonder if they RFC reconsider that location now, though?
Kirk (NP Tamagotchi) |
