A Cabela’s commercial carried locally raises the question — is the specialty outdoor retailer coming to Jacksonville?
Considering the nearest store to Jacksonville for the Nebraska-based chain is 264 miles north in Augusta, Ga., it’s a reasonable question.
A spokesman doesn’t deny it, just as he didn’t nearly a year ago.
Nathan Borowski, communications specialist for Cabela’s Inc., said in late May and again Tuesday the company has not announced any locations in Florida.
“We are definitely looking at all areas,” he said, adding the company has “been looking at the Southeast pretty hard.”
He said “there’s definitely the possibility” of Florida stores. That could reasonably include Jacksonville.
There are three stores in North Georgia and a fourth has been announced.
Another major question, though, is how a possible acquisition of the company by Springfield, Mo.-based Bass Pro Shops would affect new stores for Cabela’s.
Bass Pro Shops plans to open in St. Johns County along Interstate 95 and the Florida 9B connection.
Reuters news service reported in April that Bass Pro Shops partnered with Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s private equity arm to make an offer for Cabela’s, citing “people familiar with the matter.”
It said the move gave Bass Pro Shops the necessary equity financing to make a deal more likely, given the potential cost savings and synergies a combination of the two U.S. hunting and fishing retailers would bring.
Reuters.com noted Cabela’s said in December it was working with the Guggenheim Securities LLC investment bank “to explore strategic alternatives including a sale, following pressure from activist hedge fund Elliott Management Corp.”
Cabela’s is publicly traded and Bass Pro Shops is privately held.
Asked if Cabela’s had any comment about the Bass Pro Shops reports, Borowski responded, “Cabela’s is continuing business as usual, including our expansion plans.”
He said Cabela’s has opened five stores this year and will open three more this fall. It also continues to search for new markets and recently announced locations for McDonough, Ga., near Atlanta, and Lee’s Summit, Mo., near Kansas City.
As of its first quarter of 2016, Cabela’s operated 73 stores in 36 states and nine in Canada. It should have 85 by year-end. The company’s long-term goal is 225 stores. “We’re definitely in retail-expansion mode,” Borowski said.
Some earlier locations, referred to as legacy stores, were up to 250,000 square feet and considered destination centers. Like some Bass Pro Shops, the largest Cabela’s stores are major tourist attractions.
The next-generation Cabela’s sites are 40,000 to 100,000 square feet, which allows more efficiency. The company’s recently announced stores are 70,000 square feet.
“It allows us to build stores in higher population areas closer to customers,” Borowski said.
It takes eight to 14 months for construction. Stores hire 150 to 200 full- and part-time employees, he said.
Cabela’s looks for areas with easy accessibility and high visibility, in up-and-coming areas or in strong established centers. A store needs 5 to 13 acres, according to cabelas.com.
That brings up the question whether it would be looking at or near St. Johns Town Center, along I-295 at Butler Boulevard. If it wanted extremely high visibility, it could consider the 30 acres available near the Topgolf under construction.
“Until we make an official announcement, I can’t speculate on specific locations,” Borowski said.
Cabela’s, founded in 1961, is headquartered in Sidney, Neb.
Commercials broadcast in the area often precede a new store or restaurant coming to town in a process some call “seeding” the market.
For example, Kohl’s advertised frequently until it announced its entrance into Jacksonville. Recently, Red Robin Gourmet Burgers and Brews and its tagline “Yummm” was a regular contributor on area TV before it announced it was coming to the Town Center area.
Then again, there’s Macy’s, which has been advertising in the market for years and still hasn’t announced its first Northeast Florida department store.
SunGard name changing to FIS
Jacksonville-based Fidelity National Information Services, or FIS, will be putting its name on the building where its SunGard Data Services Inc. acquisition has been expanding.
That’s because the company is changing SunGard’s name to FIS going forward, said spokeswoman Kim Snider.
The city approved the permit Friday for Brown Enterprises to hang the FIS name at a job cost of $33,000 on the wall at 701 San Marco Blvd., where SunGard was operating and is adding jobs.
Both companies provide technology for financial services companies. FIS bought SunGard in December. In March, it landed $1.8 million in city and state incentives for SunGard to add 250 jobs.
FIS is headquartered on the Northbank of the St. Johns River in Riverside. It will keep the offices used by SunGard on San Marco Boulevard on the Southbank to accommodate the growth, although it decided to close the office at 1660 Prudential Drive.
The Southbank sign will stand out, too. It consists of internally illuminated channel letters.
IDO hanging name at Regency Square
International Décor Outlet, which has leased 200,000 square feet of space at Regency Square Mall’s west wing, received city approvals to put up its name on the 9501 Arlington Expressway property.
Four signs, totaling a combined job cost of almost $38,000, are planned. Nine Enterprises Inc. is the contractor.
International Décor Outlet holds the master lease on the space and intends to sublet storefronts for international décor- and home-related manufacturers.
Chief Operating Officer Bill Connerly said last week 86 spaces are available, although some can be divided and some combined. A grand opening is expected in late summer and he expects a fill rate of 80 percent by year-end.
Construction is pending for what appears to be the first home-improvement and décor tenant seeking space in the West Mall.
River City Contractors is the contractor for the proposed build-out for Lumen L.E.D., apparently a lighting store. (Lumens Light and Living, which is based in San Francisco, says it is not them.)
A permit application shows a proposed $90,000 renovation of a 3,076-square-foot store in the space immediately west of the former Belk store.
The space includes a sales floor, display area, sales counter, an office and storage space.
Connerly could not be reached Tuesday for more information.
IDO also plans to open at the Darien Outlet Mall in South Georgia.
HomeGoods opening in Atlantic West
A HomeGoods store is slated to open in the Atlantic West shopping center at southwest Kernan and Atlantic boulevards, taking space vacated by Office Depot.
The city is reviewing a permit application for the proposed $746,268 build-out of about 18,000 square feet for HomeGoods. No contractor is listed.
It would occupy the end space at 11824 Atlantic Blvd. Sister company T.J. Maxx also has a store in the center.
HomeGoods, T.J. Maxx and Marshalls are part of The TJX Companies Inc. Together they operate 14 stores in Northeast Florida, comprising six Marshalls stores, five T.J. Maxx locations and three HomeGoods sites.
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