So, those that know me know I'm a bit
of a Cooperative enterprise nut. I was amazed the other day to find
that other cooperative nuts were trying to start a Cooperative
Bookstore in town. Like Abundance
Market, anyone could shop there, but owners would get a
discount, owner that work hours get more of a discount, etc.
One
of the lead organizers ( lets call her Purple) has experience doing
this in other cities. From her work in Philly, she expected a small
storefront for 600-800, no problem. She was surprised when last month
she visited several places,(including Midtown
Plaza) to find out about storefront rates. Every place she
visited downtown wanted:
- At least 1,000 a month for a storefront
- Only would deal with people that had been in business 3-5 years
Here we have someone dedicated to less sprawl, and in-city development, with cooperative bookstore running experience, trying to (god forbid!) open a new business downtown, and getting doors closed in her face. Is there any wonder that downtown isn't developing? And does anyone know of places downtown that desire new businesses, rather than chase them away?
Comments (3)
In my experience, everything's negotiable when renting commercial space. When starting a new business a few years ago, we faced the same issues while negotiating a lease on office space. We had to work with our landlord to get a deal both parties could live with.
On the rent: This might be different for storefronts, but for office space, landlords want to remodel/repartition the space you're renting, and then pack that cost into the first few years' rent. So, the rents she was quoted might have included a build-out. If she's running a bare-bones shop, she might get more reasonable rent if she convinces the landlord that she can make a go of the space "as is".
On the 3-5 year requirement: the bottom line is that she needs to convince the landlord that she has a reasonable business plan. In other words, she needs to show him that she'll be paying the rent for at least a year or two. This is tough for start-ups. It might require some kind of cash deposit, personal guarantee, etc. The failure rate for small business is incredibly high - something like 60%. She needs to show the landlord why her business won't be one of the early casualties.
It may seem that a landlord in Midtown Plaza or some other half-empty place would be eager to rent to just about anyone at just about any price, but I understand why they want to be choosy. A bad tenant can be much, much worse than no tenant at all. She just needs to be able to prove that she'll be a good tenant.
Posted by Rottenchester | July 31, 2006 10:49 AM
Posted on July 31, 2006 10:49
I don't deny them the right to have their standards or anything, but the next time someone whines about downtown being empty, this is one more (albit, anicdotal) example of why a lot of this stuff is our own (Rochesters) dammed fault.
To me, this is just a microcosm of the whole problem this city has. I believe a lot of Rocehsters problemsare self-made. It's not some mysterious governmental power, natural disaster, or irrepresable market force that keeps the city down. Instead it's a collection of attitudes and behaviors that use to work, and are now hurting us.
Posted by FarMcKon | August 3, 2006 12:03 PM
Posted on August 3, 2006 12:03
Please tell your friend to come to the South Wedge. I've only heard the rates for one or two storefronts, but based on that I think she'd find it a lot more affordable, plus she'd get foot traffic on nights and weekends and spillover traffic from coffeehouses and restaurants. We could totally use a bookstore in that neighborhood too.
Posted by Anonymous | August 30, 2006 5:03 PM
Posted on August 30, 2006 17:03