Gus Mayer Stores Inc.

Gus Mayer Stores Inc., generally known as Gus Mayer, is a privately held American department-store business headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. The retailer serves the upper-income and luxury-oriented segment of the Southeast, with its remaining stores located in prominent shopping centers: The Summit in the Greater Birmingham area and The Mall at Green Hills in Nashville. Both properties are positioned as high-end retail destinations, supporting Gus Mayer's emphasis on designer apparel, accessories, footwear, and related specialty retail. The business traces its origins to 1900, when the original Gus Mayer department store operated on Canal Street in downtown New Orleans. During its larger historical phase, the chain expanded across the Southeast and Southwest and at one point operated more than 20 stores. Its later history was shaped by the breakup of the chain into individual store operations. In 1975, members of the Pizitz family purchased the Birmingham operation as stores were being sold separately. The owners subsequently added the Nashville location, leaving the company with the two-store footprint it maintains today. Gus Mayer's Birmingham presence dates to 1922, when its first local store opened in the Retail Block behind the Molton Hotel on Fifth Avenue North. The store later moved to 2240 Highland Avenue, a site associated with the Bottega Favorita location and now occupied by Bottega Restaurant & Cafe. Following the opening of Brookwood Village in 1973, Gus Mayer moved there two years later. The Brookwood Village store was later relocated and expanded during a 2002 mall renovation. The 21,000-square-foot project was designed by Hambrecht Oleson Design Associates of New York with Birmingham-based Crawford, McWilliams and Hatcher. The retailer has used a curated brand assortment rather than a mass-market department-store model. Brands identified with its merchandise mix include 7 for All Mankind, Juicy Couture, Dolce & Gabbana, Roberto Cavalli, Gianfranco Ferré, Michael Kors, Zang Toi, Zac Posen, Lela Rose, St. John, Monique Lhuillier, and Burberry. Its shoe business has also included a full-line Stuart Weitzman boutique and a Cole Haan concept salon. Those shoe salons were independently owned by David Kraselsky and operated from leased space within the store, illustrating the combination of directly managed department-store merchandising and independently operated specialty concessions. In 2010, Gus Mayer announced plans to move its Colonial Brookwood Village operation to The Summit as part of an effort to update its merchandising strategy and retail environment. The new store was planned at approximately 15,000 square feet and was again designed by Hambrecht Oleson. The move was expected around Valentine's Day in 2011 and represented a shift from the older mall location to a newer luxury-oriented retail center. The company's present identity therefore reflects both a long regional history and a deliberately compact, premium-store strategy focused on two metropolitan markets.

Gus Mayer began in 1900 as a department store on Canal Street in downtown New Orleans. The company subsequently developed into a larger regional chain, eventually operating more than 20 stores across parts of the Southeast and Southwest. Its historic footprint was substantially reduced when individual stores were sold separately in the 1970s. Birmingham became an important market for the business in 1922, when the first Birmingham Gus Mayer opened in the Retail Block behind the Molton Hotel on Fifth Avenue North. The store later moved to 2240 Highland Avenue, a location associated with Bottega Favorita. After Brookwood Village opened in 1973, Gus Mayer moved into the mall in 1975. That same year, as the broader chain was being broken up, the Pizitz family acquired the Birmingham operation. The Pizitz ownership later expanded the business by adding a Nashville store. The two locations in Birmingham and Nashville became the only surviving Gus Mayer stores. Their market positioning was tied to affluent retail districts and a merchandise assortment centered on designer and premium contemporary labels. The stores carried brands including Dolce & Gabbana, Roberto Cavalli, Gianfranco Ferré, Michael Kors, Zac Posen, Lela Rose, St. John, Monique Lhuillier, Burberry, Juicy Couture, and 7 for All Mankind. The Birmingham operation underwent a major physical redevelopment in 2002, when the Colonial Brookwood Village store was relocated and expanded as part of mall renovations. The resulting store measured approximately 21,000 square feet and was designed by Hambrecht Oleson Design Associates of New York, working with Birmingham architects Crawford, McWilliams and Hatcher. Gus Mayer's footwear offer included a full-line Stuart Weitzman boutique and a Cole Haan concept salon; these concessions were independently owned by David Kraselsky and leased space within the store. In 2010, the company planned another Birmingham move, this time from Colonial Brookwood Village to The Summit. Management described the relocation as part of an effort to refresh the store's merchandising strategy. The proposed store was approximately 15,000 square feet and was designed by Hambrecht Oleson. The move was expected around Valentine's Day in 2011. Today, Gus Mayer remains a small, family-owned regional luxury retailer associated with the Pizitz Management Group and operating in Birmingham and Nashville.

• 2010

  Relocation to The Summit announced

  [1]Gus Mayeren.wikipedia.org

  Gus Mayer planned to move its Birmingham store from Colonial Brookwood Village to The Summit, with a new approximately 15,000-square-foot format.

• 2002

  Colonial Brookwood Village store relocated and expanded

  [1]Gus Mayeren.wikipedia.org

  The Birmingham store moved and expanded during renovations at Colonial Brookwood Village, creating an approximately 21,000-square-foot location.

• 1975

  Pizitz family acquires the Birmingham operation

  [1]Gus Mayeren.wikipedia.org

  As Gus Mayer stores were sold individually, the Pizitz family purchased the Birmingham business and later added the Nashville store.

• 1973

  Brookwood Village opens

  [1]Gus Mayeren.wikipedia.org

  The opening of Brookwood Village created a new Birmingham retail setting to which Gus Mayer moved two years later.

• 1922

  First Birmingham location opens

  [1]Gus Mayeren.wikipedia.org

  Gus Mayer opened its first Birmingham store in the Retail Block behind the Molton Hotel on Fifth Avenue North.

• 1900

  Original Gus Mayer store opens in New Orleans

  [1]Gus Mayeren.wikipedia.org

  The original department store was established on Canal Street in downtown New Orleans.

A regional luxury department store offering curated designer fashion and specialty accessories in high-end shopping-center environments.

• Apparel

  Designer women's fashion

  Gus Mayer's principal merchandise identity is a curated selection of women's designer and premium contemporary apparel. The assortment has included labels such as Dolce & Gabbana, Roberto Cavalli, Gianfranco Ferré, Zac Posen, Lela Rose, St. John, Monique Lhuillier, Burberry, and Michael Kors. The range supports the retailer's luxury positioning and emphasis on occasionwear, sophisticated ready-to-wear, and designer-led seasonal collections.

• Apparel

  Contemporary denim and fashion

  The store has carried contemporary fashion brands including 7 for All Mankind and Juicy Couture. These labels broaden the assortment beyond traditional luxury houses and provide premium casualwear and denim within the department-store format.

• Footwear

  Designer footwear

  Gus Mayer has operated specialty footwear offerings alongside its broader fashion assortment. Its shoe salons have included a full-line Stuart Weitzman boutique and a Cole Haan concept salon. These operations were independently owned by David Kraselsky and leased space inside the store rather than necessarily being directly owned by Gus Mayer.

• Accessories

  Luxury accessories

  The retailer's designer assortment also encompasses fashion accessories and related premium merchandise, including handbags, leather goods, jewelry, and other accessories associated with the apparel labels carried in its stores. Specific current category breadth is not documented in the supplied reference material.

• 2010

  Move the Birmingham store to The SummitStrategy

  Background

  Gus Mayer sought to update its merchandising strategy and retail environment by leaving the Colonial Brookwood Village location for The Summit, a high-end shopping center in the Greater Birmingham area.

  Action taken

  The company planned a new approximately 15,000-square-foot store at The Summit, designed by Hambrecht Oleson Design Associates, with the move expected around Valentine's Day in 2011.

  Aftermath

  The relocation plan marked a shift toward a more compact store in a luxury-oriented retail setting. The supplied reference material does not provide later operating or financial results.

  Source

1. 1Gus Mayeren.wikipedia.org
2. 2Gus Mayer official websitegusmayer.com