The Bedrin Organization is proud to announce the profound recent success at our Olde Towne Plaza, located in Ballwin, MO, due in large part to our expert Commercial Real Estate Broker, Alex Apter from the firm, Location. Commercial Real Estate. Despite challenges imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic, The Bedrin Organization proudly welcomed three (3) new major tenants to our Olde Towne Plaza in the 2nd/3rd quarters of 2020.  Planet Fitness, Foss Swim School, and Painted Tree Marketplace will all be joining Lowe’s, Texas Roadhouse, Starbucks, and other great tenants on Manchester Road. Given the economic climate and uncertainty of 2020, we at The Bedrin Organization asked our Broker at Olde Towne Plaza what he attributes the success we are seeing in the Ballwin, St. Louis Market to. Check out the Q & A with Alex Apter below.

What makes the St. Louis, MO Commercial Real Estate Market Unique?  
The St. Louis Commercial real estate market is unique in the fact that the area does not experience the extreme highs and lows that some other cities notoriously suffer from, Like San Francisco for example. The St. Louis market in general has remained relatively stable.  The St. Louis market also does not experience much ground up development due to its tight landscape and dense residential areas that surround the retail trade areas.

Why are business owners choosing Ballwin and the Olde Towne Plaza location as the best new location for their business? 
Location, location, location… Ballwin is a suburb in West St. Louis County.  The Ballwin trade area is situated along Manchester Road, which is a major east/west thoroughfare that stretches from West St. Louis County to St. Louis City.  The Manchester Road retail corridor is one of the most successful retail corridors in St. Louis.  It carries a traffic count in excess of 45,000 VPD and is surrounded by an affluent customer.

Why are so many franchise locations opening new businesses in this area?  
Ballwin and specifically Manchester Road, the main thoroughfare that The Bedrin Organization’s Olde Towne Plaza is located, has been an attractive and extremely important trade area for many national retailers to include in their overall strategy for expansion to the St. Louis market.  The corridor has high traffic counts, great co-tenancy with an abundance of big box, grocery, junior anchor,  fast and quick casual restaurants, and is surrounded by a dense affluent customer with an expendable income which have correlated to high tenant sales.

What is the climate like for business owners opening a new location in Ballwin/ St. Louis pre-Covid to now? 
COVID has effected some businesses more than others, but overall we have seen a pretty strong rebound from retailers in the area since businesses have been able to reopen and people seem to be going back to somewhat normal shopping patterns and routines.  The new way of life is social distancing and wearing a mask anywhere you go, but that has not seemed slow the customers from shopping in the trade area.

How do economic climate and factors in the St. Louis area impact commercial real estate?  
St. Louis does not experience the extreme highs and lows or see the spikes and dips in new developments as other markets may see in times of boom markets and recessions, but the market will see rents fluctuate throughout these times and the number of retailers expanding to St. Louis and amount of net new stores being added within the market from existing retailers in St. Louis will fluctuate based on the economic climate.

Tell me about your biggest challenge and how you overcame it?  
My biggest challenge has been re-tenanting Olde Towne Plaza.  Over the past couple years the shopping center has seen turnover from Stein Mart, Shoe Carnival, Big Lots, Marshalls, Home Goods, and O’Charley’s, which I have been able to backfill with various types of uses and retailers that include Defy Trampoline Park, Crave Beauty Academy, Painted Tree Marketplace, Planet Fitness, Foss Swim School, and Texas Roadhouse.  The key has been to never stop prospecting and think outside the box to find alternative uses.

The entire Bedrin Organization team is in gratitude to our Broker, Alex Apter and the Location Commercial Real Estate team for the success that has been created in turning around our Olde Towne Plaza shopping center in Ballwin. Alex’s summary of the Ballwin and St. Louis market solidifies our confidence in the strength and stability of the economy in this area and we couldn’t be more grateful for the complete turnaround we’ve seen over the last 5 years in Olde Towne Plaza.

Thank you Alex! You are an expert in your field and we wouldn’t be celebrating our recent success at Olde Towne Plaza without you.