if it's about Cardiff.. Sport, Entertainment, Transportation, Business, Development Projects, Leisure, Eating, Drinking, Nightlife, Shopping, Train Spotting! etc.. then we want it here!
My problem with the Hamleys unit is that the functional shopping centre unit lacks the charm that a more historic building might have. It's one big (long) open space, whereas I think something where it felt like you were "exploring" more would have added excitement for children.
Hamleys were always in the wrong location, and their offering was pretty poor. They should focus on their high end brand name and have toys that are a little more special and pricey, in a more stand out location than the bottom of an escalator in a shopping mall! The old gap building would have been ideal for them.
Very interesting news, but certainly a coup for Queen Street! This could be very detrimental for Hamleys, however I feel like Land Sec/Intu are offering Hamleys a very lucrative deal to remain...
There was a planning app for signage (I think it's in last weeks list or maybe even the week before).
I agree that this is the type of building that Hamleys should have looked at. Going there should be an event rather than merely a shopping trip.
I'm glad this building is being used. It's one of the most impressive on Queen St and quite unusual for Cardiff. I hope the upper floors are brought into operation as well.
There is also an application for change of use for the Foot Locker unit in Queens Arcade to A3. Not sure if this is because they have a tenant lined up or just to make it more marketable. I quite like the idea of Queen Street becoming more mixed rather than purely retail focused.
That's interesting about Toys R Us. Cardiff Council is building a parking lot beside the current store in the ISV which didn't make a lot of sense given the large, mostly unused parking in front of the store. Maybe that site is scheduled for some kind of redevelopment?
I wouldn't get too excited about Toys R Us just yet. I'm not sure if they do it in the UK, but in the States they have a 'pop up' format called Toys R Us Express that they open in the run up to Christmas.
The fact that they've only put an application in for signage rather than any further development work suggests to me it could be a pop up.
Amoore wrote:I wouldn't get too excited about Toys R Us just yet. I'm not sure if they do it in the UK, but in the States they have a 'pop up' format called Toys R Us Express that they open in the run up to Christmas.
The fact that they've only put an application in for signage rather than any further development work suggests to me it could be a pop up.
They done a pop up store in Newport 2years ago, I don't think it was called express, same concept though
Its a "pop up" according to the planning application drawings. In the application itself they ask for consent for a period of 5 years (until Aug 2021). Not sure if this is standard practise; so they can easily return in future years without further applications; or suggests its a longer-term "pop up" than just an Xmas store.
I don't usually get too involved with retail but I was wondering if the Old Library might ever be able to attract a high end retailer. Perhaps Hamley's would be a bit too childish. You have the Cardiff Story there now and a tourist information centre and usually some bar or other. I think more might be made of it.