By Neal Morton
January
17, 2014
SAN
ANTONIO — Less than a week after Blockbuster closed its remaining stores,
businesses hoping to make their debut or expand their footprint in San Antonio
have targeted the newly vacant — and apparently prime — commercial real estate
space.
Blockbuster
officially closed its last 10 locations here Sunday, just two months after the
embattled video-rental company announced it would walk away from the few
hundred remaining stores it operated across the country.
During
the holidays, bargain hunters scoured the bins and shelves at area
Blockbusters, hoping to score a cheap movie from the latest victim of online
competition.
Already,
a First Choice Emergency Care clinic has started moving into one of the
now-empty stores, at 13434 Nacogdoches Road.
Other
Blockbuster locations across the city have appeared on the radar of
fast-growing franchise chains, including Frisco-based Mooyah, a fast-casual
burger and shake chain that opened its first restaurant here two years ago.
Similarly,
spa company Hand & Stone and 24-hour gym operator Workout Anytime might
consider some of Blockbuster's old digs to establish an initial presence in San
Antonio.
“It's
kind of an irony or, I guess, just an evolution of business that Blockbuster
disrupted the video industry by changing the way people watch movies,” said
Todd Leff, president of Hand & Stone. “And then business evolved again:
Blockbuster's out, and now we're coming to change the way massages and facials
are delivered.”
Since
2012, the New Jersey-based franchiser has opened 14 spas in Austin, the
Dallas-Fort Worth area and Houston, with six more locations in the works.
Leff
wants to open at least three spas in San Antonio and has paid attention to
Blockbuster locations in the city.
Blockbuster
officially closed its remaining 10 locations in San Antonio, opening real
estate space for other retailers. This location is 2951 Thousand Oaks Drive.
“We've
done some investigation into the real estate there, and things like Blockbuster
are a key component for us to be able to get into big-box anchored shopping
centers at a reasonable rate,” he said. “We've identified some key locations,
but it's all about finding the right developer at this point.”
Businesses
like Leff's have waited months for Blockbuster to vacate its space.
The
company operated more than 9,000 retail locations less than a decade ago. But
crippling pressure from online streaming services and video rental kiosks
pushed Blockbuster's owner, Dish Network Corp., to announce in November that it
would close its remaining stores.
The
official closure last weekend cleared the way for opportunistic retailers
looking to find a home here.
“With
the real estate climate being what it's been the last few years, we haven't
seen much” new construction, said Alan Hixon, vice president of development for
Mooyah. “Availability is what really drives your real estate.
“So
without a lot of projects coming out of the ground, you're going to need
second-generation space,” he added.
Mooyah
franchised its first location here at 22502 U.S. 281 near Stone Oak, but the
owners hope to debut as many as 20 more restaurants in the city.
Like
Hixon, Randy Trotter, vice president of development for Georgia-based Workout
Anytime, described the newly vacant Blockbusters as attractive places to open
the company's first San Antonio gyms.
“They
are normally in grocery-anchored shopping centers, with great visibility,
access and parking,” Trotter said. “A large company like (Blockbuster) did
their homework back in the day and really picked quality real estate.”
