Yoga-centric athletic store Lululemon will soon land in Armory Square, becoming the most recent national chain to join downtown Syracuse.

The store will be located at 327 W. Fayette St. and will move in Aug. 1. The company plans on opening the store a few weeks after moving in, said Lisa Romeo, a Downtown Committee of Syracuse representative, in an email.

Armory Square is home to a handful of national chains surrounded by locally run businesses — out of the 95 clothing and dining venues in downtown Syracuse, eight of them are national chains, according to DowntownSyracuse.com. But while outnumbered, the business chains have a big effect on the mom-and-pop shops surrounding them.

National businesses serve as a beacon for downtown Syracuse. The familiar names attract customers, who then end up exploring local stores, Romeo said.

An example is Urban Outfitters, which opened its Armory Square location in 2010. Since its arrival, the store’s drawn customers to the region and boosted profits for businesses in the area, said Romeo.

“Urban Outfitters is down here and that’s a draw for a demographic that never would’ve come here if it wasn’t for them,” said Tina Parker, co-owner of Eureka Crafts, a store located in Armory Square. “It should be the same with Lululemon.”

Likewise, Romeo said she thinks O Yoga Studio will benefit from Lululemon’s arrival. The studio is sharing its building with the store, which is known for yoga apparel.

“I’m extremely excited to have Lululemon open a showroom in Syracuse,” said Sisko. “It thrills me to have a showroom here and I think it speaks to the growing yoga culture in Syracuse.”

Romeo said the growth of downtown Syracuse will continue to attract more national chains into Armory Square, as it shows national businesses that the area has a large customer market.

“Existing downtown businesses create an environment for national chains,” she said. “The commitment that local retailers have to downtown Syracuse as well as the variety and quality here really appeals to these large national chains.”

Romeo said the committee is always looking to attract more national retailers because they will help the local stores, not hurt them.

But while the Downtown Committee of Syracuse wants more stores like Urban Outfitters and Lululemon, Park said not all national chains are welcome downtown.

“We don’t want downtown to become a strip mall,” said Parker, of Eureka Crafts. “If I was a restaurant owner, I wouldn’t think Subway was the cool business that I want to see down here.”

Parker said she is not worried about more national chains opening in Armory Square, so long as they contribute to the unique shopping experience.

Published on July 24, 2013 at 1:12 pm

Contact Alfred: alng@syr.edu

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