Saturday, November 9, 2013 COLUMBIA DAILY TRIBUNE www.columbiatribune.com 3
H&M set to open in Dillard’s wing by next fall
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wedish retailer H&M, known for its trendy yet affordable clothing lines, is opening a store in Columbia Mall next year. The company’s announcement sparked excitement in CoMo fashion circles. As Tribune Lifestyle Editor Caroline Dohack informs Street Talk, the brand has had a number of successful limited-edition designer collaborations, which have included capsule collections from Karl Lagerfeld, Jimmy Choo and Versace. H&M has collections for men, women and children, the company says. And the 20,000-square-foot Columbia Mall store, which will be in the Dillard’s wing, will have separate “store within store” sections for accessories, lingerie, sports apparel, maternity and its plus-size line, H&M+. H&M opened its first store on New York’s Fifth Avenue 13 years ago and now has 296 locations in the United States. Rusty Strodtman, general manger of Columbia Mall, said nine stores will be relocated to make room for H&M. He said construction is set to start April 1. The company said it hopes to
open the store next fall. “The only changes would be the relocation of the current retail stores,” Strodtman said. “No exterior modifications will be necessary.” Strodtman said H&M’s space is comparable in size to MC Sports and Barnes & Noble, so it will be one of the largest non-anchor tenants. In other mall news, there is a new bar and grill moving into the longvacant space across from MC Sports. Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar and Grill is scheduled to open April 1, Strodtman said, noting that it will be the first Missouri location for the restaurant chain. The name of the joint comes from country music singer Toby Keith’s song “I Love This Bar,” which was released in August 2003. According to the chain’s website, each establishment features a guitarshaped bar and a “fun and rowdy atmosphere” inspired by Keith.
BROADband bet
The city of Columbia this week hired Magellan Advisors to determine the state of broadband infrastructure in the area and how to improve it.
The effort is a collaboration of the city, the University of Missouri and Boone County. Magellan Advisors, a Denver-based telecom consulting firm, is charged with developing a broadband strategic plan that is broken down into a multi-step process, said Connie Kacprowicz, spokeswoman for Columbia Water and Light. Currently, Magellan Advisors is in the needs assessment stage of the process, Kacprowicz said, and that involves talking to different companies in town to gather information about their experiences with broadband services and suggestions for improvement. “A lot of it is finding out what kind of resources we already have in town and what can be done with them,” she said. The timeline for the project is about four months, Kacprowicz said, which includes the current needs assessment stage, the development of a broadband strategy and the delivery of a final report to the city. The latter will include the firm’s findings and a suggested way to move forward. The contract with Magellan Advisors is for $47,250, Kacprowicz said.
Tribune business reporter Jacob Barker is on vacation this week, but he will return next week to this spot. In the meantime, enjoy this business news from former Street Talk author Justin Willett with an assist from reporter Ashley Jost.
After the strategy and final report are complete, the issue likely would go through the normal city review process and be put in front of the Columbia City Council, she said. Magellan Advisors was chosen from 10 responses received from the city before the May 31 request for proposal deadline. The initial responses were reduced to three finalists, and each of the three finalists made presentations about their proposals to the city and Regional Economic Development Inc. before the final decision was made.
GAS UP
MFA Oil Co. announced last week it has acquired Bonner Springs, Kan.based American Petroleum Marketers, which distributes fuel to more
than 60 Cenex branded sites in six states. The operations of American Petroleum Marketers, or APM, will be combined with MFA Oil operations. APM’s trade territory includes Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Wyoming and Missouri. This is the fifth acquisition for MFA Oil since January. Others include: Henderson Oil of Columbia, McCorkell Oil of Piedmont, Rowland Oil of Jackson and the refined fuel operations of MFA Cooperative of Freeburg. The company said these acquisitions increased MFA Oil’s annual volume by nearly 50 million gallons. Justin Willett is the Tribune’s business editor. Reach him at 573815-1715 or jwillett@columbiatribune.com.
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