agree, pretty uninviting looking, looks more like a corner deli
It's not the CVS that's the problem. It's all the vacancies around it that concern me.
This store isn't a good place for claustrophobic shoppers. I usually choose the Rite Aid down the street over this CVS, because I can move around without continually brushing up against people.
I have done some retail design (high end) it was like pulling teeth to get them to consider opening up windows into the store. Retailers want you to focus on their product once you are in the store. they don't want you to become interested in what is outside.
Are you serious? Writing about the look of a CVS store is too far ahead. This is a clean store with reliable product.
How about writing on the corner store dumps throughout the city that sell old food at high prices and clutter what windows they have with signs for the lotto and smokes. THAT IS WHERE IT NEEDS TO START.
I agree 100% with the content in this post. It would be great for retail to accept the street in its design but Buffalo has so much more to work on first. That is unless the goal is to not talk about what is really broke, write some posts on the easy stuff to fix and say the city has turned the corner and is in a renaissance....
I am not trying to be negative just for the sake of being negative. I see BRO as an outlet to productive and concerned people in and out of the city. If this group does not want to talk about the REAL issues, then there is no hope. The rest are just indifferent.
Very uninviting, they could really add some light and life to the corner if they were to open up those windows a little. Let people see what they have to offer. The place (along with rite aid next to it) look like they could be closed businesses most of the time. one would think it would be in their best interests to open the windows a little. It isn't 1982 anymore, it is ok to have windows in downtown now.
buffalopundit, just curious what vacancies? Court street is filled to Niagara Square. The formerly vacant courtyard mall is now offices with that tacky fake brick facade.. still better than vacant though. then the photo store, entrance to an office building, Chinese restaurant. Across the street is Lafayette square which has no vacancies facing it that I know of, Army place, HSBC, National Fuel, Across court is the new Tim Hortons, next to that a citizens bank, and after that. (old radio shack or mall entrance) so if there is the old radio shack and the place across the street then there is one or two within the vicinity.
Sure the 500 block is still empty and the Main place mall isn't the nicest of places but around this intersection there are not many storefront vacancies to be found.
Newell --- This is an related issue, but I thought worth exploring: ECC expansion sidelined as Collins focuses on Erie County infrastructure Possibly we need to talk about this "problem" in another article in BRO.
@RONR...agree with you on the deli thing, living on a street [north pearl] that has worked so hard to turn around and is becoming a beautiful destination, one of our larger setbacks is "Bill's Deli" . This store is the entance to our street but instead of enhancing the neighborhood, it actually gives off a total getto vib and ruins that corner beyond words.
The comments by 'Steel' above are accurate. I've spent years working with retailers and the focus is on the product. There has been a trend among well-known retailers, especially those that cater to a younger clientele such as Abercrombie, to block out their storefronts entirely in order to induce a club-like atmosphere within their premises. However, another important reason that places like the CVS store above block out the view is to discourage theft. Criminals who have a good view into the store are better able to plan their activities at opportune moments. The rules regarding window displays are typically written into the lease, but I would suppose that the landlord just wanted to keep the space filled and didn't force the issue. As downtown progresses, I'm sure future lease negotiations will encourage a better visual impact.
Have you been inside the store before writing this? The "boards" on the side are the back of shelving/pegboard that has merchandise on it. You know, merchandise.....so people can buy it...the purpose of a store. The registers line the front of the store and there is nowhere else to put it, especially with the extremely high theft rate they endure. The space the CVS is in is EXTREMELY tiny. They have NO room to spare let alone clearing an entire wall so people can see through the window (and then throw a brick through it to get what they see) when everyone knows what CVS sells and is about.
Tiburon, I agree with your frustrations because situations like these don't make for a pleasant shopping experience. I confess I haven't been in this store in many years; however, it doesn't look like it has changed during that time. If CVS wanted a larger location in the area with more square footage, they could've easily obtained it. If they wanted to redesign the current interior, they could've done that, too. Because they haven't done either is likely because this store is not a strong performer for them. National retailers are reluctant to put money into locations that do not generate adequate income. It's strictly business. As downtown becomes more of a destination, more retailers will be interested in serving the customer.
the CVS on Amherst / Elmwood is also very poorly lit on the exterior, and their parking lot usually has a lot of trash in it. I mentioned these things to the manager and they blame the site owners (the bowling alley across the street).
The newer CVS's on Kensington and Sheridan seem to be very brightly lit.
it most likely has to do with them moving into a building that was never setup for CVS....and not doing anything about the outside design before moving in. I agree that it is a very un-inviting storefront.
DISAPPOINTING...I thought this was gonna be an article about Darth Vader becoming the Presideant and CEO of CVS.
I'm unaware of any drugstore that has a cash register near the door, that allows easy sightlines from the exterior of the store. The CVS in Niagara Falls, or the one in the Sheridan Harlem Plaza have the same setup, with the windows basically blacked out. Letting criminals know who paid with a hundred dollar bill, or, how much money is in the register is not a great idea. The windows are covered to deter crime, if it were any different at their suburban locations, you'd have a stronger argument.
I love how people feel the need to prioritize every post;
You know, the old tired "Why is there a post about this problem, and not a different 'more important' problem?" comments.
Thanks Newell for understanding that the small things are also important in the grand scheme. Especially when they're as easily corrected as this particular unnecessary blight.
I'm such a wheezing, ageing old geezer that I can remember a time when stores actively contributed to a sense of street theatre with their windows, lighting, canopies and the like. Today everybody is 'coccooning' and that social phenomenon has seemingly seeped into the design of everything. But there is a new paradigm on the block in those world capitals that define everything: "transparency". This vogue which resides in glossy architectural mags and New York condos will probably eventually trickle down to Main St. USA. But don't expect CVS or any other pharmacy to jump on this bandwagon. Their prime focus is very security driven. They don't care so much about what's on the sales floor, as what's behind the counter. Break-ins, armed robberies and assaults against pharmaciy employees are on the rise; the DEA is actively involved in security issues at pharmacies and the big chains basically have a policy of enough redundant security to foil evildoers but not enough to foil customers. A "false" window, sealed both from outside and inside, and nicely lit with tasteful promotional stuff could both serve the views on the street and maintain the integrity of the sales box.
maybe they dont want you to see what's inside bcause there are millions of dollars of pills and other drugs
Agree with this post entirely. I own a building with a ghetto deli on the corner that really looks ghetto (has been that way since I bought it). This summer I'm putting on a glass facade and rearranging the deli so that passersby will see right inside, advertising the store's contents to the street. The reason the windows in the CVS are blacked out is because the cashier stations are right there (same thing with most corner delis). This doesn't have to be the layout. The checkout counter could often be positioned along an interior wall next to the entrance/exit (although in the CVS's case, this wouldn't be as easy).
Corporations do not have the time nor do they care for every store design, except new builds in small towns that are picky about every feature on the damn building. That store on Sheridan does look great, there are a couple others in the area that are the same prototype, big improvement. They have a prototypical layout that they use according to size of the store, and that changes every 5-10 years, slightly. The pharmacy and drugs are always in the back of the store. It is not a security issue, its the floor plan layout of the store. That space is ridiculously small, and I can't imagine where else those registers could even be placed. It does look awful, but that is the simple reason behind it. Better aesthetics cost more $$, and in a struggling downtown location like this, the only thing they would do is relocate to the ground floor of a new office building. That location is prime though, I do agree.
PaulBuffalo makes a good point with regards to security and I cannot disagree, but from a design stand point, where there is a will there is a way, and certainly there is a way to address safety, as well as not blocking the glass completely to the street. I think it's simply that CVS cares about location more than adding any 'life' to their location.
RisingDamp has the answer. Just make these dead spaces into display windows and put something in them. It's not as the you could walk along Main Street and look into AM&As's. There was product and decoration in the windows. The issue isn't so much that you can't see into the store, though that would be nice if impractical for all the excellent security reasons noted here, but that all they choose to present to the street is a black wall with some stickers on the windows. Why not put some product in here an sell the store a little? Maybe BRO could offer to provide some cool images of Buffalo that CVS could mount inside the windows?
Bin,
Maybe you could do a before and after for BRO???
Start with the current store, interview the owner and see where business stands. Document the process of your construction, the cost of it, the assistance or challenges from the city and what not. Then do an after. Profile what the improvements did to the business in terms of customers and cost.
A project like this can do wonders for the city. In my opinion more then a silver bullet or a big tower. With the proper exposure, the community can be aware of a business owner making a difference and possibly go out of their way to go to that business from time to time.
With so forethought, the process could be documented and down the line, the template could be made for other business owners to do the same. Maybe tie it into grant assistance. Or better yet, tax breaks.
If the city is presented with a plan that if done right improves the city in the long term, maybe special legislation could be passed to offer property owners tax breaks to cover the cost.
As Martin pointed out, these stores are the gateways to residential housing. One would assume that if the gateways are improved, the value of the surrounding homes would increase. Thus creating wealth for property owners who have invested and creating a stronger tax base for the city.
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