Weaver’s Corner businesses thriving by helping each other
Looking at some of the shopping centers in Lee County, you would think they were ghost towns, with rows of shops lying empty, the parking lots pitted with potholes and grass growing out of their cracks.
Meanwhile, one of North Fort Myers’ oldest shopping centers at the corner of Bayshore/Pine Island Road and Old 41 is doing quite nicely, thank you.
The 20 businesses including five eating establishments – that make Weaver’s Corner Shopping plaza their home have done solid business, with several of them recently being named to the Neighbor’s “Best Of” list, some in more than one category.
The secret is, of course, great customer service. But more so, the businesses have helped each other out, with some offering specials from neighboring shops if you shop there as well.
It has made for great business and even better relationships with the owners, some of whom have only recently moved into the 42-year-old plaza.
A helping hand
Perhaps the prime example of a business that helps the others is The Hair Connection, which was named Best Of for Barber and Hair Salon.
Jennifer Jarvis, who works at the salon, said they try to give people a break over the summer by not only offering their own specials, but referring customers to other businesses.
“We’d like to do some sort of Saturday event where all the businesses come out and show what they offer on the sidewalk so maybe we can generate business for the plaza,” Jarvis said. “There are so many great businesses, great places to eat. We promote the laundry business and they help us.”
They also promote the newer businesses such as Holly’s House, an accessory store, as well as Nails 2001 (Best Of Nail Salon and Day Spa) on the other side of the plaza to finish off their look.
Weaver’s Corner Laundromat and Dry Cleaning at the far end of the plaza provides a golden opportunity for people to visit other establishments, since laundry is often a time-consuming chore.
“We have a coupon at the hardware store and we have theirs, so when people come to do their laundry we hand it over,” said Lynn Jones, manager for both businesses, which won Best Of awards in their categories.
“You have to help other businesses out now. It’s the slow season,” Jones said.
“It’s a great collaboration between our two businesses and we’re trying to serve something up with Mister Bacon. We’re trying to help each other out in the back corner,” said Family Hardware general manager Eric Stange. “We want to get people interested in Weaver’s Corner and keep them coming.”
The logical place for people to go is next door to Mister Bacon, which just moved to the plaza from across the street and won the Best Of award for hamburgers and sandwiches.
The restaurant plans to expand its hours in hopes to draw more business from the Laundromat.
“We are now opening on Sundays for the people who go to the Laundromat so they can help us and we can help them,” said Michael Dover, kitchen manager at Mister Bacon.
Bon apptit
You would think that having five eating establishments would prove troublesome. That has not been the case, as they have been able to co-exist nicely.
It helps that they all offer different kinds of foods, with one being a deli, a diner, and a take-out Chinese place, with two restaurants thrown in (Mister Bacon and Stamatis Family Restaurant.)
But while offering coupons from rival restaurants is not currently planned, that doesn’t mean they don’t go to the competition to see what they have to offer.
Debbie Boyd, who runs Jax Diner for owner John Moll, said it is not uncommon for the servers to go to the other eateries in the plaza during their lunch breaks.
“If one of the restaurants need something I’m sure they would help, but that hasn’t happened yet,” Boyd said. “We got a lot of the people who work at other places to come here, as we go to the other places.”
Jax, which opened in October and has already won in Best Of Restaurant, has the distinction of being next door to the China One takeout place, but they seem to do fine.
As does Englund’s Deli, which opened in 1981 and came to Weaver’s Corner in 2008, where it has been named for best deli and best sub sandwiches on numerous occasions.
“We shop in each other’s shops and we all seem to be good at what we do. There are no main issues,” said Robin Worth, Englund’s owner. “We’ve had breakfast at Jax a few times and really enjoyed it.”
Great tenants
Cam Realty, which sits at the far end of the plaza, can lay claim to some of the kudos the plaza has gotten, since it is the property management company that has put the businesses in there.
Success starts with a strong anchor store, and Winn Dixie does a great job drawing foot traffic (even if there is another Winn Dixie, formerly Sweet Bay, about a mile away), which will draw shoppers to those locations.
From there, you want to create a synergy, said Cheryl Maymon, owner of Cam Realty, which means not having too much of one thing in the 125,000-square-foot plaza.
“You want businesses that feed off each other. When you put in a consignment shop, you don’t put in a second. You don’t want two pizza shops,” Maymon said. “But a Laundromat will do well next to a restaurant. It’s a matter of getting the right blend of tenants.”
The variety includes Simple Mobile, Vapor Island, which sells cigarette alternatives, Holly’s House Accessories, Ear-Tronics, a hearing-aid location, and Susie Q’s quilt shop, Next Level Fitness and a Direct auto insurance shop.
Maymon said that’s been the problem with many a failed or struggling plaza. They will sell out and put something non-retail in there, such as a church.
“It’s not a problem renting to a church, but you’re not bringing business to the plaza during the week,” Maymon said.
Things haven’t been perfect. The closing the Dollar General last year has left a void that Cam Realty has yet to fill (even though there is a locally owned dollar store at the other end). The DMV office closing has also been tough to fill, though Maymon said it’s being looked at.
The loss of True Value was thankfully filled by Family Hardware, which in its first full year took home its own hardware as Best Of Hardware Store.
Still, there are a few locations that need to be filled, particularly the medical ones.
“We have the physical therapy clinic that’s still available, as well as the family physicians group, as well as some small ones,” Maymon said. “We need to have a physician here, so I’d like to have that, and the therapy place would feed perfectly into that.”
Ultimately, it’s the customer service that keeps people coming back. The year round residents know the best places, and word-of-mouth is always the best and cheapest way to drum up more business.
“A lot of people have forgotten that. You have to be polite, nice. You want to make them feel at home and provide the service you need that’s quick and orderly,” Jarvis said.
“Small businesses help small businesses and we work together to provide the best possible service we can for the community,” Stange said. “Without them, it’s hard to survive in this economy.”