ST. PETERSBURG — The veil of secrecy that has long shrouded Sundial is lifting now that the Edwards Group is announcing its lineup of 18 tenants. Most are planning on opening their doors by the end of September.
The mix includes 11 national retailers with locations around the country and seven with one or two stores on Florida’s west coast. The newest names to surface are the Shave Cave, Tommy Bahama, Jackie Z Style Co., Juxtapose, Florida Jean Co., Swim ‘n Sport and a return of Happy Feet.
They join the list of tenants already named in the Tampa Bay Times such as Ruth’s Chris Steak House, Sea Salt, Tracy Negoshian, Lululemon and Michael Mina’s Locale market.
The completely renovated downtown retail plaza is about 90 percent leased, Rick Baker, Edwards Group president, said Wednesday. One restaurant space and one retail space are yet to be filled. Some stores will open as soon as two weeks from now, though Baker did not specify which ones. The restaurants should serving by Thanksgiving.
When financier Bill Edwards first bought the all-but-dead BayWalk he said he wanted to create a place where residents could shop downtown for items they typically had to cross the bridge to find. Brands such as Williams-Sonoma and J. Crew were cited as types of retailers the center was after. As recently as July someone at a Suncoast Tiger Bay lunch asked Edwards if Apple was a potential tenant. “Maybe something like an Apple store,” he replied.
None of those are coming.
Residents expecting a slew of big names might be disappointed by the lineup, but many of the lesser-known retailers will offer high-end brands that are new to the area. Clothing lines at various shops will include Joe’s Jeans, Trina Turk, Lucky, Southern Tide and True Religion.
Now a man can buy a suit, eat a steak and get a hot towel shave while sipping whiskey. A woman can purchase a bikini, a cocktail dress and yoga pants and take a nap with pillow and blanket while getting a manicure. Children can be outfitted at L.O.L. Kids, which also caters to the posh, young crowd in New York City and West Hollywood.
All of this without leaving downtown.
“I’m not sure there’s anything we didn’t consider. We made a long list and contacted a lot of folks,” Baker said. St. Petersburg itself wasn’t a hard sale, but beckoning retailers who are so comfortable in malls and suburbia to a downtown location was tougher.
“If you look around the state of Florida you don’t see many retail centers in the heart of downtown. Bringing (tenants) into a retail center in any downtown in general you have to convince people,” he said.
Tenants are locked into “long-term” leases of at least five years.
Juxtapose Apparel & Studio was added toward the end of the leasing process because Sundial didn’t have a home decor store in the lineup. The store, which has another location in Tampa’s Hyde Park Village, carries fashion, home furnishings and one-of-a-kind pieces.
Florida Jean Co. has stores in Ybor City and St. Pete Beach. Along with the obvious, it also sells skin care and Brazilian footwear.
Jackie Z. Style Co. started on Sarasota’s Main Street several years ago. The slogan on its website reads, “Whoever said money can’t buy happiness simply didn’t know where to shop.”
Swim ‘n Sport is a 60-year-old chain with 33 locations around the country. Don’t let its age fool you. It’s hip. The website offers three categories of bikini bottoms: full coverage, moderate coverage and minimal coverage.
The Shave Cave is the only tenant making its brick-and-mortar debut. The high-end barber shop is owned by the founders of St. Petersburg-based Mens Direct, which sells skin care and shaving products online.
Customers can order wine, whiskey or local craft beer to go with their haircut and shave.
The shopping complex formerly known as BayWalk has come a long way.
