Ames Returning in 2023?

[M.R.CALDOR]

There is a rather cryptic website that claims Ames is returning in Spring 2023. To me, this does not seem to be "on the level," and I will be quite surprised if anything comes to fruition. All the website has to offer is an "announcement" and a LinkedIn page, which also does not seem legitimate. This also brings to mind Justin Calabrese's failed attempt to revitalize Caldor, a few years ago.

I foresee this purported Ames "reboot" will be more of the same, however I would like the boards opinion on this.

Here is the link: http://www.amesstores.com/

[TheFugitive]

My opinion: Sadly there is little business incentive for anyone to do this.

I was in Macy's yesterday where I saw the sizeable Toys R Us department.  Macy's decided to acquire that intellectual property and open these shops because the recently deceased Toys R Us brand was still fresh in people's minds and still had some drawing power.

Likewise with another of my former employers, Service Merchandise, our ex-CEO Raymond Zimmerman bought the internet domain from the bankruptcy court a couple of years after the stores closed and opened an online jewelry store, because the brand at that point still had some staying power.

Ames has been gone for over twenty years.  And it's brand at that point had been rather tarnished by two bankruptcies.  The shoppers who were most loyal to Ames are now mostly over 50, which is not a demographic highly coveted by marketing people.

If someone were to do this it would likely be because they were able to pick-up the intellectual property from the bankruptcy court for pennies on the dollar and open a low-cost web-only store to appeal to this specific niche of shopper.

I guess never say never.  This is pretty much what Fox Sports did to revive the USFL, and they had been gone for 35 years.

[BillyGr]

My opinion: Sadly, there is little business incentive for anyone to do this.

Ames has been gone for over twenty years.  And its brand at that point had been rather tarnished by two bankruptcies.  The shoppers who were most loyal to Ames are now mostly over 50, which is not a demographic highly coveted by marketing people.

Actually, many of them could be quite a bit older than that, since they had that club for those who were 55+ when they were open.  Anyone from that still around would be upper 70's or older now.

It was kind of unfortunate that those who tried to do the reboot in NY State shortly after (under the Wisebuys name) ran into issues of trying to get larger too quickly, as that seemed to be the best option for such a chain. 

Targeting those areas that the larger brands were not interested in serving and being the only easy option for shopping in many cases (not that online is bad, but not feasible for immediate needs, as they are not as likely to be delivering stuff as quickly in those harder to reach areas).

[Retail Regents]

Now WPRI is running with this story. You can see it here: https://www.wpri.com/business-news/ames-department-stores-to-return-in-2023/

Assuming this comes to fruition, I feel it will just be a nostalgia grab like C&S's revival of Grand Union. Not only do they intend to keep the logo, but also have drop ceilings and tile flooring. If anything, it feels more they're trying to fill the void Kmart has left with all their closures (especially with the addition of Cafes and a grocery section).

[TheFugitive]

Okay, this is actually pretty interesting.  When I do a WhoIs search to find out who currently owns the internet domain AmesStores.com it's a corporate entity called AmesPlace.com, Inc.  They appear to have been incorporated in 2000 (?) and give a corporate address of 40 Cold Spring Road, Rocky Hill, CT 06067. A Rolando DeAguiar of Deep River, CT is listed as the CEO of this company, and their corporate registration appears to be in Germany (??)  Do any of you guys in Connecticut know anything about this company or Mr. DeAguiar?

It's pretty naive of this Rhode Island TV reporter to think that just because it's Ames old internet domain that it's the same company being revived.  Internet domains are intellectual property that get sold off to satisfy bankruptcy creditors like all other corporate property.  (The domain for Service Merchandise was purchased by our former CEO, Raymond Zimmerman, who promptly re-opened an online-only version of our jewelry division).  The curious thing is that this outfit incorporated in 2000, before the Ames stores even closed.

[ian]

Was the old ames home office demolished?

[TheFugitive]

Was the old ames home office demolished?

It was slated for demolition.  I am in Western Pennsylvania and can't independently confirm that it's gone.  I'm sure one of the many people on this board who live in Connecticut can confirm for you.

[TheFugitive]

Okay, this is actually pretty interesting.  When I do a WhoIs search to find out who currently owns the internet domain AmesStores.com it's a corporate entity called AmesPlace.com, Inc.  They appear to have been incorporated in 2000 (?) and give a corporate address of 40 Cold Spring Road, Rocky Hill, CT 06067. A Rolando DeAguiar of Deep River, CT is listed as the CEO of this company, and their corporate registration appears to be in Germany (??)  Do any of you guys in Connecticut know anything about this company or Mr. DeAguiar?

It's pretty naive of this Rhode Island TV reporter to think that just because it's Ames old internet domain that it's the same company being revived.  Internet domains are intellectual property that get sold off to satisfy bankruptcy creditors like all other corporate property.  (The domain for Service Merchandise was purchased by our former CEO, Raymond Zimmerman, who promptly re-opened an online-only version of our jewelry division).  The curious thing is that this outfit incorporated in 2000, before the Ames stores even closed.

Following up on this further, it appears that the corporation named AmesPlace.com, Inc. was formally dissolved in February of this year.  They are the owners of record for the AmesStores.com web domain.

The same Rolando DeAguiar who is listed as the CEO for this company is also listed as CEO for several other companies, one of which is called Hills Distributing Company (??).  That one was incorporated in West Virginia and dissolved in late 2001.  The interesting part of that one, other than the name, is that one of the other listed officers of the company is Joe Ettore, who was the last CEO of Ames Department Stores, Inc.

It seems Rolando DeAguiar, who is listed as the CEO of the company owning the AmesStores domain, does have ties to the original Ames through his being on the same board of a company named for Hills as Joe Ettore.

So it does appear that it's possible that people who were associated with the original Ames Department Stores are trying to revive the company in some way.  Most probably as an online-only store.

[BillyGr]

I saw a posting somewhere that was mentioning that the group is currently in Gloversville (NY) but plans to make their headquarters in Meriden, CT.

They mentioned six stores in a variety of states for the 2023 opening, I can't remember exactly where but I think CT, NY and PA were mentioned.

Someone on said posting questioned why they would be in Gloversville, but if there is some connection to the former people (like Ettore), maybe that makes more sense, as he also had some hand in that short lived WiseBuys chain that opened in several former Ames locations in northern NY, merged with another small chain from Ogdensburg and then quickly disappeared.

[TheFugitive]

The Ames comeback story has gone mainstream this morning.
Being reported by CBS, Yahoo! News, others.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/ames-department-stores-announces-its-return-in-2023/ar-AA15M76t

[ian]

im really hoping they come to my area

[ian]

Their website just updated, check it out yall!

[TheFugitive]

It's looking like some of the news outlets that originally ran with this story are starting to smell a scam.  Apparently whoever is running the website replied to a reporter's email inquiry that they would be "announcing locations in February and a Grand Opening schedule in March".  Anyone who knows the business knows that it's just impossible to turn around new store openings on that kind of a timeframe.  Lots of legwork goes into site selection, lease negotiation, legal, etc.  If they are really opening stores within a few months then those lease negotiations would have to have started a year ago and if they did news of a possible new Ames store somewhere would have leaked out.  Not to mention the whole supply chain infrastructure with a buying office, distribution center, etc. would have to be ready in advance.  They'd be hiring for those positions right now and you can't find a Help Wanted ad for them out there anyplace.

[BillyGr]

It's looking like some of the news outlets that originally ran with this story are starting to smell a scam.  Apparently whoever is running the website replied to a reporter's email inquiry that they would be "announcing locations in February and a Grand Opening schedule in March".  Anyone who knows the business knows that it's just impossible to turn around new store openings on that kind of a timeframe.  Lots of legwork goes into site selection, lease negotiation, legal, etc.  If they are really opening stores within a few months then those lease negotiations would have to have started a year ago and if they did news of a possible new Ames store somewhere would have leaked out.  Not to mention the whole supply chain infrastructure with a buying office, distribution center, etc. would have to be ready in advance.  They'd be hiring for those positions right now and you can't find a Help Wanted ad for them out there anyplace.

Where is there a timeframe in there?

If they are ANNOUNCING locations in February and ANNOUNCING a Grand Opening schedule in March, that doesn't mean they will be actually opening then. 

They could be announcing stores to be opened any time they want to.  So, if February they state where they plan to open, having already scouted where they want to be, then set up deals for the actual locations they want to be by March (particularly if they are moving into already existing buildings) and then they can announce when they will open them in those specific locations.

Some of that other stuff also assumes they will have their own facilities and not just use some type of outside suppliers instead, as some smaller stores do.

[TheFugitive]

It's looking like some of the news outlets that originally ran with this story are starting to smell a scam.  Apparently whoever is running the website replied to a reporter's email inquiry that they would be "announcing locations in February and a Grand Opening schedule in March".  Anyone who knows the business knows that it's just impossible to turn around new store openings on that kind of a timeframe.  Lots of legwork goes into site selection, lease negotiation, legal, etc.  If they are really opening stores within a few months then those lease negotiations would have to have started a year ago and if they did news of a possible new Ames store somewhere would have leaked out.  Not to mention the whole supply chain infrastructure with a buying office, distribution center, etc. would have to be ready in advance.  They'd be hiring for those positions right now and you can't find a Help Wanted ad for them out there anyplace.

Where is there a timeframe in there?

If they are ANNOUNCING locations in February and ANNOUNCING a Grand Opening schedule in March, that doesn't mean they will be actually opening then. 

They could be announcing stores to be opened any time they want to.  So, if February they state where they plan to open, having already scouted where they want to be, then set up deals for the actual locations they want to be by March (particularly if they are moving into already existing buildings) and then they can announce when they will open them in those specific locations.

Some of that other stuff also assumes they will have their own facilities and not just use some type of outside suppliers instead, as some smaller stores do.

To actually make those announcements they would have had to have been in negotiations for some time with potential landlords, and even with third-party suppliers in your scenario.  The thought that they could do so without word of any potential new store leaking out is impossible to fathom. (I remember my District Manager fielding call after call from bankers and other business people in towns where word had leaked out that Ames was working on a store lease).  Whether stores open in March or the openings are merely announced in March are equally implausible.

They would also need to be somewhere down the hiring pipeline if they are actually going to open this year.  They'd be conducting interviews and likely have already secured administrative staff.  They'd be registering in the various states where they intend to do business in order to remit state taxes, etc.  Again all that stuff is public record and it seems nobody can find anything.

[BillyGr]

It's looking like some of the news outlets that originally ran with this story are starting to smell a scam.  Apparently whoever is running the website replied to a reporter's email inquiry that they would be "announcing locations in February and a Grand Opening schedule in March".  Anyone who knows the business knows that it's just impossible to turn around new store openings on that kind of a timeframe.  Lots of legwork goes into site selection, lease negotiation, legal, etc.  If they are really opening stores within a few months then those lease negotiations would have to have started a year ago and if they did news of a possible new Ames store somewhere would have leaked out.  Not to mention the whole supply chain infrastructure with a buying office, distribution center, etc. would have to be ready in advance.  They'd be hiring for those positions right now and you can't find a Help Wanted ad for them out there anyplace.

Where is there a timeframe in there?

If they are ANNOUNCING locations in February and ANNOUNCING a Grand Opening schedule in March, that doesn't mean they will be actually opening then. 

They could be announcing stores to be opened any time they want to.  So, if February they state where they plan to open, having already scouted where they want to be, then set up deals for the actual locations they want to be by March (particularly if they are moving into already existing buildings) and then they can announce when they will open them in those specific locations.

Some of that other stuff also assumes they will have their own facilities and not just use some type of outside suppliers instead, as some smaller stores do.

To actually make those announcements they would have had to have been in negotiations for some time with potential landlords, and even with third-party suppliers in your scenario.  The thought that they could do so without word of any potential new store leaking out is impossible to fathom. (I remember my District Manager fielding call after call from bankers and other business people in towns where word had leaked out that Ames was working on a store lease).  Whether stores open in March or the openings are merely announced in March are equally implausible.

They would also need to be somewhere down the hiring pipeline if they are actually going to open this year.  They'd be conducting interviews and likely have already secured administrative staff.  They'd be registering in the various states where they intend to do business in order to remit state taxes, etc.  Again all that stuff is public record and it seems nobody can find anything.

Why would they have to negotiate anything?

They could be looking on their own (not talking to anyone) and have in mind the exact spots they want to open in by the first of February.
At that time, they announce we are planning to open stores in towna, townb, townc etc.

Then they go to the owners of those 6 or so spots they have already identified and say "we want to lease your xyz property".  Make out the paperwork and we can sign the lease.

That doesn't have to take months to do - just like people have put houses up for sale and had a buyer in a day or two lately!

Thus, by the end of March (so really close to 2 months), they can announce the specific grand opening locations with a planned timeframe for opening them, which could be months or a year or whatever.

Then they start setting up whatever else they need to actually open, doing work on the buildings and so forth.

Not to mention that they could already have people in mind to fill spots (based on people involved having done this before), such that they don't need to interview anyone, just call them up and say "we have an x spot for you at $y starting on z.

And, if what was suggested is correct (that people involved with this were involved with prior projects), I seem to remember many of those stores in northern NY opening fairly quickly after they had closed as Ames, but since they were cleared out in that process, the new operators were basically starting with an empty box) it sounds much like what this could be, on a similarly quick timeline.

Not that any of this is a guarantee, but companies have opened things up before without the major amount of planning you are suggesting - just because that is what a then established company did, doesn't mean it has to work that way 100% of the time!

[TheFugitive]

Commercial real estate is a little more complicated than you make it sound.  Lots of legal wrangling that goes on. (I just sold a house and there were unforeseen complications which dragged the deal out for months. There are many more issues with commercial properties). Could Ames announce "we're opening stores in Brookville, PA, Olean, NY and Newton Falls, OH in June" without having leases finalized?  They could, but then they're liable to be embarrassed if anything falls through at the 11th. hour and they have to walk it back.  Plus you're not going to start gearing up for a new store (hiring employees, lining-up local permits, finishing store interiors, etc.) unless that lease is 100% done.

You don't just open up a chain of stores in a multi-million dollar enterprise without doing very detailed advance planning.  If Ames were reopening this year they'd be leaving footprints with all of the activities I mentioned.  Right now there is nothing. 

I'm in Pittsburgh where we remember Michael Carlow.  He came into town presenting himself as this bigtime investor.  He was going to save a number of iconic local companies that were in trouble (Clark candy, Iron City beer) and save a bunch of jobs.  He held big splashy press events and was hailed as some type of savior.  Turns out he was a total fraudster and ended up going to prison.

[TheFugitive]

Now someone has thrown up this obviously fake Ames website.

http://www.amesstores.ca/

.ca is a domain in Canada.

[TheFugitive]

My guess at this point is that "Shannon DeMolyneaux" who claims to represent the new Ames is a grad student who is conducting research on how people can be manipulated through planted websites and social media.  He or she has already gotten a number of mainstream media outlets to fall for this story so I'd say the experiment has been a success.

[108CAM]

I read a similar story about a company who was planning to "revive" the Circuit City name and open new stores in a similar manner to this so-called revival of Ames. This never happened and they only got as far as launching an online store which is still operating today. This online Circuit City store is very similar to the online Montgomery Ward store which was likely launched after someone bought the trademarks after the physical stores closed.

Ames has been gone for over twenty years.  And it's brand at that point had been rather tarnished by two bankruptcies.  The shoppers who were most loyal to Ames are now mostly over 50, which is not a demographic highly coveted by marketing people.

If someone were to do this it would likely be because they were able to pick-up the intellectual property from the bankruptcy court for pennies on the dollar and open a low-cost web-only store to appeal to this specific niche of shopper.

I guess never say never.  This is pretty much what Fox Sports did to revive the USFL, and they had been gone for 35 years.

In Australia, the Ampol brand was successfully revived by Caltex in 2020. The reason for this revival is because Chevron, the parent of Caltex terminated the use of the Caltex trademark in Australia.
(The Ampol revival was made easier because Caltex never sold off the Ampol trademarks when they rebranded the stations to Caltex in the 1990's, meaning they could re-use the Ampol name some 20 years later without having to go through the legal process involved with transferring the ownership of a trademark.)

[ian]

This is odd! Their website now says that it has been dissconnected.

[TheFugitive]

This is odd! Their website now says that it has been dissconnected.

The last screenshot grabbed by the Internet Archive had this announcement posted.  Sounds very fishy.

=======

ANNOUNCEMENT
UPDATE - Due to unforeseen circumstances, Ames have postponed their website launch and location announcement until March.

STATUS:

Due to an issue with our service provider, we're unable to migrate our site to a new and more powerful server, with our current server we're severely limited on what we can do. In order to facilitate a huge amount of traffic and requests this migration is necessary and at this time, it would not be feasible to launch the new website on an outdated server. We cannot guarantee that the website will remain online if we launched on the outdated server.

Ames Department Stores, Inc is returning in Spring 2023. Please keep an eye on this website for announcements on which locations are opening first!

Press inquiries should be sent out to: sdemolyneux@amesstores.com

Marketing inquiries should be sent out to: cmolyneux@amesstores.com

Customer Service issues should be reported to: rcatalano@amesstores.com



Need some information on our return? email michael.molyneux@amesstores.com

[ian]

Very much so....

[TheFugitive]

Only five days left in 2023.  If Ames is coming back this year they'd better hurry. ;)

[Retail Regents]

And this whole charade continues...

https://www.wpxi.com/news/trending/ames-department-stores-open-35-brick-and-mortar-locations-across-us/QZAL5CYT65HZJPV25VA62HPNAM/

[TheFugitive]

And this whole charade continues...

https://www.wpxi.com/news/trending/ames-department-stores-open-35-brick-and-mortar-locations-across-us/QZAL5CYT65HZJPV25VA62HPNAM/

I'm laughing out loud as a Pittsburgh resident thinking about all of the shoddy acts of "journalism" I've seen from this station for 52 of my 60 years.  This whole Ames reopening sham seems to me a project by some grad students to prove just how much journalists do NOT check-out their stories in the 2020's.

[TheFugitive]

I've had no fewer than TEN acquaintances in the past week tell me "Did you hear that Ames is coming back and opening 35 stores?"

If I'm right and this is all some mass psychology experiment by some grad students it's been a wildly successful one.

[Retail Regents]

I've had no fewer than TEN acquaintances in the past week tell me "Did you hear that Ames is coming back and opening 35 stores?"

If I'm right and this is all some mass psychology experiment by some grad students it's been a wildly successful one.

I would not be surprised if Grand Union's actual revival played a role in this psychological experiment. They must have known about it, and decided it would be grand to fool those who knew about the Grand Union revival into believing Ames would also be revived.

[TheFugitive]

The Ames Stores website is back up and is claiming that they are planning to open 35 stores with SEVEN distribution centers.   That's ludicrous.  No way you would need that many for a 35-store chain and you'd go broke operating them all.

My guess is that this is a grad student project about disinformation or misinformation and how it can effectively be spread.

[Retail Regents]

The Ames Stores website is back up and is claiming that they are planning to open 35 stores with SEVEN distribution centers.   That's ludicrous.  No way you would need that many for a 35-store chain and you'd go broke operating them all.

My guess is that this is a grad student project about disinformation or misinformation and how it can effectively be spread.

As long as there are gullible people reporting on it and talking about it, the longer I see this psyop continuing.