Belk
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail |
| Predecessor | Belk Brothers |
| Founded | 1888 (Monroe, North Carolina, United States) |
| Founder | William Henry Belk |
| Headquarters | Charlotte, North Carolina, United States |
Number of locations | 300 (February 2014)[1] |
| Products | Clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, jewelry, beauty products, and housewares. |
| Revenue | $4.0 billion (FY 2014) [4] |
| Owner | Sycamore Partners |
Number of employees | 24,700 (2014 Annual Report) |
| Website | www.belk.com |
Belk, Inc. (stylized as belk) is a department store chain founded in 1888 by William Henry Belk in Monroe, North Carolina with 300 locations in 16 states. Belk stores and Belk.com offer apparel, shoes, accessories, cosmetics, home furnishings and wedding registry.
History
Belk was founded in 1888 by William Henry Belk in Monroe, North Carolina, outside Charlotte. The store was first called "New York Racket" and then "Belk Brothers," after Belk made his brother, physician Dr. John Belk, his partner. Belk bought in volume to pass savings on and sold at fixed prices, then a relatively unusual practice.[2]
By 1909, the company had moved its headquarters to Charlotte and built a huge flagship store on Trade and Tryon Streets in downtown Charlotte, which would remain the company's headquarters until it was closed in 1988 to make way for the construction of what is now Bank of America Corporate Center. The business grew steadily, relying on "bargain sales" and advertising to grow the business and increase its influence throughout the South.
Beginning in 1921 with the Leggett Bros. stores of South Boston, Virginia, the Belk company grew by investing in various partnerships with local merchandisers in nearby markets.[3] (This complex story is more extensively chronicled in a book[4] about the evolution of the company.)
This structure allowed Belk to expand quickly and permitted local variation, but resulted in a diluted brand identity since most stores were co-branded. By the 1990s, the system had become increasingly untenable: stores were held by over 350 separate legal entities, Belk family members disagreed about whether to maintain or sweep away the structure, and some local partners threatened stability by selling their stakes. For example, the heirs of John G. Parks, majority owners of the Parks-Belk chain, sold their interests to Proffitt's, a competitor. The Belks quickly sold their stake as well, although Belk would later purchase the stores back as part of its later acquisition of the entire Proffitt's chain. When Proffitt's made an offer for the Leggett family's stake, which included 42 stores comprising about 20 percent of Belk's revenue, John and Tom Belk were forced to respond by forming a new company in 1996 that bought the Leggetts out. This move accelerated the slow trend of consolidating the store's ownership under the Belks.[5]
In 1998, the company formed a new entity (Belk, Inc.) that merged the 112 remaining Belk companies, swapping the existing partners' local interests for shares in the combined entity; for example, the Hudson family in Raleigh received almost 5% of the shares.[6] Slowly, Belk eliminated the dual brands, completing the process with a chain-wide Belk rebranding in the fall of 2010.
On July 5, 2005, Belk completed the purchase of 47 Proffitt's and McRae's department stores from Saks Incorporated, primarily in Tennessee and Mississippi. Belk converted the 39 Proffitt's and McRae's stores to the Belk nameplate on March 8, 2006.[7] Just over a year later, Belk purchased 38 Parisian department stores from Saks on October 2, 2006. Although most Parisian stores were converted to the Belk nameplate since September 12, 2007, some duplicate Parisian stores were closed, as at The Mall at Barnes Crossing in Tupelo, Mississippi, Richland Mall (then known as Midtown at Forest Acres), Columbiana Centre in Columbia, South Carolina, and Citadel Mall in Charleston, South Carolina. Four Parisian stores in Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio, plus a store under construction at the time in Michigan, were sold by Belk to The Bon-Ton Stores, Inc. Integrating the larger, more upscale Parisian stores proved a challenge for Belk, and spurred the creation of the company's flagship strategy.[8]
During the fourth quarter of 2005, Belk completed the sale of its private-label credit card division, Belk National Bank, to GE MoneyBank. Consumers were issued new Belk credit cards replacing the old ones issued by BNB. All new Belk cards are now issued by GE Money Bank.[9]
On October 3, 2010, the News & Observer reported that Belk planned to update its logo.[10] On October 12 at SouthPark Mall, Belk introduced the new logo, its first since 1967. The chain embarked on a $70 million marketing campaign that replaced the old slogan "All for You!" with a new slogan, "Modern. Southern. Style." Sixty stores got new signs in the first phase, with the remainder getting new signs throughout 2011.[11] Advertisements for Belk & Co. jewelry continue to use a variation of the old logo.
On April 3, 2015, news reports revealed that Belk was exploring "strategic alternatives," including a possible sale of the company.[12]
On August 24, 2015, Belk announced that it had entered into a definitive merger agreement to be acquired by New York-based private equity firm Sycamore Partners.[13] The acquisition was completed on December 10, 2015.[14]
On June 29, 2016, Belk announced that effective as of July 5, Lisa Harper, CEO of Hot Topic, would replace Tim Belk as CEO of Belk. This would be the first time since the founding of the company that a non-Belk family member would head the company.[15]
Company today
The chain operates 300 stores in 16 states, generating US$4 billion in sales in 2014. Its typical store covers 100,000 to 180,000 square feet. 50% of its stores are in regional malls, another 40% in open-air community or power shopping centers, and 10% in open-air lifestyle centers.[16]
Class A and Class B common stock shares are publicly traded on the OTCBB market, a 2011 SEC proxy filing shows over 90 percent of the Class A stock held by Belk family interests.[17]
Even as Belk has made its recent acquisitions, the chain has operated limited electronic commerce on its website, and those websites acquired and redirected to Belk.com. Home furnishings such as bedding, small kitchen appliances, crystal, dinnerware, and china have been offered for several years to online shoppers, as a part of the chain's online bridal and gift registry. The chain revamped its website and registry on September 15, 2008. Celebrity-branded product lines are another pursuit, including a partnership with actress Kristin Davis for a ladies' apparel and accessories collection which debuted in fall 2008 in 125 store locations and online. However, that product line was discontinued in late 2009.[18]
In December 2010 Belk announced that beginning in 2011 it would become the title sponsor for the former Meineke Car Care Bowl (played in Charlotte), now renamed the Belk Bowl. The sponsorship would continue for three years.[19] The first Belk Bowl drew 58,427 fans in 2011, and the 2013 game drew 48,128.[20] On July 18, 2013, Belk announced the six-year extension of the Belk Bowl's partnership with the Atlantic Coast Conference beginning in 2014.[21] Under the current agreement the bowl will feature teams from the ACC and the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
Flagship locations
The chain has multiple "flagship" locations—larger locations in urban and metropolitan centers,[22] and a wider array of merchandise and services including in-store salons.[23][24] As of 2014, the chain claimed 18 flagship locations, and plans to upgrade more locations.
- SouthPark Mall, in Charlotte, North Carolina, houses the chain's largest store, with more than 336,414 square feet (31,253.9 m2). The store was built in 1970 as one of the mall's original anchor stores. The mall was co-developed by the Belk and Ivey families.
- Phipps Plaza, in Buckhead, Atlanta, Georgia contains a flagship for that region. It opened as a Parisian during a 1992 expansion of the mall to three anchor department stores. Like the store at The Summit, it converted to a Belk by September 2007, although its conversion to flagship wasn't officially announced until November 2, 2007. The company said it would help them compete against stores like Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom which have locations at Phipps. Neiman Marcus and Bloomingdale's have locations across the street at Lenox Square. This will help them in the Buckhead market.[25]
- Riverchase Galleria, in Birmingham, Alabama houses a flagship store, made official after a recent renovation brings it up to par with the mall's rival lifestyle center, The Summit.[26]
- The Summit, in Birmingham, Alabama, houses a flagship store built in 1997 as a Parisian store and one of the lifestyle center's original anchors. Its intended conversion to a Belk flagship was announced on April 25, 2007, with the reorganization complete by September 2007. It had been Parisian's flagship store.
- Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh, North Carolina, where Hudson Belk built an elaborate 236,000-square-foot (21,900 m2) store in 1972 (subsequently expanded to 305,000 square feet (28,300 m2) in 2007, with separate locations for menswear and in-mall cosmetics counters) in North Carolina's high-tech Research Triangle.
- Galleria Dallas, in Dallas, Texas, opened in April 2014, replacing the former Saks Fifth Avenue.[27] It is the first regional mall in Texas to house a Belk, in contrast to other Belk locations in Texas that are in outdoor shopping centers. 116,000-square-foot (10,800 m2)
- Bridge Street Town Centre in Huntsville, Alabama, opened in September 2014 with 170,000 sq ft, replacing a store in nearby Madison Square Mall
- Columbiana Centre in Columbia, South Carolina is where Belk is expanding to a 250,000-square-foot (23,000 m2) store by 2015 in Columbia's upscale Lake Murray / Irmo retail district. Belk is opening a dedicated Men's Store in half of the former Sears anchor pad.[28]
- Streets at Southpoint in Durham, North Carolina opened in 2002 with a 180,000-square-foot (17,000 m2) store, which "included many of the features that dazzled shoppers at Belk's largest store, the flagship location at SouthPark."[4]
- Friendly Center in Greensboro, North Carolina became a flagship store in 2014 with the addition of a home department.[29]
- Hanes Mall in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, which opened in 1975 with a 241,607-square-foot (22,446.0 m2) store.[30]
References
- ^ "View All Stores". Belk.com. 1970-01-01. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
- ^ Womick, Chip (December 2010). "Main Street Merchant". Our State. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ Womick, Chip. "Main Street Merchant".
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|url=(help) - ^ a b "History". Belk.com. 1970-01-01. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
- ^ Bull, Becky (7 October 1996). "Belk making small moves to fight foes". Charlotte Business Journal. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ Mildenberg, David (12 January 1998). "Hudson role appears vital to Belk future". Triangle Business Journal. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ Davis, Lisa. "What's in store for Belk". No. November 2008. Archived from the original on 2015-01-03.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "View All Stores". Belk.com. 1970-01-01. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
- ^ "NC-based Belk department stores get new logo". The Charlotte Observer. 2010-10-03. Retrieved 2010-10-15. [dead link]
- ^ Valle, Kirsten (2010-10-12). "Belk unveils its new logo at SouthPark". The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on 2011-07-08. Retrieved 2010-10-13.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Peralta, Katherine (2 April 2015). "Belk exploring possibility of selling company". Charlotte Observer. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
- ^ "Belk, Inc. Enters Into Definitive Agreement To Be Acquired By Sycamore Partners". wistv.com. PR Newswire. Retrieved 24 August 2015.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Sycamore Partners Completes Acquisition Of Belk, Inc". Prnewswire.com. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
- ^ Butler-Young, Sheena (2016-06-29). "Tim Belk To Step Down As Belk CEO, Hot Topic's Lisa Harper To Step In". Footwearness.com. Retrieved 2016-07-26.
- ^ Belk, Inc. "Form 10-K Annual Report, Fiscal Year 2014". Sec.gov. US Securities and Exchange Commission. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ "Def14a". Sec.gov. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
- ^ [2][dead link]
- ^ [3][dead link]
- ^ "Belk Bowl chief confident despite smaller crowd". Bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-12-18. Retrieved 2013-12-05.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Thomas, Jennifer (9 April 2014). "Belk opens flagship store in Dallas". Charlotte Business Journal. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ "Customer Service - Belk.com". Belk Salons and Spas. Retrieved 4 April 2015.
- ^ Lucy Berry. "Store openings, construction, negotiations on summer agenda at Bridge Street Town Centre (photos)". AL.com. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
- ^ "Belk to make Phipps Plaza store a high-end 'flagship'". Bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
- ^ "Belk plans makeover for Riverchase Galleria store, other new investments across the chain". AL.com. 2013-03-11. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
- ^ "Saks Fifth Avenue is leaving the Galleria; Belk is moving in | Business | Dallas News". Bizbeatblog.dallasnews.com. 2013-01-29. Retrieved 2016-10-27.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-02-01. Retrieved 2014-01-24.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ WFMY (9 July 2014). "Opening Dates Announced For Belk Store At Friendly Center". Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Belk to Invest $16 Million for Major Improvements to Greensboro and High Point, NC Stores". Belk.mediaroom.com. Retrieved 2016-10-27.