Fresno now has its only “authorized” Rolex dealership with the opening of Wickersham Company in River Park. The 112-year-old jeweler from Bakersfield recently opened its second jewelry store/Rolex dealership, this one between Sur La Table and Panera Bread.
Rolex watches start at $5,000 and run up to $275,000. They are “the finest watches in the world,” says Wickersham president John Abrams. The store also sells William Henry knives, some made with dinosaur bone and mammoth tooth and costing up to $8,900, and its own line of jewelry made in Bakersfield. The store has the security to go with such high-end items too, including a vault that holds all the merchandise at night. Customers must ring a bell and a security guard behind glass will buzz them in, and then buzz them through a second door.
Every time I write about a high-end retailer like this one someone says to me, “Oh, Fresno can’t support that.” We’ve definitely got our fair share of poor: One in four residents in Fresno lives below the poverty line. But we also have had Haron Jaguar selling $90,000 cars here for years. Posh in Fig Garden village sells fur coats that cost thousands of dollars and bathrobes at La Rouge in Fig Garden run over $100. The owner of Posh once told me that Fresno’s wealth is quiet, and tends to travel out of town to do a lot of its high-end shopping. The Wickersham president agrees there’s enough wealth to support a Rolex dealership here (obviously) and says companies give the watches as awards.
So just who do you think it is in this town that would buy a Rolex? Is it doctors and lawyers? Farmers?
1. THE TEXAS TENORS
The Fresno Philharmonic ends its season with a twang. The Texas Tenors, who shot to fame on “America’s Got Talent,” have been touring the country for four years now, and they’ve developed quite a specialty performing in pops concerts with local orchestras. I talked to JC Fisher — the “country boy” of the act — for Friday’s 7 section. The 8 p.m. Saturday concert, which will feature a mix of country, classical and Broadway/pop tunes, should be a whoop and a holler. [Details]
KwirkWorld, Fresno’s favorite seller of shot glasses and bacon-flavored candy necklaces, is selling clothing.
You can still buy “Chugopoly,” but much of the River Park store is now devoted to tops and dresses. Owner Kirk Psenner said the wacky stuff sells great during the holidays. But during the rest of the year? Not so much. To keep money coming in, a big portion of the floor space has been turned over to clothing that the owner says is affordable and cute. Think ModCloth-style clothing and vintage-inspired pieces. He chose clothing that’s less teeny bopperish and more geared toward women in their 20s through 40s.
Tops run in the $20 to $30+ range and dresses from $30 to $40ish. T-shirts and baseball caps are available for the fellas. Keep scrolling to see photos of the clothing.
But fear not, fans of stick-on hipster mustaches, the novelty items will take over the store again for the holidays. And there’s about to be a lot more KwirkWorld to shop at. A new smaller KwirkWorld store just opened at Sierra Vista Mall next to the movie theater. And another store is scheduled to open in the Campus Pointe shopping center at Fresno State once it’s built next year. The owner will also open a Franco’s 5 & 10, an old-school candy and toy store.
If you’re not sick of shopping yet, there are a few new boutiques that opened recently that you might want to check out.
First, there’s Julia, a jewelry and accessories store that opened in River Park two weeks ago, next to Ann Taylor LOFT. This store was opened by the same people who run Julia Vogue, the jewelry and accessories shop across Blackstone Avenue.
As part of the change, the owners decided that Julia Vogue would carry mostly less-expensive costume jewelry and the new Julia in River Park would focus on designer jewelry.
The difference? Designer jewelry is a little higher-end than costume jewelry, and is often sterling silver or gold plated, the owners say. The shop features fresh-water pearls and wearable works of art like the Jeff Lieb piece at left. There’s blingy Jimmy Crystal watches, chunky beaded cuff bracelets and blingy purses. Many items cost from $35 to $75.
Another store full of bling and glitz and a few feathers is the newly opened Couture New York in Fig Garden Village.
Are you ready, Black Friday shoppers? Or should I say “Black Thursday?”
The post-Thanksgiving shopping madness starts earlier than ever this year as Toys “R” Us, Walmart and Sears break out the doorbuster deals at 8 p.m. and Target opens at 9 p.m. Thursday.
You can read all about what to expect in the Fresno area here. Note that stores like Walmart, Target and Sears are appealing to night owls and early birds alike with waves of different doorbuster deals throughout the night.
The earlier-than-ever opening times are inspiring a backlash from Target and Walmart workers, who say they’re ruining Thanksgiving.
But if you’re one of the many caffeinated Americans who make Black Friday shopping a family tradition, the opening times listed below can help you plan your strategy. Most retailers Black Friday ads will be Thursday’s Fresno Bee or are already online.
Also, many Starbucks locations near major shopping areas will be open all night Thursday, including Starbucks at River Park and the new one at Shaw and West avenues.
For $35, women can get their hair washed, blow-dried and styled by a professional at a different kind of a salon in River Park. There’s no cutting or coloring involved, simply styling for a special occasion or a pick-me-up.
Blow-dry bars are popping up nationwide as women indulge in little luxuries, with a chain in Los Angeles opening its 10th location recently. And since I’m betting some of you are still baffled by this concept, here’s Taylor’s explanation of the popularity of blow-dry bars.
As women, we always are looking for the fun, affordable luxuries in life, and everyone is always saying to their hairstylists, ‘I wish you could come do my hair every day.’ Just like we get manicures and pedicures, it’s just the next big thing.
1. LIGHT YOUR FUSE FOR LOCAL MUSIC Were this feature called “One Thing You Should Do This Weekend,” this would be it. Fuse Fest, or Fresno Urban Sound Experience, is our annual all-local music festival that acts as an all-you-can-eat buffet of local music of various genres. It’s tonight and Saturday, with a total of 40 acts playing on 10 stages, all in downtown Fresno. Tickets can be purchased for $15 per night or $20 for both, good for maximum stage hopping. For more about the festival, read this story from today’s Bee about its evolution, check out the band lineup/schedule, listen to my podcast, or Famous’ podcast, check out The Fresnan or hit up the Facebook page. If there were one weekend to get out and support the Fresno music scene, this is it. [More]
We’re another day closer to Yard House opening its River Park location — 11 a.m. Sunday. We gave you videos yesterday. Today, here’s a Half Yard’s worth of factoids about Yard House — including its menu, beer selection and much more. Shout out to Bee artist John Alvin on the design handiwork.
View the full-size PDF below. Or, if you just want the text, go to fresnobee.com.
We’re just a few days away from Yard House opening its doors in Fresno. The SoCal-based chain — known for its huge draft beer selection and rock ‘n’ roll atmosphere — opens Sunday at 11 a.m. at River Park, near the old Border’s. It’s open until 12:30 a.m. Sunday-Thursday and 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
The Yard House location is more than 13,000 feet, gobbling up what was three empty spaces at River Park. You can read a whole lot more about Yard House in Friday’s issue of The Bee, but for now, here’s a virtual tour of Fresno’s Yard House and a look at its famous “Half Yard” beers. Videos by Eric Paul Zamora of The Bee.
Next Saturday is Sept. 10 — or the fun-to-say 9/10/11 — and it’s looking like a huge day for local events. You’re probably going to have some deciding to do, so I figured I’d help and lay it all out for ya.
A TASTE OF RIVER PARK:River Park has its annual social gathering — with samples from its restaurants, a fashion show, cooking demonstration and wine tasting. Tickets cost $40-$50. More info and tickets here.
FESTIVAL ON THE BLUFFS: Just down the street at the Park Place Shopping Center at Palm & Nees, the peeps at Eureka! Burger are heading up the first Festival on the Bluffs, which offers craft beer, cheese and live music from Hollywood U2, Stranger and others. Tickets cost $40 and include beer and cheese samples. Get ‘em here.
WET ELECTRIC II: Once again, Wet Electric brings the nightclub atmosphere to Island Water Park for some adult-friendly partying, complete with drinks, dancing and DJs. It’s a two-day event, starting on Sept. 10. The DJ lineup includes Lil Jon and Richard “Humpty” Vission. Almost 2,000 people attended the first Wet Electric earlier this summer, organizers say. Tickets run $35-$90 and are available here.
Thirty competitors will have a chow-down challenge for a grand prize of $250. The competitors are already chosen, but you can certainly show up and watch. A couple hundred people did last year. It starts at 6 p.m.
River Park introduces a summer entertainment series called Tropical Nights this evening. It’s put by the same folks behind the long-running Thursday salsa night at Starline, and offers outdoor music and dancing in the styles of salsa, bachata and more.
It’s happening twice a month — on the first Monday and third Friday– from 7:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. in the plaza between Yoshino and Border’s. It’s free and open to all ages.
For years now, I’ve heard people saying that Fresno needs a Yard House — the SoCal-based restaurant known for its huge beer selection. If you’re one of those people, rejoice.
Yard House is coming to Fresno by the end of the year, according to the Business Journal. From its story:
Yard House, the Southern California restaurant famous for featuring 130 brews on tap, announced it will unveil a Fresno location by the end of the year.
Yard House, based in Irvine, said in a news release it will open a restaurant in Fresno’s River Park shopping center by December, though details about where exactly it would open were not given. A call to Lance-Kashian & Co., owner of the River Park properties, was not immediately returned.
Yard House bills itself as “an award-winning casual chain of eateries known for its American fusion fare, classic-to-contemporary rock, and world’s largest selection of draft beer.” The Fresno location will be one of seven new restaurants it plans to open in the next 12 months. Other new California locations this year include San Jose, Roseville and Palmdale.
A classic rock-themed place that brags about having the “world’s largest selection of draft beer?” Sounds like it’s right up Fresno’s alley. We’re assuming it’s going to take over Claim Jumper’s location, but that’s just speculation at this point.
Yesterday FresnoBee.com posted an article about a new development that has been proposed for northwest Fresno. El Paseo would be a 238-acre mixed use (meaning entertainment, retail and office) center located on Herndon just east of the 99 freeway.
The project has run into some road bumps — neighbors worried about traffic, behind-the-scenes issues with the developer and his partners — but also seems to have some steam behind it, as the developer promises that Target is on-board to be an anchor store in the center (though that appears to be the only detail he’ll share).
My first thought when I read about this was, “Oh great, more empty buildings.” I mean, Granite Park, anyone?
My second thought was a more selfish one. Herndon and 99 is my preferred exit in and out of town, as well as my on/off ramp for when I travel to and from downtown (I live in northwest Fresno, a few miles away from the proposed center). How badly is a retail center going to junk up that area, and Herndon in general, traffic-wise? I lived near River Park for four years; I know full well how difficult it is to get on the 41 off Friant during peak shopping hours.
My third thought: What kind of retail center has railroad tracks running through it?
The project will go before the city council Thursday for approval. I’ve already told my city council guy what I think, but I’d like to know what others out there think. Is this shopping center going to draw motorists to Fresno to shop, or is it going to be another Granite Park?
… Santa’s Favorite Cookie Competition starts today and ends Dec. 3. The prize is a $200 Macy’s gift card and a free premium photo session with Santa. (The package consists of two 8-inch-by-10-inch photos, two 5-inch-by-7-inch photos, four 4-inch-by-6-inch photos, plus digital copies of the photos, says contest organizer Peter De Young.)
Interested? Pull out your favorite holiday cookie recipes. For each recipe, bake three dozen cookies, package them with the recipe, and include your name, phone number and e-mail address. Submit as many recipes as you like.
Bring the cookies to Santa between 4 and 8 p.m. daily through Dec. 3. He’ll be in a building between Macy’s and Edwards Fresno Stadium 22, across from the parking structure.
Santa will taste and judge the cookies as they arrive, giving them points for originality, taste, appearance and presentation. River Park will donate the remaining cookies to the Fresno Rescue Mission.
While you wonder what’s going on in Detroit this weekend …
1. JAM WITH ZAC BROWN AND ROBERT RANDOLPH
I’m pretty psyched for tonight’s Save Mart Center show with the Zac Brown Band and Robert Randolph and the Family Band. Zac Brown’s is a country band with a whole lot of jam-band tendencies. You can read about how they don’t really fit the Nashville mold in this feature story from today’s Bee. And Randolph’s funk/soul band certainly isn’t the typical country opening act. Read about them in this Fresno Famous interview. More info and tickets here.
Catch your breath tonight and Tuesday, Fresnans, because we’ve got a heck of a week ahead of us. Dunno about you, but I have something to do every night this week. Here’s a rundown of some of what the week ahead has to offer.
WEDNESDAY:Creative Fresno’s bartender challenge at Palomino’s — Patrick Contreras vs. Joey Fernandez (aka frequent Beehive commenter Ms. Joey). Brian McKnight and Vivica A. Fox in town as part of the stage play “Cheaper to Keep Her,” at Saroyan Theatre. It’s a show by Je’Caryous Johnson, aka Tyler Perry in training.
Is it too one-dimensional and conflict-based to think in terms of a north-vs.-south mentality when it comes to Fresno? Sure. But I can’t help it sometimes. Those were my first thoughts upon reading this “Word on the Street” item in today’s Bee business section:
After 16 years of running Silva Designs hair salon in the Tower District, the owners are consolidating the business into Planet Hair, the other salon they own in the River Park shopping center … Marlena Silva said her stylist husband — who split his time between the two locations — found his Tower District clients were increasingly asking for appointments at the north Fresno location.
“Clients like to go to get their hair done, and then they like to go do other things: have lunch, go shopping — River Park is the place to do that,” she said.
Sure, businesses come and go. But this one seemed to be a special case in that it had branches both north and south — and the north won out.
We’re late in the game on this Tuesday afternoon, so it’s a good thing we already told you about the Bartender Challenge tonight at Palomino’s. That seems like where a big chunk of the young professionalcrowd will be this evening. (And I bet many young and not-so-young professionals will also be at the Il Divo concert at Save Mart Center).
Fresno now has its only “authorized” Rolex dealership with the opening of Wickersham Company in River Park. The 112-year-old jeweler from Bakersfield recently opened its second jewelry store/Rolex dealership, this one between Sur La Table and Panera Bread.
KwirkWorld
