Small business woes hit Carson Mall tenants

Real Scoop yogurt shop may soon be standing out in the cold.

The nonprofit Carson Mall business is barely making enough to pay its part-time staff and its rent. The lease is up on April 9 and it is unable to commit to a five-year lease required by the mall owners.

Although their stories are different, other retail tenants are leaving Carson City's only enclosed mall as well. TC Jewelers discounted its merchandise and is moving out. Gotchy Shoe Outlet is closing, citing small-business woes common in a retail world driven by high consumer demands and corporate dominance.

Other mall retailers - such as RadioShack - are rumored to be looking elsewhere. The mall is increasingly being filled by service occupants, such as a travel agent and an urgent care center, rather than the retail stores that attract window gazers and shoppers. Cyndi Shillito-Tolman, owner of TC Jewelers, said this is just one of the reasons why her business failed.

The South Carson Street mall could take a hit as retailers and shoppers evaluate their choices, such as a diverse shopping center in north Douglas County and the new Wal-Mart in North Carson City. Anchored by Gottschalks, a majority of the businesses are small and locally owned.

Rebecca Holt, 23, shops in the Carson Mall because she likes to avoid the crowds. It could use a remodel, Holt said, but that doesn't keep her away. Her fiancé bought her engagement ring at TC Jewelers.

"The tiling and the floors have been here for as long as I remember, and I've been coming here since I was a little girl, so it could be modernized," she said, while critically eyeing the tan tile floor and turquoise and peach pillars.

Tim Callison, property manager for Carrington Co., the mall owner, said the company has invested substantially in the property. Carrington repaved the parking lot last year for about $900,000. Mall shoppers and tenants will begin to see interior renovations, such as repainting the pillars and installing carpeting.

Despite its outdated decor, the mall is fully occupied. Callison said he has tenants lined up to fill the two pending vacancies. He declined to disclose names until after contracts are final.

Shillito-Tolman, who owns the jewelry store, said her traffic of customers who can afford nicer jewelry has dwindled. Customers will come to her for diamond expertise, but will then buy at a chain store. She will be out by March 26, after three years in the mall.

"No jewelry store can live off $1,500 a month," she said while sitting behind a counter full of sparkling diamonds. Around her were posted the "going out of business" signs. Her overhead is about $5,000 a month.

Every so often customers walk in, peer at the jewelry under glass cases and then walk out. Some come to pick up jewelry left for repairs. Shillito-Tolman said these repairs give her little revenue, and she often has to haggle over the cost.

"I'll do it," she said, then shrugged her shoulders. "I lower the cost, but it's doing me in. It did me in."

Gotchy Family Shoes took a jump and hoped for solid ground. The owner opened its Gotchy Shoe Outlet next door and for 10 years it worked.

"The shoe business hasn't grown like we hoped it would," owner James Gotchy said. "We don't see any growth in the future because there is so much retail out there and there is not enough money for everyone."

The outlet is no longer profitable. Gotchy said it will close in May and he will focus on the family shoe store, which has been in business for 25 years.

He said the competition with Wal-Mart and other specialty shoe stores was too much. Despite the closure, Gotchy said he is satisfied with his location.

The business at Real Scoop, the yogurt shop on the west side of the mall, is as chill as the February air.

Ormsby ARC uses the yogurt business to train developmentally disabled adults in customer service. Bob Simola, vocational programs coordinator for Ormsby ARC, said they haven't made enough money to keep clients scooping yogurt.

Real Scoop is run by three part-time workers who are trained as teachers for the disabled adults. Disabled clients haven't worked in the shop since January. Pending a dramatic intervention, Real Scoop will close by April 9.

"When you are used to making $300 a day and now you're only making about $100 a day, that lowers the scope," Simola said. "It's too bad. The clients do love it."

Simola said the Carrington Co., which owns the mall, offered Ormsby ARC a four-year lease but he declined. Simola said they can only handle annual leases. Ormsby ARC took over its current five-year lease from the previous operators, who pulled out in late 2004.

The Carrington Co. exec said Real Scoop's lease is still in negotiation.

"Ice cream parlors are good for malls," Callison said. "In no shape or form is it going to be kicked out."

n Contact reporter Becky Bosshart at bbosshart@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1212.