VOL. 126 | NO. 235 | Friday, December 2, 2011
Inked
Sarah Baker
Pizza Eatery Expands Into Southaven
By Sarah Baker
A husband and wife team from Hernando is expanding its pizzeria business into Southaven.
David J. and Melissa A. Pippin, owners of Three Guys Pizza Pies, have signed a 3,050-square-foot lease in the Shops of DeSoto Center, 1046 Church Road.
Frank Dyer III and Allen Israel, brokers with Loeb Properties Inc.’ third party representation affiliate, Loeb Realty Group, represented the landlord in the deal. The tenant was unrepresented.
The Pippins opened their first Three Guys restaurant off U.S. 64 in July 2010. The menu features salads, oven-baked subs and a variety of pizzas with creative names such as “The Angry Hawaiian Guy” and “Vampire Killer.”
Melissa Pippin said Southaven was appealing for Thee Guys’ growing business because of the area’s high traffic counts.
“It’s underserved as far as quality pizza is concerned, and the amount of traffic as far as the number of homes in that area, Northwest Community College and the number of apartments within close proximity to that location,” Pippin said. “It’s just a high traffic area on Church Road and it’s expanding with other businesses as well.”
The goal is to add up to “half a dozen” additional Three Guys’ locations in the Memphis and surrounding areas, Pippin said, and then expanding from there.
The target date of the new Church Road location is the second week in January, Pippin said.
Also, Vergas Tax Service, owned by John Vergas and Marilyn Vergas, has signed a lease for 1,200 square feet at Mendenhall Center, 3824 S. Mendenhall Road.
Dyer and Israel represented the landlord and were the only brokers involved in the transaction.
• In other commercial leasing news, SunTrust Bank has signed a five-year lease at Stonebridge Crossing Shopping Center, 9005 U.S. 64, to occupy 1,920 square feet.
Matt Weathersby, principal with Cushman & Wakefield/Commercial Advisors LLC, represented the tenant. Gary Shanks, broker with The Shopping Center Group LLC, represented the landlord, Westco-Lightman LLC.
Stonebridge Crossing is a 91,131-square-foot shopping center at U.S. 64 and Fletcher Trace Parkway near Berryhill Road that’s anchored by Kroger. Other tenants include Stellar Cellar Wine & Spirits, El Mexcal, Da Vita Dialysis and Three Guys Pizza Pies.
• And in other deals, women’s shoe boutique Shoenista’s has signed a 1,000-square-foot lease at 2294 Young Ave. in Midtown’s Cooper-Young district. The space formerly housed Victory Bicycle Studio.
Shoenista’s is in one of three bays off Young Avenue that’s owned by the Cooper-Young Community Association, which has one bay, as well as Charmed, an upscale resale clothing boutique.
Shoenista’s owner, Toni Hayes, went straight through the Cooper-Young Community Association to lease the space and was unrepresented in the deal.
“It’s funny because we opened on (Nov. 26) and I signed my lease on Nov. 7, so from idea to fruition, it took me three weeks,” Hayes said.
Shoenista’s was operating solely online for about a year but was missing the clientele that came with a brick-and-mortar store.
“We were shipping, but people here wanted to try on shoes and didn’t really want to pay for shipping, so we decided to open a small boutique,” Hayes said. “The thing that I like about us is that our shoes change every week because we only get one case of a particular style of shoe. We may have anywhere between 20 and 30 different styles, but it’s only 12 pairs of that one style of shoe. So, if they want it, they have to come in and get it because they go really fast.”
Hayes owned a shoe store a few years ago in Cordova that is no longer open. The second time around, she opted for the “intimate feel” of the Cooper-Young neighborhood.
“It’s a growing community, you’ve got a lot of great places over there, and it’s really easily accessible,” Hayes said. “To me, it’s right smack dab in the middle of the city. Regardless of where you’re coming from, instead of going to Bartlett or Cordova, it’s over there by Tiger Lane. I just thought it was so cute, it’s such a nice area and I love the Cooper-Young Community Association.”