Broad River Retail, one of the largest licensees of Ashley Homestore, is opening a new dual-concept two-in-one store with Ashley + Ashley Outlet in Salisbury, North Carolina.
“We’ve been looking at this site since January 2020 and pressed pause on the negotiations/project back in September 2020 due to COVID,” explains Charlie Malouf, President and CEO of Broad River. “But we resurfaced the negotiations and acquired the property earlier this year, which is a former Kmart that’s 86,500 square feet
The Ashley store will occupy 45,000 square feet. And because the new location is in a shopping center that has a Big Lots, Office Depot, Harbor Freight, Panera Bread, Cookout, and Mattress Warehouse, Malouf says eventually the company hopes to have additional co-tenants in the other part of the former Kmart building, like a Ross Dress for Less.
Salisbury is the home to Cheerwine, Food Lion, and Rack Room Shoes was founded there. It’s located within the northwest border of Charlotte, North Carolina, the largest city in the state. In addition, the store is less than ¼ of a mile off of I-85, making it visible from the interstate.
The company plans to soft-open the store in early May 2023, before Memorial Day, with an official Grand Opening likely scheduled for late August 2023, before Labor Day.
“We’re ready to move forward now and construction has begun as of this month,” Malouf says.
