Town & Country Crossing has struggled to find retailers after opening more than four years ago. The plaza has space for 310,000 square feet of shopping--up to 44 stores and restaurants. Only 29 shops, restaurants and a bank are currently open. In December 2011, the complex was purchased by Michigan-based Ramco-Gershenson Properties Trust for a reported $37.8 million. (Read Previous Story: Town and Country Crossing Shopping Center Sold) Representatives of Ramco-Gershenson are optimistic that they can turn the center into a “lifestyle destination” for evening entertainment, as well as unique …

Local construction companies are finally seeing signs of economic recovery in both the national and St. Louis market.  Clayco is working on two million square feet of construction projects in the St. Louis area, including the Missouri Baptist West Pavilion and the recently completed BJC’s Clinical Learning Institute, a nursing school also located on the Missouri Baptist Town & Country campus. The St. Louis Construction News reports that construction companies and architects should be seeing new business as out of town retailers move into the St. Louis region to occupy stores left vacant by …

Swim, Bike, Run, the unique fitness store for triathletes in Town and Country, is jumping on the January fitness craze bandwagon with a sale on bikes, shoes and winter apparel. The hard core customer base at Swim Bike Run never truly give up on fitness—after all, iron men don’t take a holiday. “The more serious ones who have goals stay active, but many runners take a break Thanksgiving to Christmas,” said Mary Ann Lambechts, a clerk at Swim Bike Run. “As soon as the New Year rolls around most start working at it again.” Staff at Gold’s Gym in Manchester report that their gym is seeing an …

The Bar Method was just finding its feet in January 2011. This unique ballet inspired exercise studio in Town and Country Crossings is the first of its kind in St. Louis. The studio is growing and owner Jessica Prasse is opening a second location in Brentwood this spring. In February, Patch checked into CODI the Boutique looking for Valentine bling. The handcrafted jewelry shop is the second location for local designer Courtney Hopson, who moved the store next to Whole Foods in Town and Country Crossing last fall, seeking better foot traffic. March saw the construction of Westminster …

Missouri Baptist Medical Center has been constructing a six-story “West Pavilion” on its flagship Town and Country campus since last spring. The tower will become the hospital’s new main entrance and will house operating rooms, procedure space and 96 patient rooms in 216,000 square feet of new space. The West Pavilion is scheduled for completion in 2013, but the first floor will open as soon as July 2012. As Missouri Baptist expands, nearby residents are contacting Town and Country - Manchester Patch with concerns. However, Missouri Baptist tells Patch it is working with neighbors to address …

Both Town and County boutiques and Manchester big box stores saw record—and well behaved—crowds during Black Friday 2011. “It was really busy the whole day,” said a clerk at Codi Jewelry in Town and Country Crossing. Though Codi didn’t advertise its sale, the store sent out special Black Friday alerts to customers who joined its email list. Managers at larger stores said they were pleased with the Black Friday turnout. “It went really smoothly, we had a crowd to the end of the building,” said a manager at Town and Country’s Target. “We had Door Buster items left over from the night, but they …

Black Friday has become the unofficial start of the holiday shopping season and according to urban myth, it’s also the day when retailers start to show a profit. Whether or not that’s true, the day after Thanksgiving has been the biggest shopping day before Christmas for the last eight years, according to ShopperTrak, a market research company. ShopperTrak’s research shows that Americans spent $10.69 billion dollars on Black Friday 2010—the largest amount spent on a day after Thanksgiving holiday shopping spree. ShopperTrak said the second biggest shopping day is known as Super Saturday, …

Ginger Bay Salon and Spa is a locally owned, full-service salon that’s been pampering customers since 1991. In 2008, the Kirkwood-based salon was purchased by attorney Laura Ortmann, who had been working as the company’s in-house counsel. Ortmann said she fell in love with the salon and gradually became more than just its attorney. She decided to make a career shift, and after five years at the salon, she accepted an offer to buy it rather than open her own law practice. Technically, Ortmann is still a lawyer, which is a great asset for a business owner, she said. “Law is not my focus—this is…

The demand for merchandise labeled “Missoni for Target” has been surprising, to say the least. Last Tuesday marked the first—and possibly last—day of Target's limited offering of budget-priced Missoni goods. The design house created pieces especially for Target and were sold at prices Target shoppers would expect. For example, a Missoni for Target infinity scarf sold for $25, while the same type of scarf at Neiman Marcus costs $200. Are they the same product? Of course not. The Target scarf is 100 percent rayon and half the length of the “real” Missoni scarf which is a blend of acrylic, …

The City of Town and Country will host a groundbreaking celebration for the Clayton Road Trail on September 15 at Longview Farm Park. The groundbreaking will start at 4:30 p.m. at the corner of Clayton and South Mason Roads. Refreshments will be served afterward until 6:30 p.m. at the Longview Farm House. The parks department requests that attendees send an RSVP to nixona@town-and-country.org if they wish to attend the groundbreaking event, which is free. This ceremony will mark the beginning of Phase 1 construction on the trail, which will run from Longview Park to just pass Topping Road, …

Last week, investors took the stock market on a wild ride after Standard & Poor’s Aug. 5 downgrade of the U.S. credit rating. The country lost its top AAA score, and for the first time ever, was dropped to the second-best rating of AA+. Investors reacted to a series of events through the week, starting with the credit downgrade, which sent the market plummeting by 634 points on Monday. It rebounded 429 points on Tuesday after the Federal Reserve announce it would leave interest rates low through 2013. Wednesday it crashed again by 519 points, then bounced back 423 points on Thursday following…

The planning and zoning departments in both Manchester and Town and Country have an economic aspect to them. In Manchester, the inclusion is quite obvious, the department is named Planning, Zoning and Economic Development. Besides keeping an eye on code enforcement and zoning restrictions in the city, the department also promotes business development. In Town and Country, the department is named Planning and Development, and it has the same goals as its neighbor to the south. “We do what we can to help businesses come into our city. A lot of that may be assistance with information about how …

Shop owners in Town and Country can join the “Biz Alert Program,” which is like a neighborhood watch for businesses. The program is an expanded version of a “Church Alert” system the Town and Country Police Department has been running since 2007. More than 900 businesses belong to the program. The program is simple. Concerned business owners sign up for email alerts sent out by the police department. The alerts notify them of any criminal activity affecting businesses, in the hope that they will call 911 if they see a criminals in or around their stores. The alerts might inform businesses of …

Sarah Bohn wanted to start a business she could pass on to her daughters. Bohn loves crunching numbers, so she took a practical approach to finding her new business, looking for something she could enjoy and expand throughout the years, but something that would still be financially viable in an uncertain economy. She decided to go with shoes, and Chic Feet was born. Bohn is a single mom with three daughters who are 4, 8 and 14. She already has one business, a private day care in Kirkwood. She said she had been saving up money to either use for down payment on a bigger home or to start up a …

Swim Bike Run, the first store in the St. Louis area to cater to triathletes, opened its doors this summer in Town and County. It caters to triathletes. The Ironman is the best known triathlon, a grueling race that involves a 2.4-mile swim, followed by a 112-mile bike race and capped off with a full marathon—without a break. Athletes in St. Louis can compete in shorter local races, such as the Tour de Kirkwood on July 24. The Kirkwood race is a sprint triathlon, with a 400-yard swim, 12-mile bike race and a 3-mile run. Swim Bike Run owner Sally Drake knows all about triathlons. She has …

A new MassageLuXe is slated to open in September at 921-931 Brittany Parkway in the Manchester Highlands shopping complex behind Costco. This leaves only three more vacant retail spaces and an undeveloped lot to fill in the shopping center. Manchester's Director of Planning, Zoning and Economic Development Franz Kraintz said that businesses are interested in the remaining spaces and should be moving in before long. MassageLuXe offers nine types of massage, including Swedish, hot stone, deep tissue and sports therapy. This location will also be the first in the area to offer a facial bar, …

Signs of economic recovery are cropping up all over the West County area as new businesses open their doors and vacant buildings find new tenants. Sushi Ai, an all-you-can-eat sushi bar, will open this fall at 471 Lafayette Center. Franz Kraintz, the director of Planning, Zoning and Economic Development for Manchester said Sushi Ai is in the process of being approved by the city and should receive its permits in July. Sushi Ai is a local restaurant with a location already in Maryland Heights. Massage Luxe will open soon in the Manchester Highlands. Massage Luxe offers massages, facials and …

There’s been a golf shop juggle going on lately on Manchester Road, with a local store moving down the street and a national giant moving in. Golf Discount of St. Louis closed its Manchester location in October and moved its inventory to its remaining locations in St. Peters and Mehlville. Store manager Todd Bentrup said the property at 13986 Manchester Road was owned by the bank, and the bank needed to sell off its assets, which forced Golf Discount to close the location. Bentrup said that though he lost his job when the store closed in the fall, he’s thankful that Golf Discount of St. Louis…

High gas prices do not translate into huge profits for gas station owners. In fact, according to the National Association of Convenience Stores the sale of gas accounts for only 26 percent of a convenience store’s pretax profits. This means the other 74 percent of their profits must come from the little extras that they sell inside the store—an area many drivers ignore in this age of pay-at-the-pump. So how do convenience stores lure drivers inside to buy that extra slushy and candy bar? Marketing, of course. A recently opened Energy Express Conoco station at 13970 Manchester Road has been …

St. Louis County is rolling out a new residential energy efficiency loan program to provide low-interest loans to qualified homeowners. Loans are to be used strictly for making “green” home improvements that improve the energy efficiency of a home. Sample projects would include sealing windows, replacing insulation or installing high efficiency water heaters. Loans will range from $2,500 to $15,000 per home, with an interest rate of 3.5 percent. They will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis. St. Louis County has $10.4 million in federal grant money to fund the program. Manchester’…